Chuka Ndulue - Football Coach - Southern Illinois University Athletics

Chuka Ndulue

Title:
Defensive Line
Email:
chuka.ndulue@siu.edu
Phone:
618-453-7979

Chuka Ndulue (CHOO-kuh en-DOO-loo-ay) guided a Salukis defensive line in 2019 that featured a pair of All-Conference players in tackle Malik Haynes and defensive end Anthony Knighton. A senior in 2021, Knighton is on pace to become the school’s all-time sacks leader.

Ndulue was named SIU’s defensive line coach on Jan. 10, 2019. He spent the 2018 season as a graduate assistant on the Nebraska coaching staff, where he served under first-year head coach Scott Frost, the 2017 AFCA Coach of the Year at Central Florida.

Ndulue played collegiately at Oklahoma from 2010 to 2014 and was a team captain and three-year starter for the Sooners. He totaled 140 tackles in his career, including 17.0 for loss and 12.0 sacks. A two-time second-team All-Big 12 selection, Ndulue set an Oklahoma defensive lineman record with 15 tackles in a game. He helped the Sooners to a 51-15 record in his career and won three bowl games and a pair of Big 12 titles.

Following his Oklahoma career, Ndulue signed with the Denver Broncos and spent a total of three seasons in the NFL before entering the coaching ranks as a volunteer assistant to the defense at his alma mater. He helped the Sooners win the 2017 Big 12 Conference title and play in a 2018 College Football Playoff semifinal.

“Chuka is one of the best up-and-coming defensive line coaches,” Hill said. “He was a big-time player at Oklahoma and then bounced around the NFL before becoming a coach. He’s been at the highest level as a player and a coach and had some outstanding mentors.”