Robert Nkemdiche is the highest-rated recruit ever; What happened?
ATLANTA (BVM) – Robert Nkemdiche had a perfect 1.0000 prospect rating as a high school football player in the Class of 2013. A decade later, that’s still a rare feat considering that only five other players in high school football history have achieved that perfect scouting rate across all services.
Today, Nkemdiche is 28 years old and hasn’t revolutionized football as expected. So, what happened to Nkemdiche that turned him from the highest-rated high school football player of all-time to one of the biggest busts in NFL history – and where is Nkemdiche now?
Robert Nkemdiche in high school
Born in Atlanta, Nkemdiche played defensive end and running back at Grayson High School in Loganville. He showed massive explosiveness on the gridiron despite his 6-foot-4, 300-pound frame; Nkemdiche’s 247sports profile at the time of his senior season showed that he ran a speedy 4.65 40-yard time. Supposedly, he could squat a staggering 500 pounds as well as complete a 350-pound max bench press at just 18 years old.
Nkemdiche’s high school stats were monstrous. As a junior (2011-12), he registered 59 tackles, 18 sacks, 528 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns. During Nkemdiche’s senior season (2012-13), he recorded 59 tackles, 12 tackles for loss and seven sacks on defense, while on offense, he had 235 total rushing yards and 10 touchdowns.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3b3lo7uFoRw
By 2013, Nkemdiche earned his consensus overall No. 1 player ranking. This led to DI offers from powerhouses such as Georgia, Alabama, LSU, Clemson and Texas. Surprisingly, he chose the University of Mississippi to carry on his talents.
Robert Nkemdiche at Ole Miss
Ole Miss fans were ecstatic that Nkemdiche was joining the Rebels, considering that they hadn’t seen as hyped of a player since Eli Manning in 1999.
For his 2013-14 freshman season, Nkemdiche played in 11 games and tallied 34 tackles, two sacks, two pass breakups and three QB hurries on the season. As a sophomore, he started every game at the defensive tackle position and helped Ole Miss lead the nation in scoring defense (16.0 ppg) and the SEC in tackles for loss (7.6/game).
During his third and final season at Ole Miss, Nkemdiche found himself in trouble with the law. First, he fell 15 feet to the ground after purposely flinging himself out of a window. Second, he was also charged with drug possession – which led to his suspension from Ole Miss’ 2016 Sugar Bowl game. He finished the season with only 26 tackles, 3 sacks and 1 pass defended.
Nkemdiche chose to forgo his senior season and enter the 2016 NFL Draft. He was named by NFL.com as the No. 7 most freakish athlete and No. 11 scariest player in college football.
Where is Robert Nkemdiche now?
Today, Nkemdiche is a free agent, which can be summed up due to multiple injuries and his inability to stay in shape.
Nkemdiche was picked 29th overall by the Arizona Cardinals in the 2016 NFL Draft. But after three seasons with the Cardinals, he only had 10 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks across 27 games (six starts). The Cardinals released him in 2019 after showing up to camp “not in shape.”
He was then picked up by the Miami Dolphins but was released after he couldn’t run across the width of an NFL field and back during a preseason warmup. In 2021, Nkemdiche signed with the Seattle Seahawks, where he played in nine games and tallied 15 tackles.
His last chance with an NFL team came more recently in 2022 when he signed with the San Francisco 49ers, however, he was released later that same year. In six seasons since being drafted, Nkemdiche has underwhelmingly played in 38 games and made just 59 tackles and 4.5 sacks.
Today, Nkemdiche keeps his life private on social media. Ironically, the football player who had an inability to stay in shape now actually looks more in shape than ever before – by the looks of his Instagram.
In terms of a comeback, Nkemdiche hasn’t officially retired on the record yet, so he could return to the NFL or even another pro league. For now, Nkemdiche remains as another example of wasted potential. At its surface, it seems like he took his natural talents for granted while those with lesser skills caught up to him.
