Prospect Spotlight: Chikezie Attama – Anoka (2021)

Two years ago, Anoka sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="23728" first="Chikezie" last="Attama"] had never played in an organized football game. Now, Attama is a two-year starter for the Tornados and has interest from Midwest colleges. "My friend recommended I play," Attama said. "He told me to ’just try it out.’ It wasn’t just me; he approached a whole group of friends to come out. He got a group of four guys out. One of the captains of the team also told me to try football. A group of us tried it out." Although he obviously had his struggles, it didn’t take long for Attama to get into the starting lineup. "It was my first year of football, so I struggled a little bit," Attama admitted. "Now, I am good with everything. I understand the plays and am more physical and more athletic. That was a big thing for me; I wasn’t big enough last year. I was 180 pounds, and now I am 220 pounds." "I was normally the weak side, outside linebacker," Attama continued. "The hardest thing for me to pick up were the plays. I wasn’t getting the concepts quick enough." Making his transition into football was made even more difficult because last year, the entire program was transitioning. "Since we had a new coaching staff, everything seemed rushed – we didn’t have enough time to practice," Attama told prepredzone.com. "We didn’t know where to put people. That set us back last year." Anoka struggled through a one-win year last season, but Attama hopes for better things this year. "We hit the weight room more and brought in a new program for the weight room. We had more guys in the weight room. We also installed a new playcalling system." The weight room was good for Attama. "This year, I am physical and am faster. I focused on my footwork to get faster off the ball. I worked on both linebacker and defensive back drills to help me with my footwork." Ever since the football season ended, the 6’3" senior has been in the weight room. "This winter, I was working out. I did a lot of squats, bench, and footwork drills – like ladders and cone drills. This spring, I would have been in track. I would have done long jump, triple jump, the 100 and the 400." Despite the restrictions of the spring and summer, Attama still got his work in. "When COVID started, I had a lot more free time, so I was able to work out and do a lot of seven on seven stuff." Attama expects his role to expand his senior season. "I think I will be playing outside linebacker and defensive end. We are going to need more defensive ends this year, so I will be playing some defensive end." Although recruiting has cooled off, the Tornado two-year starter has had some DII interest. "I have had some coaches looking at me. Bemidji State wanted me to come to a camp. Dakota State has been talking to me." As Attama gets more snaps under his belt, it should help the Anoka football team bounce back from a tough season in 2019 and help Attama get more attention from college programs. Not bad for a guy who has played just ten football games.