Defensive end Caden Curry grew up 20 minutes south of Lucas Oil Stadium. Before he played in the building as an Ohio State Buckeye in the 2025 Big Ten Championship Game, he played there as a member of the Center Grove High School Trojans.
Center Grove, led by head coach Eric Moore, won two state titles while Curry played, both held at Lucas Oil Stadium. Now, Curry will get the chance to continue that legacy in his hometown stadium as a member of the Indianapolis Colts. He was selected at pick No. 214 in the 2026 NFL Draft.
"Three of his best games of his life have been at Lucas Oil Stadium," Moore said. "So, he gets to play in there eight, nine times a year. That could be interesting."
In his two high school state championship victories, Curry accounted for nine total tackles and one pass defended. When he returned to Lucas Oil Stadium as a Buckeye, he totaled seven tackles, including three TFLs, and two sacks.
Curry is the third Center Grove High School alumni to be drafted to the NFL. Austin Booker was the most recent alumni drafted in 2024 by the Chicago Bears.
"I cried like a baby every time," Moore said of watching his players get drafted. "If you've known them since second grade, you've known that this is what their goal was."
With five total players going pro, Moore has coached his fair share of successful athletes. However, the 2021 Indiana High School Football Hall of Fame inductee says those kinds of players made his job easier.
"You don't have to coach them a lot," he said. "They know what to do and they follow the lead of the coach."
It isn't just on the field parts of the game that Moore pays attention to, even though Curry excels at that. It's what his athletes do and achieve off the field that make Moore the proudest.
"They're excellent young men," he said. "I hope they're healthy and they're great husbands and fathers, and then they excel and end up being super football players."
No matter where his players end up, Moore cheers them on from Greenwood. It just makes it even better when they wind up right down the road.
"I just hope the Colts give him a chance to earn his due because there's so much he can do for the football team," Moore said. "That's serious fun for everybody down here on the south side."
