Akin Ayodele | #51 | Linebacker

Akin Ayodele joined the Cowboys as a free agent in 2007 after playing with the Jacksonville Jaguars for five years. He finished second on the Dallas Cowboys team with 106 tackles, which makes this his 6th consecutive 100-tackle season. He was a three-year starter with the Jaguars where he became the first player in Jaguars history to begin a career with four consecutive 100-tackle seasons, (108 tackles as a rookie in 2002, a career-high 150 in his first year as a starter in 2003, 131 in 2004 and 100 in 2005). He has played in all 70 regular season games since he was drafted.

His college career is littered with awards - named first-team All-Big Ten as a senior and second-team All-Conference as a sophomore and junior. He left Purdue tied for second on the school’s all-time sack list with 29 and was fourth in school history with 54 tackles behind the line of scrimmage. Ayodele finished his career with 194 tackles, five fumble recoveries, four forced fumbles and 11 pass deflections. He played in three bowl games while at Purdue. He earned second-team All America honors and was the Mission Conference Defensive Player of the Year as a redshirt freshman at Coffeyville Community College.

He also has a human side and started a scholarship in the name of a friend, Michael Tilmon, who was killed in a car accident. He visits the family of his friend often to make sure they are okay. His other philanthropic pursuits include donating $2,500 to the Muscular Dystrophy Association through Blue Cross/Blue Shield, making regular visits to Wolfson Children’s Hospital and local elementary and middle schools and actively supporting Foundation’s Playbooks and the charitable efforts of his teammates. He graduated from Purdue with a double major in sports psychology and law and society. His first name, Akinola, is an African word that means “a warrior who has gone through many wars and has never been defeated.” Guess he has no choice but to fulfill his destiny.