Roman "RJ" Oben Jr. (born June 17, 2001) is an American professional football defensive end. He played college football for the Duke Blue Devils and Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
Early life Raised in Montclair, New Jersey, Oben attended St. Peter's Preparatory School.RJ Oben, Notre Dame Fighting Irish football. Accessed January 27, 2024. Coming out of high school, he was rated as a three-star recruit and committed to play college football for the Duke Blue Devils.
College career Duke As a freshman in 2019, Oben played in four games, making just one tackle before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury. In 2020, he made four tackles with half a tackle being for a loss. In 2021, Oben totaled 25 tackles, with seven going for a loss, five sacks, three forced fumbles, an interception, and a pass breakup. In 2022, he notched 20 tackles with six and a half being for a loss, four and a half sacks, and two forced fumbles. In 2023, Oben tallied 17 tackles, with six going for a loss, and five sacks. After the season, he entered the NCAA transfer portal.
In Oben's career with the Blue Devils, he recorded 67 tackles with 20 being for a loss, 14 sacks, five forced fumbles, and an interception.
Notre Dame Oben transferred to play for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
College statistics Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles GP GS Total Solo Ast Sack PD Int Yds TD FF FR TD 2019 Duke 4 0 1 0 1 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2020 Duke 9 0 4 1 3 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2021 Duke 12 10 25 14 11 5.0 0 1 8 0 3 0 0 2022 Duke 13 12 20 11 9 4.5 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 2023 Duke 12 11 17 7 10 5.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2024 Notre Dame 16 14 19 10 9 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0Career 66 47 86 43 43 15.5 1 1 8 0 6 0 0
Professional career
On January 14, 2026, Oben was selected by the Louisville Kings of the United Football League (UFL). He was released on April 28.
Personal life RJ is short for 'Roman Junior' and is the son of former NFL offensive tackle Roman Oben.
References
External links Duke Blue Devils bio Notre Dame Fighting Irish bio