Football
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Indianapolis Colts selected Northwestern defensive lineman Adetomiwa Adebawore in the fourth round with the 110th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
With the 110th pick in the #NFLDraft the @Colts select…
ADETOMIWA ADEBAWORE#ProCats | #ForTheShoe pic.twitter.com/USbwP3LWSg
— Northwestern Football (@NUFBFamily) April 29, 2023
With Adebawore’s selection, the 2023 draft marks the 53rd time in program history that multiple Wildcats have been picked in the same draft, with Peter Skoronski being selected by the Tennessee Titans at No. 11 in Thursday’s first round.
A dominant force on Northwestern’s defensive line over the last four years, Adebawore capped his illustrious career with All-Big Ten Third Team honors in 2022. As a senior, he ranked third among Big Ten edge rushers with 27 run stops while adding 31 quarterback pressures, according to Pro Football Focus. He also set career-highs with 5.0 sacks, 9.0 tackles for loss and 38 total tackles.
Adebawore shot up boards with eye-popping performances at the Senior Bowl and NFL Combine this pre-draft season. At 6 feet, 2 inches and 280 pounds, he went viral with video clips showing him force back offensive linemen at the Senior Bowl, earning recognition by his peers as the National Team’s DL Practice Player of the Week.
At the Combine, he ranked top-five among defensive ends in the 40-yard dash (4.49 seconds), vertical jump (37.5 inches) and bench press (27 reps).
Adebawore arrived in Evanston as a three-star recruit in 2019 and appeared in eight games, starting three, as a true-first year. He continued to blossom as a sophomore during the Wildcats’ historic 2020 season, contributing 2.0 sacks, 6.0 tackles for loss and 17 tackles on the nation’s fifth ranked scoring defense. In 2021, he garnered an All-Big Ten Honorable Mention after leading the team with 4.5 sacks, 8.5 tackles for loss and two forced fumbles.
He concluded his collegiate career with 12.5 sacks and 24.5 tackles for loss in 36 games for the Wildcats.