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Emmanuel "Manny" Rugamba (born March 10, 1998) is a Rwandan-American professional gridiron football defensive back for the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League (CFL).[1] He played college football at Miami (OH) and was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Cleveland Browns after the 2021 NFL draft, becoming the first Rwandan to be signed to an NFL team.[2][3][1]
 Rugamba with the Lions in 2023 | |
| No. 33 – BC Lions | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Defensive back |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | May 10, 1998 Zambia[1] |
| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
| Weight: | 192 lb (87 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Naperville Central (Naperville, Illinois) |
| College: | Miami (OH) Iowa |
| Undrafted: | 2021 |
| Career history | |
| |
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |
| Roster status: | Active |
| CFL status: | American |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Stats at Pro Football Reference | |
| Stats at CFL.ca | |
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Rugamba is of Rwandan descent but was born in a refugee camp in Zambia after his family was displaced by the Rwandan Civil War. After spending two years at the camp, his family moved to the U.S.[4]
Rugamba was ranked as a three–star recruit by 247Sports.com coming out of high school.[5] He committed to Iowa on August 1, 2015 and converted from wide receiver to cornerback.[6] After two seasons at Iowa, Rugamba decided to transfer from Iowa on May 13, 2018.[7] He committed to Miami (OH) shortly thereafter.[8]
Cleveland Browns
Rugamba was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Cleveland Browns on May 3, 2021.[9] He was waived by the Browns on August 31, 2021.[10]
BC Lions
On February 17, 2022, it was announced that Rugamba had signed with the BC Lions.[11] He began the season on the practice roster, but made his regular season debut on August 13, 2022, against the Calgary Stampeders where he had two defensive tackles.[12] He was named a CFL West All-Star in 2023.
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