In case you don’t know, the Super Bowl is the final of the NFL, one of the biggest events in American culture.
Nigeria had two representatives at the Super Bowl LV which was played on Sunday, February 7, 2021, at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.
Derrick Nnadi and Alex Okafor both played for Kansas City Chiefs who lost 31-9 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers led by the great Tom Brady.
Thank you you for making my year so unbelievable! Looking for to next year! pic.twitter.com/GMFh34spHH
— Jim Ready (@JimReady7) February 8, 2021
Brady further solidified his status as the greatest sportsman of all time as he won his seventh National Football League (NFL) title in his 10th Super Bowl appearance.
Both Nnadi and Okafor were both on the Kansas City defense in the game that could not hold the Buc’s offense.
Although not born in Nigeria, both defenders are of Nigerian descent.
Nnadi was born to Nigerian parents who immigrated to the United States of America in the 1960s. The 24-year-old identifies with his Nigerian roots and sees his dad as his hero for how hard he worked when he first got the United States of America.
“My father is probably the most hard-working person I’ve met in my life,” Nnadi told Kansas City Star.
“He’s a stubborn man, so if I’m doing something good he’s like, ‘OK. Good job. Keep going. It’s a good job, but I want you to do better,.”
“I appreciate that, though. Coming into this level right here, my dad — every day I talk to him. He really tries to give me the right mindset, saying, ‘OK, you’re here. Now what?’”
He won the NFL title in 2020 with Kansas.
Okafor’s story is similar. His dad migrated to the United States from Nigeria when he was 19 to attend university. It was while schooling that he met his future wife and the mother of the NFL star.
He was ruled out with injury when Kansas City won the title in 2020 but he got a ring for that win.
