Arnold Ebiketie is a rookie drafted with the 38th overall pick in second round of the NFL draft. The 6-2, 250-pound linebacker transferred to Penn State after three seasons at Temple and was named first-team All-Big Ten in 2021. He now starts at linebacker for the Falcons and has 2.5 sacks on the season, including 1.5 in the last two games. According to the Atlanta Falcons, “Ebiketie has turned up the heat lately, registering a sack and four other quarterback pressures last game against Chicago.” Ebiketie is dealing with an arm injury that has left him questionable for this Sunday’s game.
Ebiketie was a three-year letterwinner for Albert Einstein High under head coach Mike Bonavia. As a senior, he helped Einstein earn a 6-4 record while playing linebacker and wide receiver. He earned 2016 Co-Defensive Player of the Year and first-team All-Sentinel honors. Ebiketie was awarded Washington Post All-Metro honorable mention in his senior year, when he compiled 21.5 sacks, 36 tackles for loss, and logged 298 receiving yards and three TDs as a receiver on the other side of the ball. In his junior year at Einstein he had 9.5 sacks, 14 tackles for loss, three fumble recoveries, three pass deflections, and two blocked field goals during junior year. He also played basketball for Einstein and averaged 9.7 rebounds and 6.5 points in career as a power forward. Ebiketie participated in high jump and sprints in track and field. He transferred to Einstein from Richard Montgomery before his sophomore year.
