Hero Kanu
| No. 93 – Texas Longhorns | |
|---|---|
| Position | Defensive tackle |
| Class |  |
| Personal information | |
| Born | September 14, 2004 |
Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
Listed weight | 299 lb (136 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Santa Margarita Catholic (Rancho Santa Margarita, California) |
| College |
|
| Awards and highlights | |
| Stats at ESPN | |
Hero Kanu (born September 14, 2004) is a German American football defensive tackle for the Texas Longhorns. He previously played for the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Early life
Kanu grew up in Germany where he used to be a soccer player. He started playing American football at the age of 14 after meeting Brandon Collier. Kanu moved to California in October 2020, where he played American football at the Santa Margarita Catholic High School in Rancho Santa Margarita, California. He was rated as a four-star recruit and the 105th overall prospect in the class of 2022[by whom?] and committed to play college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes over offers from other schools such as Georgia, Notre Dame, and USC.
College career
Ohio State
During his first three seasons with the Buckeyes from 2022 through 2024, Kanu appeared in 29 games, helping the Buckeyes win a National Championship, where he notched 14 tackles with one being for a loss, and a lone sack in the 2023 season versus Indiana. After the 2024 season, Kanu entered his name into the NCAA transfer portal.
Texas
Kanu transferred to play for the Texas Longhorns. In week 3 of the 2025 season, he notched two tackles for a loss and a sack in a win over UTEP. He ended the season with 30 tackles, including two sacks.
College statistics
| Year | Team | GP | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solo | Ast | Cmb | TfL | Sck | Int | Yds | Avg | TD | PD | FR | Yds | TD | FF | |||
| 2022 | Ohio State | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | Ohio State | 11 | 8 | 2 | 10 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | Ohio State | 15 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | Texas | 12 | 8 | 22 | 30 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 41 | 17 | 27 | 44 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
References
- 1 2 @BCollierPPI (September 14, 2021). "Happy 17th Birthday to @HeroKanu 1 of the youngest kids in the class of '22 the future for you is so bright! We first talked when you were 14 and now you doing exactly what we talked about! Go live it up! @PPIRecruits" (Tweet). Retrieved May 22, 2026 – via Twitter.
- ↑ Whittaker, LeVon. "Hero Kanu's unique journey from Germany to becoming a Longhorn". kxan sports.
- ↑ Kaufman, Joey (January 8, 2022). "Four-star defensive lineman Hero Kanu commits to Ohio State football for 2022 class". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved November 16, 2025.
- ↑ Rabinowitz, Bill (March 28, 2024). "DT Hero Kanu left soccer and Germany behind and is eager to make big splash for Ohio State". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved November 16, 2025.
- ↑ Eckert, David (January 29, 2025). "Texas football adds Ohio State transfer Hero Kanu. Here's what it means for the Longhorns". Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved November 16, 2025.
- ↑ Jones, Thomas. "Texas football: Longhorns mine former Ohio State player Hero Kanu for information". Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved November 16, 2025.
- ↑ Krajisnik, Stefan. "Ohio State football is losing a defensive lineman to the transfer portal". Cleveland.com. Retrieved November 16, 2025.
- ↑ Bohls, Kirk. "From birria tacos to tackles, aptly named UT lineman Hero Kanu adapts after transfer from Ohio State". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved November 16, 2025.
- ↑ Hipschman, Henry (September 17, 2025). "Texas Longhorns DT Hero Kanu Talks 'Personal Decision' to Leave Ohio State". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 16, 2025.