It has been a happy homecoming for Lucas Szymborski.
But quite a bit changed in the handful of years he was away from Crown Point.
“I love it,” Szymborski said. “But it’s way different now. We have an indoor turf and all of this, like, bougie stuff around here. I love it. I love coach Buz (Craig Buzea). This program is just incredible.”
Szymborski, a 6-foot-2, 210-pound linebacker/tight end who has committed to Ball State, was born and raised in Crown Point but moved to Tennessee in seventh grade for his father Scott’s job opportunity. He returned to the area for the same reason, transferring to Crown Point in February after winning his second Tennessee state title in wrestling in as many years.
Szymborski said he initially was on the fence about leaving his “second home.”
“I was a little like, ‘I don’t know,’” he said. “I played in Cleveland, Tennessee, for three years, and I was kind of like 50-50 with it. We had a long discussion about it and kind of just made the move. I was ready.”
Szymborski was able to participate in spring installs and begin the process of getting to know his teammates.
“I got to make some new friends,” he said. “They’re great. I love every single one of them. They’re like my family, my brothers.”
Szymborski has a lot of family members nearby. That group includes Scott, a 2002 Crown Point graduate who played cornerback, and his uncle Andrew, a 2008 Crown Point graduate who was a standout football player and wrestler.
“I have family all over here, everywhere,” Szymborski said. “Most of my family is here. It’s nice because this year they’re going to be able to watch me and come to every game. I used to live eight hours away, and they’d have to watch it online. So it’ll be good. I can’t wait.”
Szymborski already has gotten a taste of the experience. He attended the Class 6A state championship game between Crown Point and Indianapolis Ben Davis at the end of a history-making 2023 season.
“It was crazy,” he said.
The Bulldogs became the first 6A team from the Region to reach the state final since the expansion to six classes in 2013 and was the first to do it in the largest class since Valparaiso was the 5A runner-up to Ben Davis in 2001. They won their first regional title since 1988, their first sectional title since 2018 and their second straight Duneland Athletic Conference title. They have put together back-to-back undefeated regular seasons.
Szymborski has embraced the challenge of maintaining that high standard. He said people have stopped him in stores to ask him if he’s on the football team, and he has enjoyed the ensuing conversations.
“There’s a lot of pressure on us because we have a target on our back this year,” Szymborski said. “But it’s great. I’m not used to winning because in Tennessee we had 3-7, 4-6 records. So it’s different. I feel like everyone in Crown Point, every player, everyone in the community, takes it seriously. I love it.
“I have a good feeling about this year.”
Junior linebacker/tight end Trevor Gibbs, who has several Division I offers, has a good feeling about Szymborski.
“He’s very dynamic, a very good player,” Gibbs said. “He’s a great teammate and a great leader. He just came back, and he’s already a leader.”
Szymborski missed about a month after injuring his right ankle during drills. He was cleared for the first official day of practice on Monday.
Buzea called it “a pleasant surprise” when the Bulldogs heard Szymborski was returning to Crown Point.
“We didn’t get to see a lot of him,” Buzea said. “We got to see him some early, and then he tweaked his ankle, so we didn’t see him for most of the summer. But we saw enough of him that we think he’s going to be a major contributor on both sides of the ball.
“He’s certainly a skilled athlete. You see some of the stuff he did in Tennessee, not only on the football field, but as a back-to-back state champion wrestler. We’re excited to have him as part of our program and anxious to see exactly how he fits in. But in the time he’s been on the field, he’s certainly impressed us.”
