American football player (born 1978)
American football player
Chidi Francis Iwuoma (born February 19, 1978) is a former American football cornerback who is currently a scout for BLESTO . He was signed by the Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent in 2001. He played college football at California .
Iwuoma has also played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Pittsburgh Steelers , New England Patriots , St. Louis Rams and Tennessee Titans . He won Super Bowl XL over the Seattle Seahawks with the Steelers.[ 1]
Early life
Iwuoma's parents were Nigerian immigrants. Chidi Iwuoma attended Pasadena High School in Pasadena, California .[ 2] He then attended the University of California, Berkeley where he played football. At California, Iwuoma returned kicks and punts while also playing cornerback.[ 3]
Chidi Iwuoma is a member of Iota Phi Theta fraternity.[ 4]
Professional career
Detroit Lions
Iwuoma signed with the Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent following the 2001 NFL draft .[ 5]
Pittsburgh Steelers
Iwuoma primarily played on special teams while with the Pittsburgh Steelers . He earned a Super Bowl ring with the Steelers following the 2005 season. Iwuoma was elected the special teams co-captain for two consecutive seasons.[ 5] In 2006, he underwent shoulder surgery but returned in time for pre-season camp. During the pre-season he suffered a concussion and was released on September 6.[ 6]
New England Patriots
Iwuoma signed with the New England Patriots on October 4, 2006.[ 7] He was released on October 31.[ 8]
St. Louis Rams
A few weeks after his release from the Patriots, Iwuoma signed with the St. Louis Rams on November 14.[ 9] He was released again on November 28.[ 10]
Return to Pittsburgh
On December 5, 2006, with four games remaining in the season, the Steelers re-signed Iwuoma.[ 11] Iwuoma ended his 2006 season with the Steelers but dislocated his wrist.[ 12] He was re-signed on March 16, 2007, as an unrestricted free agent .[ 5] The Steelers waived Iwuoma as a final cut on September 2.[ 13]
Tennessee Titans
He was signed by the Titans on December 26, 2007.[ 14] He became an unrestricted free agent after the season.[ 15]
NFL career statistics
Regular season
Year
Team
Games
Tackles
Interceptions
Fumbles
GP
GS
Cmb
Solo
Ast
Sck
TFL
Int
Yds
TD
Lng
PD
FF
FR
Yds
TD
2001
DET
13
1
12
11
1
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
2002
PIT
13
0
17
13
4
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2003
PIT
15
0
14
11
3
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
2004
PIT
14
0
21
17
4
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
2005
PIT
16
0
15
12
3
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
2006
PIT
2
0
3
2
1
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
NWE
3
0
1
1
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2007
TEN
1
0
2
2
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
77
1
85
69
16
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
2
2
1
0
0
Playoffs
Year
Team
Games
Tackles
Interceptions
Fumbles
GP
GS
Cmb
Solo
Ast
Sck
TFL
Int
Yds
TD
Lng
PD
FF
FR
Yds
TD
2002
PIT
2
0
1
1
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2004
PIT
1
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2005
PIT
4
0
5
3
2
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2007
TEN
1
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
8
0
6
4
2
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
After professional career
Iwuoma worked with the University of California's Athletic Study Center from 2009 to 2012, where he served as assistant director of Student-Athlete Development. In May 2013 he joined the Steelers as their designated BLESTO scout.[ 16]
References
^ "Chidi Iwuoma" . NFL. Retrieved April 11, 2010 .
^ "Chidi Iwuoma" . Cal Golden Bears. Archived from the original on June 9, 2012. Retrieved August 4, 2011 .
^ Green, Jared (September 1, 2000). "Stepping out of the shadows, into the spotlight" . The Berkeley Daily Planet. Retrieved April 11, 2010 .
^ "National Pan Hellenic Organizations | Iota Phi Theta | Prominent Members" . Archived from the original on July 23, 2011. Retrieved 2011-05-02 .
^ a b c "Steelers Re-Sign Chidi Iwuoma" . WPXI.com. March 16, 2007. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved April 11, 2010 .
^ "Steelers sign St. Pierre, cut Iwuoma" . The Pittsburgh Tribune. September 7, 2006. Archived from the original on September 8, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2010 .
^ "Patriots sign veteran free agent CB Chidi Iwuoma; Sign first-year OT Sean Bubin to practice squad" . Patriots.com. October 4, 2006. Archived from the original on September 7, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2010 .
^ "Patriots release CB Chidi Iwuoma and C Brian Barthelmes" . Patriots.com. October 31, 2006. Archived from the original on September 11, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2010 .
^ "Panthers' Foster suffers elbow injury" . USA Today . October 20, 2006. Retrieved April 11, 2010 .
^ "Transactions" . New York Times . November 29, 2006. Retrieved April 11, 2010 .
^ Bouchette, Ed (December 5, 2006). "Steelers release Staley; add Mays, Iwuoma to roster" . Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . Retrieved April 11, 2010 .
^ "Steelers place Brown, Iwuoma on injured reserve list" . Pittsburgh Tribune. December 20, 2006. Retrieved April 11, 2010 .[permanent dead link ]
^ Dulac, Gerry (September 2, 2007). "Haynes, Okobi top list of cuts" . Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved April 11, 2010 .
^ "Titans sign former Steelers DB Iwuoma" . Pittsburgh Tribune. Associated Press. December 20, 2007. Archived from the original on December 28, 2007. Retrieved April 11, 2010 .
^ Ketchman, Vic (February 25, 2008). "This year's free-agent bargains" . Jaguars.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2010. Retrieved April 11, 2010 .
^ "Steelers Hire Chidi Iwuoma as BLESTO Scout" . Steelers News . Steelers.com. Archived from the original on June 8, 2013. Retrieved June 10, 2013 .