Noah Knigga: High school sports star clears up how to pronounce his name in interview with Robert Griffin III after going viral online ahead of West Virginia college visit
- Knigga has attracted attention in recent weeks for his controversial surname
- But the two-sport sensation has revealed it’s safe to say if pronounced correctly
- DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news
High school sports star Noah Knigga has gone viral in recent weeks after revealing he would be attending West Virginia University later this month.
And ahead of that trip, the football and basketball sensation has finally answered the million-dollar question: How do you pronounce his last name?
Since announcing his plan to visit West Virginia on Jan. 14, Knigga has received a lot of attention online for his distinctive last name, which could sound like an offensive racial slur if pronounced a certain way.
“Bro why is that your last name,” one user replied to a post that has now racked up nearly 30 million impressions on X.
“How do announcers say your last name,” another fan asked. “Do they just skip over it?”
High school athlete Noah Knigga has finally figured out how to pronounce his last name
Noah revealed in an interview with Robert Griffin III that his last name can be safely pronounced if pronounced correctly
So as he prepares to map out West Virginia, Knigga finally cleared up how to pronounce his controversial last name in an interview with former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III — and it’s safe to say if it was done correctly.
“It’s Kuh-nay-guh,” he said as he sat next to his family.
Griffin then replied, “You see, that’s the key. It’s Kuh-nay-guh, please. Now we’re vibrating a little bit.
“I know this might ruin the name for some people, but I don’t think it ruins the name at all.”
After teasing the family by asking if they’ve ever been to Paris, referencing a famous 2011 song by Jay-Z and Kanye West, Griffin then wanted to know if anyone had ever reacted angrily to the name after reading it .
“I don’t think they got mad,” Noah’s father said. “A couple guys came up to me and said, ‘Hey man, what’s going on here?’
“But I don’t think anyone ever got angry.”
Noah is drawing interest from some Division I schools to play football after becoming a Junior All-State Team selection this season as a linebacker at the 3A level at Indiana despite playing in just six games due to injury.
The youngster isn’t just talented on the football field, however, as he also won the MVP award at a basketball tournament this weekend.