FOUNDERS
Find out more about who we are and how we got started.
Mike Orakpo
CEO & FOUNDER
Mike is a native of Houston, Texas and the brother of Brian Orakpo. In high school, he earned All-District honors as a junior and senior. He was also named one of the Top 20 linebackers in Texas.
Mike was a Division 1 athlete, attending both Colorado State and Texas State University. At Colorado State, he played a key role on a top defense as a sophomore and earned Third-Team All-Mountain West Conference honors. While attending Texas State his junior year, Mike earned All Sun Belt Conference Second Team honors and was elected team captain. During his senior year campaign, Mike was listed as the #10 Linebacker in the country and was apart of Fox Sports Best LineBacker Duo in the nation, before his season ending injury.
Mike’s record breaking seasons earned him the honor of being named the number 4 freak in the nation by Fox Sports. Mike wasn’t only known for his helmet flying hits on the field, but also as a true workout warrior. Off the field you could find him mentoring his peers and helping them reach their on-field goals. Mike received his Bachelor’s degree in Economics.
In 2015, he was the Assistant Football Coach (linebackers) at St. Pius X High School. It was his love and passion for seeing people achieve their fitness goals that birthed InnerGrind.
From 2016 to 2019, Mike operated InnerGrind as founder and CEO. Mike has since opened a new venture, Orakpo Performance, started in 2019, and is the head business coach at LifeChanger Academy since 2018.
In 2018, Mike started pursuing his dream of a means for athletes and coaches to connect and Athlete Connect was born. In 2018, he became the CEO & Founder of Athlete Connect to carry out his mission of offering one-on-one private sports coaching to athletes by qualified coaches.
Brian Orakpo
CO-OWNER
Brian is a native of Houston, Texas and is the brother of Mike Orakpo. Brian attended the University of Texas and was recognized as a unanimous All-American. He was part of the 2005 BCS National Championship Team, which is ranked as the Best College Football Game of all time.
While in college, Brian was also awarded the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, the Ted Hendricks award, and the Lombardi Award. His achievement of being awarded All-American honors in 2008 made him the first Texas Longhorn defensive end to earn All-American honors since 1995.
Brian was then drafted in the first round 13th overall to the Washington Redskins. After that, he signed with the Tennessee Titans and as team captain led a previously 3-13 team to their first playoff in nearly a decade. As a four time Pro Bowler and being ranked in the NFL top 100 players by his peers, Brian completed a memorable 10-year run as an accomplished NFL veteran and goes down as one of the top rushers in today’s game.
On December 31, 2018, Brian announced his retirement from the NFL after 10 memorable seasons. In 2018, he and his Tennessee Titans teammate, Michael Griffin, opened a franchise of Gigi’s Cupcakes outside Austin, Texas with their friend, Bryan Hynson.
Athlete Connect is the first time that Mike and Brian have been able to collaborate on a business venture. This unique personal coach app and will be able to share their passion for fitness and motivation.
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