Isaiah Mustafa is an actor and former NFL player who was born on February 11, 1974, in Portland, Oregon. He was first in the public eye playing football in the position of wide receiver. He then appeared in television commercials and had small roles in television and film. He is now best-known for playing Luke Galloway in ‘Shadowhunters’, a fantasy series aired on Freeform. He has been a member of the cast in this series since 2016. Here are five more things you might not know about Isaiah Mustafa.
1. He is From a Large Family
Isaiah Mustafa is from a very large family as he is the youngest of seven children. He was raised in Portland, Oregon by his parents Shahidah Mustafa-Davis and John Wali Mustafa. The family owned a limousine company. Sadly, Mustafa’s father died when Isaiah was just a child as he fell asleep at the wheel of his car and crashed. Following his death, Mustafa, his mother, and his siblings moved to Mission Viejo in California.
2. He Played on Five Football Teams
Mustafa’s first career was as a professional football player in the NFL. However, he hadn’t intended to have a career in this sport. In fact, while he was at high school he didn’t even play football. While attending Santa Clara High School, he ran track and played basketball. It wasn’t until he was trying to get an athletic scholarship that he tried out for the football team at Moorpark College. When he was studying at Arizona State University, he played in the position of wide receiver for the Arizona State Sun Devils. He became a professional player he 1997 when he signed with his first team, ‘Tennessee Oilers’. The following year he played for ‘Barcelona Dragons’ before moving to ‘Oakland Raiders’ in 1999. In the same year, he also played for ‘Cleveland Browns. The final team he played for was ‘Seattle Seahawks’ in 2000.
3. He is ‘The Man Your Man Could Smell Like’
The work that Isaiah Mustafa is most recognized for is for being the man in the Old Spice commercials. His character became known as ‘The Man Your Man Could Smell Like’. He began appearing in these commercials in 2010 and the first commercial was directed by Tom Kuntz. He last appeared in one of these commercials alongside Terry Crews in 2015.
4. He is the Voice in a Video Game
Although he is best-known for his football career and television appearances, Isaiah Mustafa has also provided a voice for a video game. He was the voice of COG Gear for the 2011 video game ‘Gears of War 3′.
5. He is a Comic Book Fan
One of Mustafa’s personal passions is comic books and his knowledge about these has come in handy. He once appeared on the weakest link and was presented with a question about Doctor Frankenstein’s first name. When he knew the correct answer, he won $47,000. Mustafa had owned a restaurant called Jo Jo’s Barbecue in Los Angeles and it had just closed. Winning the money helped him to pursue his post-restaurateur dream of establishing an acting career.
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