NFL's Chris Ogbonnaya -- EPIC PRANK ON CAM NEWTON ... Surprise, I'm Not From Africa!

Cam Newton is totally gonna freak when he sees this ...

His ex-Carolina Panthers teammate Chris Ogbonnaya told TMZ Sports he pulled off the most elaborate prank ever on the superstar QB ... and this video officially marks the end of it.

Ogbonnaya -- who now plays for the NY Giants -- was leaving Mastro's this week when we asked the running back about the best prank he's pulled since he's been in the NFL.

He then told us about how a slight mix-up led to Cam believing he was raised in Nigeria, and how Chris turned that into an epic gag that never ended ... even when he ran into Newton at the Super Bowl last month.

In fact, the only way Newton will learn Ogbonnaya is actually from TEXAS ... is if he watches this video.