NFF National Scholar-Athletes
OT – Penn State University
3.45 GPA – Supply Chain & Info Systems
Head Coach: James Franklin | Athletics Director: Dr. Patrick Kraft
Faculty Athletics Representative: Dennis Scanlon
Recipient of the William Pearce Scholar-Athlete Award,
Endowed by William A. Schreyer
Ranking among the best blockers in the country, Olumuyiwa (Olu) Fashanu has coupled his book smarts and a 3.45 GPA with his 6-foot-6, 317-pound frame and football prowess to land him at the top of every NFL team’s draft board. The Waldorf, Maryland, native and All-American now becomes Penn State’s 20th NFF National Scholar-Athlete, including 2013 Campbell Trophy® winner John Urschel.
Fashanu, a projected top 10 NFL Draft pick last year, put a priority on education and vowed to earn his diploma before going pro. He returned to Penn State to finish his undergraduate degree and start work on a master’s degree in supply chain & information systems, one of the most competitive and difficult majors at the school. He has continued to excel in the classroom, twice earning Academic All-Big Ten recognition and making the Dean’s List multiple times.
With a near flawless performance protecting the blindside at Penn State, including never allowing a sack in 281 pass blocking snaps in 2022, Fashanu earned Walter Camp Second Team All-American honors and Second Team All-Big Ten honors last year. He also claimed the 2022 Dick Maginnis Memorial Award as the team’s most outstanding offensive lineman. An All-ECAC pick in 2022, he was twice named the coaching staff’s Offensive Player of the Game last season.
The 2023 team captain, Fashanu anchors a Nittany Lions offensive unit that currently ranks second in the Big Ten in scoring (39.7 ppg) and ranks second in rushing (181.3 ypg) and fourth in total offense (400 ypg). He was also named the Outland Trophy National Player of the Week following Penn State’s dominant 31-0 victory over Iowa earlier this season. In 2022, he played a key role in the team’s 11-2 record, including a 35-21 victory over Utah in the Rose Bowl Game and a final No. 7 ranking. In 2021, he helped Penn State earn an appearance in the Outback Bowl.
A leader in the community, Fashanu has participated in Penn State’s Uplifting Athletes program to raise money to fight rare diseases and the THON Explorers Program, hosting Four Diamond families with a child fighting cancer. He also visited the Hershey’s Children Hospital multiple times and volunteered at a local homeless shelter.
(All Stats of Oct. 25, 2023)
