Full Transcript for Caleb Downs: A Rookie Built for this League | CommuniTea

really, people didn't think I was going to go to Mill Creek just cause he went to North Gwinnett. But I was like, I don't really want to go to school with him. So I'm gonna go, I'm gonna go over here. And they were a good program and had like a blue collar sort of feel too. But they had never won like the state championship games and the semifinals games. So they were, They were always close, but they had never won it. And then my freshman year, we were good. Sophomore year, we were like five and five. That was probably the– that's the worst season of football I've been a part of. Oh, wow. 00:06:11 Speaker 1: Five and five? 00:06:12 Speaker 2: Five. I think we finished maybe six– yeah, five. It might have been six and five or something like that. But it was not a good– it was not a good season for me mentally. People thought I was going to leave after my sophomore year, but I was like– Who cares? I already have offers. It doesn't necessarily matter. Junior year, we were good. I got hurt at the end of the year. We ended up losing. And then everything just started clicking our senior year. Everybody started playing really well. And that's why I was saying it was God given just the way everything played out. Can't really make it up. 00:06:51 Speaker 1: That sophomore year, you said mentally it wasn't a good year for you. How so? Take me back to that year. 00:06:57 Speaker 2: Oh, just losing. 00:06:58 Speaker 1: Oh, just the losing part of it. Yeah. 00:07:00 Speaker 2: It just doesn't, uh, never sits well. 00:07:05 Speaker 1: Not at all. Uh, okay. So back to your senior year, um, you develop into the, what number, number one safety in the class. Right. Um, talk about that. Like at what point in your development, did you see the coaches start to see how special you were? 00:07:22 Speaker 2: Uh, I don't know. I don't know if like the coaches were like, Oh, he's actually good. Um, I felt like they gave me a chance to start my freshman year. It was kind of like, all right, well, let's get complete. 00:07:36 Speaker 1: Yeah. 00:07:36 Speaker 2: Cool. Um, I mean, that's how I looked at it. I never really thought my coach would rely. Oh, he's actually in the nation. He's good. Um, maybe, maybe college coaches saw that and were like, okay, I guess we got to respect this kid now. But, I mean, I never really thought about it much. Yeah. 00:07:56 Speaker 1: But you always knew you were going to be special, right? Because, I mean, obviously the work that you put in and your dad, like I said, former running back. What were the conversations like with you and your dad growing up? Did y'all ever watch film? Like, what were those kind of days like? 00:08:11 Speaker 2: Yeah. I think with him, it was a lot of running back talk because, I mean, I played running back in high school and all through Little League and just– That was what he did. So he always had pointers on that. But I would say a lot more, I guess, who I come for for ideas and to bounce just what's in my

head. That's who I come to for him to be a sounding board for me. And if I have anything that's going on, that's who I come to talk to. So I think it was just somebody that is there for me no matter what. And that's how it still is today. 00:08:50 Speaker 1: What truth about the NFL did your dad teach you at a young age? Or did he not teach you that until like maybe high school, maybe? 00:09:00 Speaker 2: About the NFL? Yeah. I don't think it was like, oh, I'm going to teach you about the NFL when you're six. Well, I mean, obviously. It was more so just like, these are the things that are going to allow you to succeed doing these things. And if you get there, then. You'll succeed there too. You'll succeed there too. 00:09:24 Speaker 1: Yeah. And it translated. You went to Bama your first year. Why Alabama? 00:09:31 Speaker 2: I wanted to be coached by the best. And that was the biggest thing for me. I wanted to try to improve, try to get better. And who better to learn from than Nick Saban? 00:09:42 Speaker 1: Yeah. What kind of went into that? What did they teach you or not teach you? What did they kind of show you in the recruiting process that allowed you to believe that, obviously, they could expose the best in you? 00:09:56 Speaker 2: Yeah, I think it was just, I mean, at that point, uh the cream is in the crop I mean it's kind of yeah you don't really have to say much you kind of just look at his resume and um see what he has to say about your game and where he thinks you can improve at and how he says he's going to coach you and everything like that and then if you have a good good vibe with the assistant coaches which I did um it was a Not an easy decision, but it's a decision that I could live with and I was excited to make and I was excited to go out and test myself against.... 