Moynihan Scholar-Athlete: Punishing Central lineman Osayimwen aspires to become a doctor
Apr. 18—On the field, Central Catholic senior Osamuyimen "Uyi" Osayimwen specializes in dishing out punishment.
The hulking 6-foot-1, 270-pound Methuen resident is currently in his third season anchoring Central's offensive and defensive line. He was an Eagle-Tribune All-Star as a junior, and this "Fall 2" season he has led a Raiders' squad that would be a state championship favorite if there was a postseason to a 6-0 record.
As intimidating as he is on the field, however, Osayimwen has another passion he plans to pursue off the field.
He wants to heal.
"I want to become a doctor," said Osayimwen, who will play football at academic elite Williams College. "Becoming an orthopedic surgeon would be ideal, but anything would suffice as long as I get to help people."
Our Moynihan Scholar-Athlete of the month for April certainly has an impressive academic resume at Central.
He's currently enrolled in Advanced Placement chemistry, calculus, biology and English literature. He owns a 4.32 weighted GPA and is a member of the National Honor Society.
"I'm a big science guy," he said. "I love asking questions and finding out the why. In science, you see how things interact and how different processes unfold. You can always go deeper and find out what makes these functions occur."
Osayimwen, the son of Nigerian immigrants, was inspired to pursue a career in medicine by major life events.
"Going back to Nigeria and seeing the vast amount of people who don't have access to medical care really resonated with me," he said. "It gave me this sense at a young age that these were my people and I should help them any way I can.
"Another major reason I was motivated to pursue medicine was the death of my uncle. He died from cancer at a really young age at the end of graduate school. He made it a goal to earn his masters in engineering before he died, and he did. His strength and determination inspires me to this day."
"My interest in the medical field obviously has something to do with my passion for science, but a major reason is my family. I have a bunch of family in the medical field, from doctors to nurses. Some aunts and uncles have spoken to me about their journey and how to navigate the field. My parents' journey definitely inspired me to have some resilience."
Football has also been an influence.
"Football has definitely had an impact on the type of doctor I aspire to be," he said. "I've seen a lot of injuries, and have had many of my own. So learning about the human body in that regard has become really interesting. I know there are lots of jobs that are surrounded by athletes and people with injuries. I want to be able to fix the problem and be a big problem solver."
At Central, Osayimwen has served as a leader for Catwalk4Cancer, Student Ambassadors, Campus Ministry, Student Alumni Association and SCOPE (Student's Can Open People's Eyes).
A shot putter in track, he placed third at MVCs (46-11) and fourth at Division 2s (45-5.75) during the 2019-20 indoor season.
Osayimwen said he had contact with a number of Division 1 college football programs, including Ivy League schools. But with COVID-19 severely limiting recruiting, he ultimately chose Division 3 Williams.
"I'm happy and wholeheartedly believe Williams is the school and football program for me," he said. "Williams' football is spectacular, as good as you're going to get at the Division 3 level. The rich football tradition in the NESCAC is intriguing, and I certainly can't wait for the Williams vs. Amherst game.
"Schoolwork and football is 100% a grind, but it's one I wouldn't trade for the world. There are some nights after practice where I don't want to study or even look at a book. But I force myself to get up and not only do my work, but do it well. I have gone to school on two or three hours of sleep before, and it was not fun."
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