North Kansas City’s Adepoju Adebawore progresses to next stage of football career at OU

You might think that a high school football player with the unofficial title of “Highest Profile Recruit in Kansas City History” would arrive on the scene like a supernova, making highlight videos go viral as a freshman and inspiring countless message-board threads for college football fanatics across the country.

To be clear, North Kansas City High defensive end Adepoju Adebawore (pronounced adda-po-joo adda-bar-eh), now an early enrollee at the University of Oklahoma, did everything asked of him — on the field and off — to become such a highly touted prospect.

But four years ago, Adebawore (known as ‘PJ’ to family, friends, and teammates) was a tight end for the Hornets. And his potential was more like a distant freight train, one that Northtown coach Leon Douglas and his staff saw coming because of the work ethic, his talent and the fact that he was cut from the same cloth as older brother Adetomiwa, who went on to star at Northwestern.

“When he was incoming, Adetomiwa really set the table for PJ. Knowing what Adetomiwa was and became gave us a great understanding of what PJ could be,” Douglas said. “PJ was different athlete, leaner and honestly a little taller, whereas Tomi was thicker, shorter, more stout.”

In addition to his older brother, Adepoju learned from other Division I-level teammates like defensive end Domonique Orange (now at Iowa State) and defensive lineman Edric Hill (now at Alabama).

But all the ingredients really came together when Adebawore made the switch to defense before his junior season.

“He was around all those kids, he got in that room, he got next to those guys and he worked and trusted them and asked questions,” Douglas said.

It wasn’t long before Adebawore started wrecking games. Douglas recalls PJ learning some hard lessons early in his junior season against Raytown (and standout offensive lineman Logan Reichert, a Missouri pledge).

“I remember they read him, they did some different things, and I remember that game was his roughest game,” Douglas said. “But he did some good things.

“I told him, ‘When you get more comfortable, just wait.’ Against St. Joe Central the next week, he had five sacks. In those moments you weren’t surprised. You knew potential he possessed.”

But how did that potential turn into perhaps the highest recruiting ranking in city history? Put simply, Adebawore’s talent stood out everywhere: on game film, in high-profile summer camps and at All-America games.

“He jumped off the film and when you saw him in person, he jumped out,” On3 senior editor Jeremy Crabtree said. “When you’ve (followed high school recruiting) long enough, you know that’s what a dude is supposed to look like. When he gets a chance to show his skill on national stage, he lived up to his expectations and then more.”

Crabtree has covered Kansas City-area high schools for more than 30 years. All four major recruiting services have Adebawore listed as a five-star recruit. On3 ranks him at No. 4 nationally; followed by 247Sports (No. 9), ESPN (No. 20), and Rivals (No. 21).

Recruiting as we now know it started in the mid-2000’s, and the who’s-who of local prospects since then, well, those players are easily recognizable.

“His recruitment is on the same level, if not higher, than Drew Lock, Bubba Starling, Josh Freeman and Evan Boehm. To be put in that ballpark speaks volumes,” Crabtree said. “And when you see the rankings, it’s an unprecedented situation here for Kansas City, and I love it for high school football in our town.”

Adebawore’s future is bright, but wherever his journey takes him, Douglas knows he won’t be blinded by the accolades he collects. The University of Oklahoma athletic department declined to make Adebawore available for an interview for this story, but his former coach at Northtown is happy to sing his praises.

“He’s viewed as one of the top, if not the top, (players) to come out of Kansas City,” Douglas said. “But that doesn’t mean anything to him. He’s a guy, he’s a part of the team.

“He’s a guy that had to work for it. I’m excited for the opportunity and understanding that he’s going to maximize every experience to develop himself not only as a football player, but as a professional in some level of expertise. He’s going to challenge himself in classroom, live out a life of high character. That doesn’t mean he’s going to be perfect, but if he does have a setback, he’s coachable and attentive to where he can correct it.”

Adetomiwa keeps in touch with his younger brother as their careers progress. Both brothers are now poised to take the next step, with Adetomiwa preparing for the 2023 NFL Draft in his hometown — Kansas City will be this year’s host come April.

And he’ll definitely be watching Adepoju on Saturdays this fall.

“There’s really no limit on what he can do,” Adetomiwa said. “For him, it’s just work hard, stay healthy and keep having that want to get better.”