00:10:31 Speaker 1: The best. 00:10:31 Speaker 2: The best. 00:10:32 Speaker 1: You had offers from Georgia. You had offers from Ohio State. The list can go on. But what did you learn from Nick Saban that you don't feel like you could have learned from anyone else? 00:10:45 Speaker 2: Yeah, I would say consistency. Consistency is the biggest... thing that I think separates him from everybody else is just, he could put himself in a state of mind and a state of urgency that a lot of people couldn't do. And he could hold that urgency for longer than most people could. The urgency that some people liked, some people didn't like. And I think, I haven't watched the little show that they made about him, but I'm sure the urgency you see on that show is, that's what they're talking about. 00:11:21 Speaker 1: Do you ever see yourself like kind of drawing from that, like finding a whole new level of urgency and things that you do from what, I mean, obviously you learned from Nick Saban. Yeah. 00:11:31 Speaker 2: I think, um, having that get up and go, like just, um, wake up no matter what happens, just try to find a way to improve your skills, to get better, to learn. Uh, I

think that's, that's something that I took from him and, He was always, I sat next to him in the meetings every day and he was always the same person whenever he walked in there. He may not smile, he may not crack a joke, but he's always going to be locked into football and whatever he has to say, he's not going to hold his tongue. 00:12:01 Speaker 1: I learned that, you know, obviously from you just being here for, what, six months? Yeah, about that time. That you're just, you go about your business in a whole new way, in a different way than a lot of people do. Have you always been kind of like, not by the book, but a person that's just about their business? Like, is that something you've always been like since, what, high school or college? 00:12:24 Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, at the end of the day, we're here to win. So that's what it is. And there's really no other way to look at it. It's fun. I do see it as like my mom would be like, oh, do you have work today? I'd be like, work? I don't work. I play football. I don't work. But at the end of the day, there is a seriousness to it that you have to have to come in and get your job done. And that's what we're here for. We're not here to just go. 00:12:55 Speaker 1: For a run. 00:12:56 Speaker 2: I get it. 00:12:58 Speaker 1: At what point did you believe that you could become an elite player? I don't know. 00:13:05 Speaker 2: I never, I never thought I couldn't. So it was kind of just continue to do what you're doing and then whatever happens happens. 00:13:14 Speaker 1: What did success at such a young age kind of make you believe was possible? I'll say. 00:13:25 Speaker 2: Yeah. I mean, like, people would be saying, like, oh, did you dream about going to the league? 00:13:29 Speaker 1: I was like, yeah. 00:13:30 Speaker 2: If it happens, it happens. No, if it happens, it happens. I was never, like, looking forward much unless, like, it was, like, the next steps of high school. I was like, okay, like, college, it's there. And I look forward to that. But it was never like, oh, I need to get to the league so I can do this and that. Yeah, I have aspirations, but I was focused on the moment. too much to focus on anything else. 00:13:56 Speaker 1: You became the first freshman in Alabama history to lead the team in tackles, SEC freshman of the year, honors lists can go on as well. But then I believe January, 2024, Nick Saban retired. What was that like for you? Because you went to Alabama to be coached by the best. And then what a year later, after you get there, that coach now leaves what, what kind of went through your mind? 00:14:22 Speaker 2: Um, yeah, I felt like I, uh, I owed something to at least give it a shot and to look at who they were going to hire and everything like that. Um, ended up making the decision to leave. I felt like at the end of the day, I went there to get coached by coach Saban. And if he's not there, it's kind of like, okay, it's back to high school. Make a, make a decision

