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    A post Combine look at NFL Draft projections for IU football players

    Mike SchumannBy IU Football 1 Comment
    Photo by Seth Tow for TDH

    IU football sent a record nine players to the 2026 NFL Draft Combine.

    And at next month’s NFL Draft in Pittsburgh, the program could break an all-time record for players selected, while ending several long droughts.

    Quarterback Fernando Mendoza should be the first Hoosier chosen in the first round since Thomas Lewis in 1994. Indiana’s 31-year run without a first-round pick is currently the longest such streak in the FBS.  And Mendoza appears almost certain to be IU’s first overall No. 1 pick since Corby Davis in 1938.

    The most players Indiana has had drafted in a single year was seven in 1976 — during an era when there were a lot more rounds and a lot more players selected. Six IU players were drafted in 1944 and 1947.

    The Hoosiers have not had more than two players chosen in a single draft since 2016, but that also appears certain to change in April.

    NFL Mock Draft Database aggregates data from multiple sources for a balanced prospect ranking. It says it uses rankings from 104 big boards, evaluating talent across positions. It also incorporates 89 first-round mock drafts, showing team priorities for top prospects.

    Here’s what NFL Mock Draft Database has come up with for Indiana players:

    FERNANDO MENDOZA, QB

    • Projection:  No. 1 overall
    • Position Big Board:  No. 1

    OMAR COOPER, JR., WR

    • Projection:  Rounds 1-2
    • Position Big Board:  No. 6

    D’ANGELO PONDS, CB

    • Projection:  Round 2
    • Position Big Board:  No. 7

    ELIJAH SARRATT, WR

    • Projection:  Round 3
    • Position Big Board:  No. 12

    PAT COOGAN, C

    • Projection:  Rounds 5-6
    • Position Big Board:  No. 12

    AIDEN FISHER, LB

    • Projection:  Rounds 5-6
    • Position Big Board:  No. 13

    LOUIS MOORE, CB

    • Projection:  Rounds 5-7
    • Position Big Board:  No. 11

    RILEY NOWAKOWSKI, TE/FB

    • Projection:  Late rounds to undrafted free agent (UDFA)
    • Position Big Board:  No. 14 TE

    ROMAN HEMBY, RB

    • Projection:  Late rounds to UDFA
    • Position Big Board:  No. 19

    KAELON BLACK, RB

    • Projection:  Late rounds to UDFA
    • Position Big Board:  No. 9

    MIKAIL KAMARA, EDGE

    • Projection:  Late rounds to UDFA
    • Position Big Board:  No. 25

    DEVAN BOYKIN, DB

    • Projection:  Late rounds to UDFA
    • Position Big Board:  No. 19

    Indiana will host its own Pro Day on April 1, where these players and others will test in front of NFL executives and scouts. Many of them did not test at the Combine due to the late end to the 2026 national championship season.  So several Hoosiers could make late moves up and down draft boards in April.

    The 2026 NFL Draft begins on April 23.

    For complete coverage of IU football, GO HERE.

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