Los Angeles Chargers Select UCLA DL Otito Ogbonnia in 5th Round of NFL Draft

Ogbonnia becomes the third Bruin to get drafted by the Chargers in the past five years, joining Joshua Kelley a few miles away from Westwood.

One Bruin doesn't have to go very far to start his pro career.

The Los Angeles Chargers selected UCLA football defensive lineman Otito Ogbonnia with the No. 160 overall pick in the 5th round of the 2022 NFL Draft on Saturday. Ogbonnia is the third Bruin to come off the board, following in the footsteps of Denver Broncos tight end Greg Dulcich and Green Bay Packers offensive lineman Sean Rhyan.

Ogbonnia is the second UCLA defensive lineman to get picked in the last two drafts, with Osa Odighizuwa going to the Dallas Cowboys in the third round in 2021.

The Chargers have now picked three hometown players in the past five drafts, selecting center Scott Quessenberry in 2018 and running back Joshua Kelley in 2020.

TITTTTOOOOOOO pic.twitter.com/WvHgBRiJYw

— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) April 30, 2022

Ogbonnia is one of only a small handful of players who has played every game of the four-year Chip Kelly era, holding a steady role since the start of his freshman season. The Houston native had more tackles his first year in the program than he did in either of the next two, remaining a consistent contributor throughout each of his first three campaigns.

Although he was not able to earn All-Pac-12 honors from the conference's coaches, Ogbonnia did make PFF's All-Pac-12 Second Team in 2021, a career year for the 6-foot-4, 320-pound lineman across the board. Ogbonnia totaled 30 tackles, 5.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, one forced fumble and one pass defended his senior year before heading to the Reese's Senior Bowl and NFL Scouting Combine.

Beyond the gridiron, Ogbonnia has experience as a power lifter and high-level shot put competitor. Ogbonnia won the 2019 U20 Pan American Shot Put Championships in Costa Rica with a 20.72-meter mark, then competed for UCLA track and field at the NCAA level. In the weight room, Ogbonnia has benched 440 pounds and squatted 683, leading to him winning the bench press among defensive lineman at the combine with 29 reps.

Ogbonnia, who played through a lower body injury for much of the 2021 campaign, hurt his right hamstring during a drill later in the combine. By the time UCLA's pro day rolled around a few weeks later, though, Ogbonnia was healthy enough to run a 5.31-second 40-yard dash and participate in positional drills.

Los Angeles ranked towards the bottom of the NFL in pass rush and disruption up front in 2021, and they have made several moves to fix that this offseason. The Chargers traded for All-Pro edge rusher Kahlil Mack to line up across from Pro Bowler Joey Bosa, then signed veterans Austin Johnson and Sebastian Joseph-Day to play on the interior.

The Chargers picked Boston College guard/tackle Zion Johnson, Baylor safety JT Woods and Texas A&M Isaiah Spiller with their first three picks of the weekend, making Ogbonnia the first rookie addition to their front seven.

Ogbonnia was the 11th defensive tackle to hear his name called and the third out of the Pac-12 after Arizona State's DJ Davidson and Stanford's Thomas Booker.

READ ALL BRUINS' NFL DRAFT PROFILE ON OTITO OGBONNIA

Safety Quentin Lake, safety Qwuantrezz Knight, running back Brittain Brown and offensive tackle Alec Anderson are the highest UCLA products remaining on the board, with others left in the pool as well.

Follow Connon on Twitter at @SamConnon
Follow All Bruins on Twitter at @SI_AllBruins
Like All Bruins on Facebook at @SI.AllBruins
Subscribe to All Bruins on YouTube

Read more UCLA stories: UCLA Bruins on Sports Illustrated
Read more UCLA football stories: UCLA Football on Sports Illustrated