Yosh Nijman is seen here during a summer practice for the CHS Cougars in 2013.
MAPLEWOOD/SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — The odds of a football player making it to the NFL are minuscule. About 1.5 percent of all NCAA players get to make it to the NFL.
Yet, Columbia High School can proudly say one of its own is currently playing in the NFL.
Yosh Njiman, a 2014 CHS graduate, is an offensive tackle for the Green Bay Packers. The 6-foot-7, 314 pounder wears uniform No. 73, in case you happen to watch a Packers game on TV this season. His first name rhymes with “Josh.”
This is Nijman’s second year in the NFL, both with the Packers. He made the Packers roster as an undrafted free agent.
This season, Njiman has started three games for the Packers, protecting his quarterback, future Hall-of-Famer and last season’s Most Valuable Player Aaron Rodgers. He made his first start in week 3 against the 49ers and started the next two games, against the Steelers and the Bengals. In those three starts, the Packers won each game.
Following his graduation from Columbia, where he played for the Cougars, Nijman continued his career at Virginia Tech, where he played in 45 games with 32 starts.
Photo by Joe Ragozzino
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