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2001 - 2012
The claim: Born and schooled in Fort Wayne. Trai Jamar Essex was born on 5 December 1982 in Fort Wayne, Indiana, grew up here, and attended Paul Harding High School, where the Indianapolis Colts' own roster release of 2012, signing him at the end of his career, identified him as originally from Fort Wayne and a Harding graduate. At Harding he was a standout tight end, picked for the first U.S. Army All-American Bowl in December 2000, and something rarer: a football lineman who was also one of the best basketball players in the state.
The Harding double: As a basketball senior Essex averaged 19.6 points and 12 rebounds a game and led Harding to the 2001 Class 2A state championship, finishing fifth in school history with 1,135 career points; in 2026 the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame named him to its Silver Anniversary Team for that season, an honour for a career that was supposed to be about football. On the football side he went to Northwestern, started four years, and was drafted by Pittsburgh in the third round of the 2005 NFL draft. His own verdict on the order of his memories is on the record: he has said that winning two Super Bowls was not bigger in his life than bringing that state championship home to Fort Wayne.
The professional: Essex played eight NFL seasons, seven in Pittsburgh as the line's utility man, able to play all five positions, and a final season in Indianapolis in 2012. He was a member of both Steelers championship teams of the decade, Super Bowl XL after his rookie season and Super Bowl XLIII three years later, one of only 21 players on both rosters. The Colts' release counted 76 appearances and 28 starts in his Pittsburgh years; he was inducted into the Indiana Football Hall of Fame in 2023. In this section's Super Bowl count he stands second, between Woodson and Pollard.
Sources:
- Indianapolis Colts, roster move release, 10 September 2012 (colts.com): originally from Fort Wayne, Paul Harding High School, the third-round draft position, the two Super Bowl teams, 76 games and 28 starts.
- Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame, 2026 Silver Anniversary Team release: the 2001 Harding state title season, 19.6 points and 12 rebounds, 1,135 career points.
- Indiana Football Hall of Fame, Trai Essex (inducted 17 July 2023).
- Indianapolis Star, 8 January 2021: Essex on the Harding championship and Fort Wayne.