Ikem Ekwonu OG NC State: Scouting Report

Height: 6’4’’

Weight: 320

Overall

Ikem Ekwonu played as both the left guard and left tackle in NC State’s balanced offense. In his 3 college seasons, he played in 36 games, starting 31 of them. While only 4 of his starts being at guard and the rest being at tackle, he projects best as an interior lineman at the next level. He is a good athlete and showed the ability to block out in space and can be used as a pulling lineman.

Pass Game

When lined up at tackle, Ekwonu showed very poor footwork in pass protection and lacked the balance needed to block against experienced edge rushers. When getting to his pass set, his feet get far too narrow and makes him off balanced. He had very inconsistent hand placement and was constantly beaten by simple pass rushing moves. His lack of size and length is also a cause for concern if he were to stay at tackle. His lack of size and poor pass protection ability can be better hidden with a move to guard but he still needs to vastly improve his technique and balance before he can be a reliable lineman in the NFL.

Run Game

While Ekwonu shows a lot of struggles in pass protection, he excels in his run blocking. He has excellent strength and block temperament that consistently opens up running lanes and eliminates his defender from the play. He does a good job of driving his man up field and he has the athleticism to get to the second level to continue opening up space for the running back. At times, he will overrun his man which leads to defenders beating him inside but with improved balance, this should not be an issue at the next level. He is a true mauler type offensive lineman, and with a move to guard, he can be a dominant run blocker early in his professional career.

Last Word

With Ekwonu’s lack of size and poor footwork, he projects best as a guard in the pros. Moving to guard will give him more room for error in pass protection while still allowing him to dominate in the run game. At guard he can be a strong starter early on in his career with the ability to grow into a dominant lineman later in his career.

One-Liner: With a move to guard, Ikem Ekwonu can be a dominant run blocker with the potential of developing into an all-around player with improvements to his technique.

Grade: 7.0 (High End 3 Down Starter)

Games Watched: 2021 – Mississippi State, Miami, Florida State, Clemson

Team Fits: New York Jets, New York Giants, Detroit Lions