2025 NFL Draft interview: Indiana DT C.J. West

WCG’s lead draft analyst speaks with Indiana’s star defensive lineman.

When you watch Indiana defensive tackle C.J. West, one thing becomes pretty clear: the man takes no prisoners.

An alumni of Nazareth Academy in La Grange, Illinois, West was a three-year starter and an all-conference player at defensive tackle at Kent State. With another year of eligibility, West made the jump to Indiana for the 2024 season, and the move paid off in spades for him. Not only did he maintain his high level of play against Big Ten competition, but the Hoosiers surpassed all expectations and ended up making it to the first ever 12-man College Football Playoff.

With his momentum riding high, the 6-foot-2, 317-pound West projects as one of the most intriguing defensive tackles in the 2025 NFL Draft.

Windy City Gridiron spoke with West about his transfer to Indiana, the immediate success he and his team found, his high school days in the formidable East Suburban Catholic Conference, and more.

JI: Before we get started, I just wanted to point out you went to Naz; I went to Benet myself.

CW: Man, I don’t think we ever lost to you guys (laughs).

JI: I know! I was Class of 2019, so your junior year especially you guys absolutely crushed us. I’m still salty about that but have loved tracking where you guys have ended up.

CW: Man, that’s funny. It’s such a small world. We got the ESCC bloodline going here!

JI: This past year, you made the jump from Kent State over to Indiana. What was that move like, and what was it like immediately seeing the success you guys did?

CW: The transfer process, it’s a stressful thing. Especially going in, you don’t really know what you’re going to get yourself into, and you don’t really know what you’re going to come out having. That whole process is also just a big mental thing, making sure that, no matter what happens, you’re believing in yourself and staying confident, staying strong. The transfer process, especially for me going to Kent, it was a big difference. Now, I’m in the Big Ten, playing against better competition every single week. That’s something I really had to prepare myself for, and that’s what I went into this process in mind [with]. No matter what the situation is, put my head down and work as hard as I possibly can so I can be put in the best position possible.

That’s the first thing I did when I got down to Indiana, was [think] “what do I need to do to become the best player that you guys need me to be?” When I got down to Bloomington, that’s the first thing I did. And, you know, training with [Indiana director of athletic performance] Derek Owings and talking with [defensive tackles coach Pat] Kuntz, trying to get down all the install in such a short period of time. I got there in what, May? I had...