Mesidor is Ottawa's first first-round NFL draft pick
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- Akheem Mesidor was selected No. 22 overall by the Los Angeles Chargers in this year's NFL draft, becoming Ottawa's first first-round pick after six college seasons split between West Virginia and the University of Miami.
- Victor Tedondo, coach of Ottawa's Gridiron Academy, began training Mesidor at age 8 and became a father figure, driving him on 800-mile trips to U.S. camps and forcing a position switch from inside linebacker to defensive line after Mesidor lost three consecutive reps at age 14.
- In his final season at Miami in 2025, Mesidor led the team with 17.5 tackles for loss and 12.5 sacks as the Hurricanes reached the College Football Playoff National Championship game, with his versatility across the defensive line making him attractive to NFL scouts.
- Brian Belway became the first Ottawa-born player to appear in an NFL regular-season game in 1987 as a strike replacement for the Los Angeles Raiders, and it took 30 years before defensive tackle Eli Ankou made the Jacksonville Jaguars roster as an undrafted free agent in 2017.
- Neville Gallimore became Ottawa's first drafted player when Dallas selected him in the third round of the 2020 draft, and this summer five Ottawa-bred players — Mesidor, Gallimore, Patriots linebacker Jesse Luketa, Rams outside linebacker Wesley Bailey and Dolphins defensive tackle Rene Konga — are on NFL training camp rosters.
- Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh, who once offered a Gridiron Academy player a scholarship to Michigan while Mesidor watched, praised Mesidor's "flashes of elite" quickness and called him "very polished" in his pass-rush arsenal.
Why it matters: Mesidor's selection by Jim Harbaugh — who once recruited another Gridiron Academy player to Michigan — extends an Ottawa NFL pipeline that went 30 years between active players after Brian Belway's 1987 debut. Five Ottawa-bred players now populate training camps, with athletes and coaches crediting new youth academies and visible pro paths rather than a sudden talent surge.
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