off of what you know. Um, and then, yeah, Ohio state was pretty much my second school going into, uh, going out of high school. And I felt like I had a good relationship with the coaches there still. And I could, it was easier to trust people that I had known. Cause people are like, Oh, why didn't you stay? I'm like, I didn't, I had, I knew zero of those people that were the coaches. So I was like, it's harder to trust people that you don't know what your career. So I was like, all right, well, I'm gonna go learn something different with coach Knowles and the system that he's playing. And, how Coach Day and Coach Marotti run the program. So I was going to go learn from them. And I had a really good relationship with Coach Walton and Coach Guerrero to trust that they were going to continue to develop me because that was the biggest thing. I just wanted to continue to become a better player and learn more and try to grow my skills. 00:15:41 Speaker 1: How long did it take you to make that decision? Not long? 00:15:43 Speaker 2: I think it was like five, six days. Because I mean, I met like you had to, You had to, the day that coach retired, you had to get in the portal within like three to four days. So you could actually beat the drop ad window for other schools if you were going to transfer. So it's not like you really had like, oh, I'm going to take two weeks. Because if you take two weeks, schools are going to be like, oh, it's past the drop ad day. We can't get you in now. Even though I did push it like two extra days and they were like, you need to make a decision. But I was like, I mean, I wanted to. see who they hired. Oh, they hired coach DeBoer and then they hired the DC and then they hired the DB coach. So I met all of them and just decided to leave and, um, talk to some of my guys there. They weren't the happiest about it, but it was, it was what it was. 00:16:36 Speaker 1: Was there any emotion or difficulty leaving Alabama at all? 00:16:41 Speaker 2: Oh, a lot. 00:16:42 Speaker 1: Yeah. 00:16:43 Speaker 2: Um, I think I went in like the academic office and, uh, I don't know if I was crying in there, but I was like, I went in there and I was just like a statue pretty much. They were like, what's wrong? I was like, no, I don't know. 00:16:59 Speaker 1: Wait, wait, you were, wait, were you crying or you said you were? 00:17:02 Speaker 2: No, I was just like, I just didn't have any emotion because I didn't know what to feel because I was like, dang, I'm about to leave this place. Because at that point I felt like I knew, but I just didn't, I didn't want to make the decision to do that. So it was probably like a day or two before I left and I went in there and like one of my favorite people in the world, works in the academic office. So I was talking to her and I was like, I knew I was going to leave. And she knew I was going to leave too, but she was like, just keep thinking about it. Just keep thinking about it. And then that morning when I left, I mean, went in there, shook the coach's hands and left. 00:17:41 Speaker 1: This was an academic like advisor person? Yeah. Yeah. Talk about that. Cause you mentioned she was, like one of your favorite people in the world, how much does she mean for you and your development? 00:17:50 Speaker 2: Yeah, I think the relationships that you build along the way are huge. And that's what makes your college experience. That's what makes any experience. This experience being here isn't the same without the coaches that you meet, the people behind the scenes that make the impact, make the days what it is. So to have somebody there to that level that I still talk to, Today, once a week, once every two weeks and have genuine conversation with and it's never like I can't tell you something. So to have relations like that, that's what makes the experience what it is. 00:18:31 Speaker 1: Before we get to Ohio State, I do want to kind of follow up with that one. The relationships that you've made along the way, what are some of those that you've kind of learned or who are those people that you've learned from the most that have made you who you are? 00:18:47 Speaker 2: I would say a lot of it is behind the scenes. Like the, the position coaches and DCs, they, they make a huge impact, but like the nutritionists, those people that like are, they never get the glory for anything. The player development guys, the guys that you talk to that they don't really, they have nothing to do with your football and they're just there just to be a, to be a helping hand for you when you need it. Those are, those are the people that you have relationship with past football and you call them and it's always good to see them, always good to speak to them. And those relationships I have the rest of my life. So. 00:19:29 Speaker 1: I think in this business, it's about trust, right? You mentioned it like you had to trust, you know, Nick Saban and his staff to get you where you needed to be. Unfortunately, you know, he had retired that following year, but you had to trust a new coaching staff at Ohio State as well. who was it that you trusted out there in Columbus to give you the belief that they could take you to the next level? 