Image via Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan offensive lineman Dodji Dahoue, whose giant frame stands out on paper as much as it does on the field, is now a New York Giant.
Seems almost unimaginable compared to where he started.
The CliffNotes version of the story is this: Once upon a time, Dodji Dahoue was a regular community college student at Santa Rosa College in California when some of the school’s football players realized how much better he was than they were. He hadn’t thought too much about it before, because the eventual 6-foot-9, 300-pound NFL signee didn’t grow up around football.
Dahoue, born in France, spent a handful of years of his life in the United States, where he lived in Washington D.C. Then he spent most of his life in West African country Mali. Organized sports, not just football, was not a part of his life growing up as much as pick-up soccer would be.
But when he had the chance to go to college, he chose a junior college that was known for its engineering, an industry Dahoue’s father has had success in.
Initially, tried the game out as a tight end, but was the team’s top freshman as a lineman in 2022, then reach all-league levels in 2023. With EMU the last two seasons, he got into six games in the 2024 season, and made five starts at right tackle before going down with a season-ending injury.
EMU, so far, has had three players get into the NFL this year. Yesterday, All-MAC running back Dontae McMillan signed with the Baltimore Ravens, and All-MAC offensive guard Mickey Rewolinski received a minicamp tryout with the Seattle Seahawks.