We have heard the story many times before. We heard that every time Purdue basketball played between 2015 and 2017.
And that was alright since the narrative was entertaining. It was the narrative of a young man who grew up in a challenging environment that included homeless shelters,
going back and forth between Utah and Indiana with a mother trying to do the best she could with six children and a father who had succumbed to drug addiction.
It was the narrative of a young guy who liked dessert, particularly cheesecake, and who appeared to use food to soothe himself in these trying times.
He eventually gained 360 pounds before even starting high school. Then something happened.
Caleb Swanigan was barely 13 years old when Roosevelt Barnes, a former Purdue football star, took him under his wing,
eventually adopting him and sending him to live in Fort Wayne, Indiana, at the request of Caleb's elder brother.
Barnes knew what it needed to succeed on and off the field, and he sought to instil similar determination in Caleb.
Swanigan, unlike his adopted father, was not a fan of football. His sport was basketball, not football.
Despite his weight of almost 300 pounds, he had a game. Barnes seen something that he thought had the potential to improve Swanigan's life.