00:19:52 Speaker 2: Yeah, my dad had a, he's known Coach Tim Wall and Coach Tim Wall is the secondary coach since I think my dad was 15 or 16 years old. So they had a lunch whenever I got in the portal and then I had talked to Coach Wall and I'd known him since recruiting, but I don't feel like in high school I had talked to him as much because he wasn't the safeties coach and I was getting recruited by Coach Eliano. And then just knowing that he had that relationship, he had coached in the league for 12 years, knowing that allowed me to trust that he knew what he was doing and he had a lot of ball that I could learn from. And then Coach Knowles, he ran a completely different scheme that I had ever been a part of, but I was like, why not learn

something new and plan something new? And then Coach Guerrero, I had already known him since recruiting. So, yeah, it was just familiar faces, but also people that had different knowledge to learn from was something that I wanted to push myself to do. 00:20:59 Speaker 1: What was the difference in learning a Nick Saban scheme and Ohio State scheme for you? 00:21:07 Speaker 2: It was coming from a two-gap system. A two-gap system, man's own match carry in terms of like how Coach Saban, his defense matched everything in terms of their pattern matches to a more of a spot drop system, one-gap system that Coach Nobles plays. 00:21:32 Speaker 1: So Saban, you had to kind of really like watch the receiver's routes rather than dropping in the coverage and kind of being a certain zone okay so that's did that challenge you at all having to learn the difference in schemes when you got to Ohio. 00:21:45 Speaker 2: State uh yeah there was there was things that I had to shift my mind from and uh like you have to when you transfer somewhere you have to get out of the oh we used to do it like this yeah hey that's not we no more that's not where you play with anymore okay yeah you're right uh so just things like that just trying to shift my mind and not move on, but make sure I'm where my feet are at and do what I need to do there. 00:22:13 Speaker 1: How long before you felt like this Ohio State defense was yours? Because at Nick Saban, well, at Alabama, they built pretty much that defense around you towards the end of that season. So at what point in your career at Ohio State did you feel like, all right, like this is the defense that they're building things around for me? 00:22:36 Speaker 2: I don't know about that, but I would say probably week four is when I had my first game where I was like, okay, I feel like I'm understanding things, I'm playing faster, and some of the calls are pointed for me to make plays. 00:22:54 Speaker 1: What did you take from Alabama to Ohio State? 00:22:58 Speaker 2: Yeah, just the mentality I talked about with Coach Saban, just the urgency and the want to improve and Just never lying to yourself, always trying to be honest to yourself and continue to push yourself, even if there's not necessarily that voice there that he is to push yourself. 00:23:17 Speaker 1: You won a Natty in Ohio State. Talk about that experience. 00:23:21 Speaker 2: Yeah, that was a really special group, honestly. You talk about brotherhood and everything like that. I saw Emeka the other day, and it was so happy to see him, even though he was on the other side of the field. But It's just like that group of guys that they had there was honestly some of the most special. Like you can see the relationships that was there. It was special to see those relationships. And I think that's why we won because the brotherhood was so tight-knit. 00:23:51 Speaker 1: You won that in 2024, correct? Yeah, 2024, 2025. Then, of course... you get drafted to the Dallas Cowboys

