‘A child made in Sunday’: Former Gamecock Nick Emmanwori thriving in NFL for 1st place Seahawks

CHARLOTTE, NC (WOLO) – This weekend the Carolina Panthers welcome in one of the NFL’s best teams: The Seattle Seahawks.

But it’s also a homecoming for one of the league’s best young defensive players: Irmo, South Carolina product Nick Emmanwori.

The Seahawks rookie safety is taking the league by storm.

In the running for defensive rookie of the year, Emmanwori has racked up 50 tackles, 2.5 sacks, a blocked field goal and an interception.

Both for those who raised Nick, including his older brother Okachi, none of this is a surprise.

“The sky’s the limit for him man. He’s only scratching the surface,” Okachi said. “Overtime I just know he’ll transcend to maybe the best ever.”

Nick’s mother Justina says she always knew nick was special.

“Nick is a child made in Sunday,” Justina said, before recalling a metaphor she had for her son’s athleticism. “The cat’s back don’t touch the ground. That is Nicholas. He’s such a strong man that he can with 2-3 men one time. He’s built like that.”

Nick’s parents are Nigerian.

They moved to Greensboro North Carolina, where Nick was born, before eventually ending up in Irmo, South Carolina.

Nick, the youngest of five boys, learned the game of football from the now 24-year-old Okachi.

“We were kind of like the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” Okachi said. “I was Master Splinter and he was Raphael.”

Okachi played Division I football at Wofford, but knew Nick, with his eventual 6’3 220 pound build, was destined for bigger things.

“We used to play football on the street, barefoot. We used to go at it,” Okachi said. “He used to get me sometimes, I used to get him sometimes. Eventually he’s gonna surpass me. I knew it.”

Justina joked about the reassurance Okachi gave her about Nick.

“I’m scared of football,” Justina recalled thinking. “He said ‘mom, don’t worry about it. Nick is good.'”

South Carolina was Nick’s only power conference offer.

But the two time All-American proved his worth as a Gamecock.

“So they keep winning and winning. I say because my son is in that game, they will never lose a game. Because I know who is my son,” Justina said. “And the same thing now goes to Seahawk.”

Last spring, his impressive physical traits wowed NFL scouts, shooting him up the draft boards.

“We set the bar pretty high for him,” Okachi said. “His goal was to be a 1st round draft pick. Run a 4.3, jump 40. A lot of those things he checked a lot of those boxes. Everything came to fruition that we were wishing for.”

Now in Seattle, his play, and versatility, are doing the same thing.

Nick plays as a deep safety, nickle, corner, in the box run stopper, edge rusher and really whatever the Seahawks need him to do.

“Nick is probably going to be the most versatile defensive player to ever play the safety position, in my opinion,” Okachi said.

This week Nick and his first place Seahawks are back in his home state for potential playoff preview against the NFC south leading Carolina Panthers.

Okachi, who lives in Charlotte, knows how big Sunday will be for the Emmanwori family.

“It’s just gonna be a surreal moment for him and for me too,” Okachi said. “Who would have imagined my little brother is ripping it on the field and playing for one of the best teams in the NFC right now so.”

Justina won’t be able to make it back from Nigeria for this game, but says when the Seahawks make it to the Super Bowl, you’ll know where to find her.

“I might be far away from you but I’m there with you in spirit,” Justina said. “You keep doing what you’re doing.”