Redskins' second-year guard Arie Kouandjio has accomplished a lot in his life.
The former four-star recruit won two national championships at the University of Alabama and was named an All-American his senior year before being drafted by the Redskins in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL draft.
But his biggest accomplishment may not have come on the football field.
On Tuesday, Kouandjio became an American citizen – completing a 14-year journey after his family emigrated from Cameroon when he was just six.
"They are both really cool," said Kouandjio on winning a national championship and becoming an American citizen.
Both are things "I'll have for the rest of my life," he said. "Something I can have pride in and tell my kids about. They're both pretty awesome."
While the process of becoming a citizen was long, it was also well worthwhile.
"It's pretty rewarding," said Kouandjio. "The process was pretty long. I had to get a green card initially. Since then, I have been waiting for my required time to elapse, and now I have my citizenship as of yesterday."
Kouandijo isn't the only one in the family that is going to be an American citizen. His younger brother and Buffalo Bills offensive tackle, Cyrus, is also in the process of obtaining citizenship.
"His application is already in; he's just waiting for the end of his tour," Kouandjio said. "Every [situation] is different."
When asked if he plans on being more outspoken on American issues now as a citizen, Kouandijo respectfully declined.
"No, I don't intend to. I try to stay away from politics," Kouandjio said with a smile.
