Caleb VanHooser and Christian Eubanks/ Indiana State University
Two Indiana State football players, Christian Eubanks,18, and Caleb VanHooser, 19, were among three students killed in a single-vehicle car crash.
In an Aug. 22 statement, officials announced that Eubanks and VanHooser died following the crash, which took place on Aug. 21, ESPN reported. That day, their vehicle went off a state highway and struck a tree in Riley–approximately 10 miles from Indiana State’s Terre Haute campus. Virgo County Sheriff John Plasse said when deputies arrived, the car was on fire, and two passengers–later confirmed to be the 18 and 19-year-old college football players–were pronounced dead at the scene.
“It is a terrible day for Indiana State football and a devastating loss for both the Eubanks and the VanHooser families,” the Sycamores football coach Curt Mallory said in a statement. “Both young men were quality individuals who were loved and respected by their teammates and this staff. To say they will be missed is an understatement.”
Eubanks was reportedly a freshman linebacker who previously attended Warren Township High School, and VanHooser was a freshman defensive back who previously went to Lakota East.
The third car crash victim was identified as Jayden Musili (19). Musili was reportedly a sophomore who became an Indiana State student in 2022 and wasn’t on the football team, the university said.
Two others who were injured in the crash–redshirt freshman running back John Moore (10) and a redshirt freshman linebacker Omarion Dixon (20)–were reportedly out of intensive care but remained hospitalized in serious condition.
University president Deborah J. Curtis called the incident a tragedy and added that “the Sycamore family is mourning.”
WTHR anchor Gina Glaros shared a photo of students gathering outside Indiana State’s football stadium for a vigil in honor of the crash victims.
“@IndStU_News campus gathers to remember the three students who were killed,” she tweeted.