this season. Walk me through just kind of like everything, the draft process and leading up to that day. 00:24:10 Speaker 2: Yeah. It was a long pre-draft process. I didn't know it was going to be that long. 00:24:18 Speaker 1: How long do you think it was going to be? 00:24:20 Speaker 2: I mean, I knew it was going to be that long. It just felt longer than it was because it was like, okay, we're not playing football. We're not on a team. You feel like you're just– training for yourself. Uh, and I didn't, I didn't feel like I really needed to do much. So it was like, okay, I'm just waiting to get picked up pretty much. And then, um, the draft day, it was, it was awesome feeling. You can't really replicate that feeling anywhere. And, um, I was super grateful for that moment. Um, it was just joyful to be in this situation as I would say, and, um, turned out well, turned out well. 00:24:56 Speaker 1: At what point did you know it was time to leave Ohio state? 00:25:02 Speaker 2: Yeah, I would say I didn't really think about staying much. I always said the goal wasn't to stay in college. Okay. It wasn't. I knew I had a chance to leave. 00:25:16 Speaker 1: Yeah, so you just left. It's my time. 00:25:19 Speaker 2: Yeah. It was what it was. 00:25:21 Speaker 1: Yeah, did Dallas moving up in the draft to get you kind of feel like the validation of, the importance of a safety for you? Because I know that the big conversation was, well, why should we draft a safety that high? And I don't think they had done that in over a decade or two decades, really. So just talk about, you know, that you being drafted so high and how much of a validation of your role was. 00:25:47 Speaker 2: Yeah, I think it's more, I didn't think of it like that. I just thought of it as pick the best player and you find a way to get the best player. So, Uh, I was excited to see that they moved up to one spot and, uh, I appreciate Mr. Jones and, uh, Steven for doing that and everything. So it was, uh, when it happened, I didn't even notice it honestly. Cause my sister was just like, why did the dolphins change? So I was like, Oh, and then my phone rang right after that. So it was, uh, It was a surreal moment, and I'll remember that for the rest of my life. 00:26:30 Speaker 1: What did Christian Parker tell you that he believed you could be in this defense originally? 00:26:38 Speaker 2: Yeah, just a chess piece, honestly, to be able to play, whether it's safety or nickel, to be able to make plays wherever you're at. And I think that's what every defense is looking for, just people that they can move around and make plays in different places and play different roles on the field. 00:26:58 Speaker 1: For you, where in this defense feels most natural? Everywhere? 00:27:04 Speaker 2: Yeah. People always ask that and they hate my answer. I'm just like, wherever the ball's at. I don't really think of it as like, well, I need a player so I can feel comfortable. I'd rather just be if the ball's

over here and it's coming this way. Yeah. Cool. I'll be there. 00:27:22 Speaker 1: Simple as that. 00:27:23 Speaker 2: Yeah. 00:27:24 Speaker 1: So much of, obviously, your life has been about football, because obviously your dad, your brother, you, and even sports in general, because your sister and your mom played soccer. But now that you're one, well, not even one year, but pretty much into your first year, living out your dream, what are you kind of learning about yourself? 00:27:48 Speaker 2: Yeah, I would say super independent. Not really very Very goal-oriented and focused on trying to improve as always. That's always the biggest thing for me. And for me, just trying to talk to my coaches in terms of how I can improve, what they see on the field, what they see from the other team that I need to notice. I'm just always just focused on trying to consistently improve and learn on the field and off the field. It's mostly just trying to stay connected to people, even though they're not here with me. 00:28:26 Speaker 1: How do you balance the independency? Because just drawing from my experience, stepping into a room of so many veterans that have been in this game or done this before, so to speak, how do you balance the independency and earning the trust while still being yourself? 00:28:48 Speaker 2: Yeah. I think it's just being you. I think if you try to act in any certain way, that's kind of um, foretelling and people can notice that. So I think it's just being authentic. And I think people notice when you're authentic and, um, can understand that. And they accept if you're authentic, if you're not, then it's kind of seen as fake. 00:29:11 Speaker 1: How would you kind of evaluate how your first year is going? Like for you? 00:29:15 Speaker 2: Yeah. Um, I can do more. 00:29:18 Speaker 1: You can do more. What does that look like? 00:29:21 Speaker 2: What does that look like? Um, I can make more of an impact, I guess, in my eyes. 00:29:30 Speaker 1: Okay. I want to get back to your dad and your brother because I think I did see where you guys have a foundation, Trust Downs Foundation. Y'all started that in 2024. What was the reasoning for that? 00:29:45 Speaker 2: