Big 12 Football: 50 best players of all-time
By Randy Gurzi
DL. Longhorns . Brian Orakpo. 26. player. 851.
Big 12 Football best players of all-time: 26. Brian Orakpo, DL, Texas football
Brian Orakpo joined the Longhorns at just the right time. His freshman season was in 2005 when they won the NCAA Championship. That was the year Vince Young took the nation by storm but he wasn’t exactly alone. Texas had some studs on defense that held Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush in check.
One of those defenders was Orakpo, who served as a rotational rusher that season as a freshman. His impact wasn’t huge just yet, recording 19 tackles and a sack, but his talent was on display as he won the Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year award. He saw more time as a sophomore and had five sacks with six going for a loss.
Injuries slowed him down the following season, as he had 27 tackles and 5.5 sacks in nine games. He still showed off his talent and set the table for the biggest season of his career. As a senior, Orakpo stayed healthy and put it all together. He registered 40 tackles with 17.5 going for a loss and 11.5 sacks.
He won a litany of awards that season which include: Consensus All-American honors, the Bronko Nagurski Award, the Vince Lombardi Award, the Ted Hendricks Award, and the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year award.
Following his tenure with Texas, Orakpo was taken 13th overall by the Washington Football Team and played six seasons there before spending four seasons with the Tennessee Titans.