Ohio State Freshman Defensive Lineman Caden Curry Loses Black Stripe

One week before officially arriving at Ohio State, freshman defensive lineman Caden Curry had a conversation with future OSU teammate Kyion Grayes after an All-American Bowl practice. 

The pair discussed how eager both would be to shed their black stripe and "officially" become a Buckeye. For Curry, that moment has officially arrived.

@CadenCurry14 #R2X#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/TEdidyH5lF

— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) April 11, 2022

Curry becomes the latest Ohio State spring enrollee to lose his black stripe, and considering how highly-touted the former four-star recruit was out of high school, it's not terribly surprising this happened sooner rather than later. 

For Center Grove High School (Greenwood, Indiana), Curry primarily played defensive tackle and was a nightmare for opposing offenses to block. He finished his senior season with 65 total tackles (24 for loss) and seven sacks while deflecting seven passes at the line of scrimmage. At OSU, Curry could play either inside or outside the defensive line.

The 6-foot-3, 250-pound lineman has not been shy of setting high expectations of himself, saying he's hoping to play the Leo position in Jim Knowles' defense, and comparing himself to a former Buckeye legend. 

“I kind of just look at myself like Nick Bosa,” Curry told reporters in February. “That's how I kind of want to build myself and be like. Just everything, watching how athletic he gets on the outside, all the speed rushes and then using his power to kind of just have all the tools to be able to succeed.”

Curry is just the second true freshman to lose his black stripe this spring, following first-year safety Kye Stokes, who shed his stripe this past Friday. Curry is the third Buckeye to lose his black stripe overall this spring, with Oklahoma State transfer safety Tanner McCalister becoming the first to do so on March 28.