‘He Is Yoked Up’: Weight Room Standout Armstrong Nnodim Starting to Standout on the Field

STILLWATER — One of my  favorite things to ask players during spring and fall camps is who is standing out in the weight room throughout the offseason, and just about everyone I’ve asked that to over the past few years was quick to mention Armstrong Nnodim.

Listed at 6-foot-2, 290 pounds, Nnodim said he has maxed out at 475 pounds on the bench, 675 pounds in squat and 365 pounds in power clean. For reference, the average male grizzly bear weighs between 400 and 600 pounds. So, go to your local zoo, take a look and know that is the type of weight this redshirt freshman is throwing around.

“It’s funny because my oldest brother used to be a body builder,” Nnodim said. “He had me lifting monster tires in like eighth grade. … My oldest brothers, they inspired me to, like, get this big and everything, so it’s really props to them.”

After redshirting in 2024, Nnodim has taken his strength to the field this season. He’s taken part in all 10 of the Cowboys’ games in 2025, recording six tackles, including two tackles for loss and a sack, while recording a trio of quarterback hurries.

He was an under-the-radar recruit in the 2024 recruiting class despite recording 135 tackles, 56 tackles for loss and 29 sacks in his final two seasons at John Horn High in Mesquite, Texas. He was a multisport athlete, as well, throwing shotput and discuss, wrestling and playing soccer. He finished third in the Texas state championship heavyweight bracket.

Nnodim committed to Rice in February of his junior year before he picked up an OSU offer after impressing at a camp in Stillwater that next summer. It was his first power conference offer and shortly after a visit to Stillwater, he pledged to be a Cowboy.

“Being an undersized guy, everybody overlooks that,” Nnodim said. “But when you combine hard work, work ethic, everything that comes with it, I feel like I have something that you can’t overlook. …

“I came to the Down and Dirty camp, showed off and it was like the first P4 school that took a chance on me, so it was just like, why not? Why not come here?”

Nnodim started studying software engineering in college but said he has since shifted to taking more business classes. Whenever he’s done playing football, his interim coach can think of at least one field Nnodim would fit right into.

“I want him to go be a leader of a business or a corporation, but you just look at him, you’d say he’ll be a lifetime bouncer at the doorway of a bar,” Doug Meacham said. “He’s a scary dude now. He comes in there, he is yoked up. I wouldn’t want any piece of that guy.

“Great kid. He’s another one of those guys, just like (Parker) Robertson and those guys. Always a smile, always energetic, always high-fiving, always in, always talking. Just a pleasure to coach and be around. You don’t have to move him along, you know what I’m saying? He’s already going. He’s a great kid, and man, he is yoked up, that guy.”