Yeah. Pause. I mean, make an impact by, I mean, I feel like I can play better ball. That's what I mean by that. 00:29:57 Speaker 1: Okay. 00:29:58 Speaker 2: And I'll probably always feel like that either way. So I, we started the foundation just because God has blessed us with a lot in this life. And knowing that part of that is being able to give back and be able to pay it forward to others and people that need it. So the foundation is focused on homelessness and giving back to the homeless. And that's, that's something that me and my family have done. We've, uh, gone to home and shelter to serve for Christmas and done a lot of things like that, especially in, uh, Indianapolis where my brother is. So, um, and then in Columbus, Ohio, we did, uh, things for youth, uh, a lot of things for youth with the Huckleberry house and just, um, giving time and, um, just giving money. And that was, uh, that was a big thing for me just because I had spent a little bit of time around the kids and, um, walked around the house that they were living in and spending time at. So that was awesome for me. And now it's just morphed into, okay, we want to give here, we give here, we want to give there, we give there. So it's just an opportunity to serve. And that's what our faith calls us to do is be a servant and push to serve whoever we can in this life because that's the biggest thing that you can do. The biggest thing I'll do in this life isn't make a play or anything like that, but it's to serve another human being. 00:31:23 Speaker 1: Was there a certain experience of you and your family helping out the homeless that made you look back, you know, back in that year, 2024 and say, OK, like this kind of touched me. Was there ever a moment like that? 00:31:37 Speaker 2: Yeah, I don't I don't think there was ever like a specific moment that was like, OK, we'll spark a foundation off of this. I think it was. This is our calling in terms of what we are. This is our duty of what we're supposed to do. and we're super happy to be able to serve and be in a position that we have a surplus to be able to give back. And as I said, we've had a lot of favor, and our job as Christians and people that serve Jesus is to pay it back. 00:32:11 Speaker 1: You have a former NFL running back of a father. You have a professional wide receiver and a brother. I know you mentioned when I got to ride on the bus with you that your sister, Terry, her ACO was something that you kind of learned from in terms of her resiliency. You've learned from your mother. What part of your success do you feel like belongs to everything you learned from your family? And what part have you had to build on your own? 00:32:41 Speaker 2: Yeah, I think probably 85% is from my family and my childhood and just like earthly in terms of like, not just like, you'd like look at like the ability and everything that's, that's God given and everything like that. Um, but if you look at like the development and mentality and everything, I would say, uh, a lot of that just came from our childhood and how the experiences they have and everything, just being the youngest, being able to learn from what people have been through and everything like that. I would say that's made the biggest impact on my life and how I've chose to be. 00:33:20 Speaker 1: And obviously, um, you have more years, many more years to play in this league. Uh, but when your story is eventually told, what do you feel like you want to be remembered by? 00:33:30 Speaker 2: Yeah, I would just say, as I said, the people that you impact, the people that you have relationships with, uh, that's, those are the things that nobody can really take away from you. So, uh, I would just say somebody that was a good human being, a servant, as I said, that's the biggest thing you can be in this life. Um, and, somebody that was a loving person. 00:33:55 Speaker 1: All right. Well, serve it in this life. You are, um, you're an impactful player, obviously a servant in this light with your trust downs foundation. Where can people find more information if they want to donate? 00:34:07 Speaker 2: Yeah. Uh, it's on Instagram. You can look it up on Google. Right. So, um, yeah, if you want to find it, you can find it. Um, we're doing something with mercy street and, uh, Dallas right now. So we had a back to school drive for giving school shoes away to kids this year. So we're going to continue to do more and hope to see you guys there. 00:34:33 Speaker 1: All right, man. Well, thank you so much. I appreciate you, Caleb, for your time. And that'll do it for community. 00:34:37 Speaker 2: Thank you. Appreciate you.