THE KARLAFTIS FILE
U.S. Army Defensive All-American Game, Defensive Player of the Year, 2019
Second-team All-Big Ten, 2019, 2020
Third-team All-American, 2021
First-team, All-Big Ten, 2021
1st-round NFL Draft pick, No. 30
By Lenn Robbins
The Greek Freak is already taken and no one is stripping NBA superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo of that lofty moniker.
But Giannis might have a fellow Greek phenom in the NFL.
George Karlaftis might be the most intriguing rookie defender. In addition to being a disruptive defensive end, Karlaftis was a high school track star, winning back to back state championships in the shot put. He also was a star water polo player.
Karlaftis was a multi-tool wrecking ball at Purdue where he posted 97 tackles, 29 tackles for loss, 14 sacks and six passes defensed, pretty impressive stats for a 6-foot-4, 275-pound defender.
Guess the only question is, “Can he dunk?”