Five years after leading Wayne to its best finish of the last decade and earning first-team all-state honors for the Generals, Craig Young is a member of the Indianapolis Colts.
The Fort Wayne native and Kansas defensive back signed an undrafted free agent deal with his home-state team Saturday, shortly after the conclusion of the NFL Draft in Detroit.
”I love this (Jayhawks) team, I love this coaching staff, I love being a part of this,” Young said in video the Kansas football account posted to Twitter. “I wish I could stay, but it’s on to the next chapter. I’m always a Jayhawk, forever a Jayhawk.”
The 6-foot-3, 225-pound Young played two years at Kansas, totaling 101 tackles, 10 1/2 for loss, six sacks, six pass breakups, two interceptions and a forced fumble. The Jayhawks went 2-10 in 2021 prior to his arrival, but were 6-7 in 2022 and 9-4 with the school’s first bowl win since 2008 this past season.
Prior to his time at Kansas, Young played three seasons for Ohio State, recording 23 tackles and returning an interception 70 yards for a touchdown against Maryland in 2021.
With the Colts, he’ll try to join a fraternity of current Summit City natives in the NFL that includes Atlanta’s Jessie Bates III and Austin Mack, Kansas City’s Drue Tranquill and the Los Angeles Rams’ Ben Skowronek.
Panthers sign kicker from Warsaw
Another local product, Warsaw graduate Harrison Mevis, signed an undrafted free agent deal to be a kicker for the Carolina Panthers. Mevis was a second-team All-Southeastern Conference for Missouri this season, leading the league with 24 made field goals.
The 6-0, 241-pound Mevis set Tigers career records for scoring and made field goals, ranking third in SEC history in the latter category with 86.
He also owns the Missouri record for 50-yard field goals and lifted the Tigers to a 30-27 win over Kansas State in September with a 61-yard boot as time expired, setting an SEC record for longest kick.
The Tigers went 11-2 and beat Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl in Mevis’ senior season this past year.
State draft picks
Round 1
Joe Alt, OT, Notre Dame – No. 5 overall, Chargers
Alt became Notre Dame’s first top 5 draft pick since quarterback Rick Mirer went to the Seahawks No. 2 overall in 1993. The left tackle was a two-time first-team All-American for the Irish and in 2023 gave up only five pressures and one sack all season. He was new coach Jim Harbaugh’s first draft pick for the Chargers. His selection gives Notre Dame four top 10 draft picks from the offensive line since 2016.
Round 2
Blake Fisher, OT, Notre Dame – No. 59 overall, Texans
Fisher bookended the Irish line with Alt for the past two seasons, starting 26 consecutive games at right tackle after returning from a knee injury that cost him most of his true freshman season in 2021. Fisher’s selection gives Notre Dame six offensive line draft picks in the last four years.
Round 3
Marist Liufau, LB, Notre Dame – No. 87, Cowboys
Liufau went significantly earlier than most predicted after starting 25 straight games over the last two seasons following an ankle injury that cost him all of 2021. In four seasons in South Bend, he had 117 tackles – 12 for loss – four sacks, three pass breakups, an interception and a forced fumble.
Round 5
Cam Hart, CB, Notre Dame – No. 140, Chargers
Hart teams up with Alt and fellow former Irish defensive back Alohi Gilman in Los Angeles after a five-year Notre Dame career in which he broke up 17 passes and picked off two while making 90 tackles, including 10 1/2 for loss. He was a three-year starter and formed one of the best cornerback duos in the country last season with likely 2025 draftee Benjamin Morrison.
JD Bertrand, LB, Notre Dame – No. 143, Falcons
Bertrand joined Liufau as the first pair of Irish linebackers taken in the same draft since Rocky Boiman and Tyreo Harrison in 2002. Bertrand stepped into Liufau’s spot as the starter following the latter’s injury in 2021 and started for the next three seasons, piling up 260 tackles, 22 1/2 for loss, 5 1/2 sacks and nine pass breakups in those campaigns. He led the Irish in tackles all three years and was the 27th Notre Dame player to be a team captain for two years.
Audric Estime, RB, Notre Dame – No. 147, Broncos
Estime was Notre Dame’s lead back for each of the last two seasons and an All-American in 2023, when he ran for 1,341 yards, fifth-most in program history. His 18 rushing touchdowns this past season were an Irish record and he gained 6.4 yards per carry. For his career, Estime totaled 2,598 all-purpose yards and 30 touchdowns, the vast majority across the 2022 and ‘23 campaigns.
Tyrone Tracy Jr., RB, Purdue – No. 166, Giants
Tracy gave the Boilermakers a pick in each of the last five drafts and was the first Purdue tailback taken since Edwin Watson in 1998 (fullback Zander Horvath was dafted in 2022). Tracy transferred to Purdue from Iowa following the 2021 season and played mostly running back and receiver for the Boilers.
In 2023, Tracy was part of a platoon in the backfield with Devin Mockobee and ran for 716 yards and eight touchdowns on 6.3 yards per carry. He was also second-team All-Big Ten as a return specialist in ’23, averaging 25.5 yards per kick return and returning one for a score against Fresno State.
Round 7
Javontae Jean-Baptiste, DE, Notre Dame – No. 222, Commanders
Jean-Baptiste transferred from Ohio State prior to the 2023 campaign and put together a career season with 49 tackles, 10 1/2 for loss, five sacks and a forced fumble. He had a season-high eight tackles against his former team in September.
Jean-Baptiste’s selection gave Notre Dame 532 draft picks in its history, most of any college football program – Southern California is second with 529.
Sanoussi Kane, DB, Purdue – No. 250, Ravens
Kane was a two-year starter for the Boilermakers and earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors last season. He made a combined 151 tackles over the last two seasons, with 10 1/2 for loss, 10 pass breakups, three forced fumbles and two sacks.
Undrafted free agents
Sam Hartman, Notre Dame QB (Commanders); Thomas Harper, Notre Dame DB (Chargers); Spencer Shrader, Notre Dame K (Colts); Cam Allen, Purdue DB (Broncos); Aaron Casey, Indiana LB (Bengals); Andre Carter, Indiana DE (Jaguars); Loren Strickland, Ball State DB (Lions).
