Caleb Swanigan, Gone Too Soon
Remembering the life of Purdue center and All-American
When Caleb Swanigan was in eighth grade he was a lot of things. He was obese, weighing in at 360 pounds. He was bouncing between living in Indiana and Utah with spending time in and out of homeless shelters. He was eating out of availability and led an unhealthy life.
For everything that Caleb was there were also many things that he was not. He was not an athlete. He was not a division one prospect. He was not an All-American. Not by any stretch of the imagination.
When Caleb was 13 years old he was connected with a sports agent, Roosevelt Barnes. Barnes had worked with Caleb’s older brother, Carl, years prior and Carl had reached out to Roosevelt to ask for help. Carl saw Caleb’s drive and passion and knew he could be successful if given the right tools.
Barnes listened to Carl and legally adopted Caleb and moved him to Fort Wayne, Indiana in 2013. Finally, being introduced to stability for the first time in his life Caleb thrived. Physically he was able to lose over 100 pounds and his dedication helped build the man we saw dominate the Big Ten.
By his senior year, Caleb Swanigan won Indiana’s highest honor — Mr. Basketball. Basketball is sacred and Indiana and a highly sought-after title that many can only dream of. Which makes it that much more impressive when considering where Caleb was four years earlier.
During his freshman year he shattered the Purdue freshman year rebound record and was eighth all-time in freshman scoring. His sophomore year was Big Ten player of the year, consensus All-American, led Purdue to a regular-season Big Ten Championship, and declared for the NBA draft.
Swanigan’s story first became public as he gained national notoriety as a player. I remember learning about it in a text from my aunt. My aunt is by no means a college basketball fan but the story inspired her and she passed it along to me and many other people. I can remember lots of my family rooting for Swanigan — and it’s hard not to.
His humble beginnings to dominance on the court were something to admire. I think back fondly to watching Swanigan play and talking about him amongst my family because that was his inspiration in action. People who I knew would never watch a college basketball game carving out time for Caleb and Purdue, and being the first ones the complete their bracket.
Swanigan was all-time great college player who defied the odds. He inspired people on and off the court. He was taken far too soon, but his story will serve as an inspiration for years to come. Rest in peace.
