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University of Illinois Athletics

2019 Football Roster

Craig Pessman / Illinois Athletics

47 Oluwole Betiku Jr.

  • Ht./Wt. 6-3 / 250
  • Position DL
  • Hometown Lagos, Nigeria
  • High School Serra HS (Calif.)

Biography

Pronunciation: OH-loo-WOE-lay  buh-TEE-koo

Career Highs

Tackles: 6, twice (last vs Eastern Michigan, 9/14/19)
Solos: 4 vs. Akron, 8/31/19
TFLs: 3.5 at UConn, 9/7/19
Sacks: 3.5 at UConn, 9/7/19
QB Hurries: 2 vs. Akron, 8/31/19
Fumbles Recovered: 1, twice (last vs Nebraska, 9/21/19)

2019 Redshirt Junior

  • Declared for the 2020 NFL Draft after one season at Illinois. 
  • Played in 10 games and started nine at defensive end
  • Missed three games with an injury
  • All-Big Ten third team (media)
  • 36 tackles, 13.0 TFLs, 9.0 sacks, seven quarterback hurries on the season
  • 11th in the nation and second in the Big Ten in sacks per game (0.90) 
  • 22nd in the nation and fifth in the Big Ten in TFLs per game (1.3)
  • Tied for seventh in Illinois single-season history with 9.0 sacks
  • Sack vs. No. 6 Wisconsin 10/19/19 to help Illinois win 24-23 and complete one of the biggest upsets in Big Ten History
  • Career-high 3.5 sacks at UConn 9/7/19, tied for the fifth-most sacks in a single game in Illinois history
  • Made Illinois debut in the season opener against Akron
  • Immediately eligible in 2019 as a graduate transfer with two years of eligibility remaining
  • Earned bachelor’s degree in international relations from USC in May 2019
  • Grad transfer is pursuing a master’s degree in recreation, sport & tourism at Illinois

2018 Junior (USC)

  • Did not play in a game after offseason hip surgery

2017 Sophomore (USC)

  • Backup outside linebacker as a sophomore in 2017
  • Played in 9 games (all but Stanford, Utah, Arizona, Stanford in the Pac-12 Championship Game and Ohio State)
  • Two tackles, including 0.5 for a loss
  • Tackles against Texas and California

2016 Freshman (USC)

  • Enrolled at USC in the spring of 2016 after graduating a semester early from high school
  • Reserve defensive end as a first-year freshman in 2016
  • Played in 5 games (Colorado, Arizona, California, Oregon, Notre Dame)
  • USC’s 2016 Defensive Service Team Player of the Year Award

High School

  • Five-star recruit by 247Sports Composite
  • No. 15 overall recruit in the nation, No. 1 weakside DE in the nation, and No. 2 recruit in California by 247Sports Composite
  • 2015 Prep Star Dream Team and Max Preps All-American
  • 2015 Maxwell Club National Player of the Year finalist
  • 2015 Orange County Register Fab 15 first team
  • 2015 Tacoma News Tribune Western 100
  • 2015 USA Today All-California Defensive Player of the Year
  • 2015 Cal-Hi Sports State Defensive Player of the Year
  • 2015 Cal-Hi Sports All-State first team, All-CIF Pac 5 Division
  • 2015 Fox Sports West/Prime Ticket All-CIF Def. Player of Year
  • 2015 Los Angeles Times All-Area first team
  • 2015 South Bay Daily Breeze Defensive Player of the Year
  • 2015 All-Mission League Lineman of the Year
  • 70 tackles, 28 TFLs, 17 sacks, two forced fumbles as a senior
  • 2014 Cal-Hi Sports All-State Junior first team
  • 2014 All-CIF Pac 5 Division
  • 2014 South Bay Daily Breeze All-South Bay first team
  • 2014 All-Mission League Co-Lineman of the Year
  • 59 tackles, 24 TFLs, 11.5 sacks, two PBUs, one forced fumble
  • Attended Bishop McNamara High in Forestville (Md.) as a sophomore in 2013, but did not play football

Personal

  • Born June 22, 1997
  • Born in Lagos, Nigeria
  • Moved to the United States as a sophomore in high school
  • Played soccer and boxed in Nigeria
  • Plays piano and guitar
  • Avid painter
  • Majored in international relations at USC

Statistics

Season Statistics

Season Statistics

No statistics available for this season.

Career Statistics

There are no statistics available for this player.