Author: Mike Schumann

Defensive end/outside linebacker Kellan Wyatt is returning to Indiana for a fifth season. ESPN’s Pete Thamel was the first to report the news.  Indiana confirmed Wyatt’s return in social media posts. The Maryland native is able to play due to a federal injunction that grants a fifth season to all members of the class of 2022 who had exhausted their college eligibility in the 2025-26 year.  His return could be impacted by NCAA legal challenges to the injunction. After transferring in from Maryland during the offseason, Wyatt was one of Indiana’s most impactful players on the defensive side of the…

All summer we’ve been covering the Cignetti Effect on college football. Did new Purdue AD Tommy McClelland fall victim to the temptation of winning the press conference with a Curt Cignetti-esque viral quote? Sure seems like it. Introduced today in West Lafayette, McClelland seems to have arrived at Purdue a bit misinformed. “We are here to win championships,” he said. “If you don’t want to win championships, go to Indiana.” Say what now? A Louisiana native who has spent most of his career in the South, McClelland arrives at Purdue after four years at Rice.  Perhaps he was simply unaware…

Indiana’s roster saw a major boost this week when news broke defensive end Stephen Daley intends to come back for a fifth season after a federal injunction cleared the way for his return. Who else might be eyeing a fifth season and a return to Bloomington under the same injunction? Here are three more 2025 Hoosiers On3’s Pete Nakos has said are currently considering a return for a fifth season of college football: Kellan Wyatt (OLB/DE) – After transferring in from Maryland during the offseason, Wyatt was one of Indiana’s most impactful players on the defensive side of the ball.  In…

The Football Writers Association of America released its 2026 Bronko Nagurski and Outland Trophy Watch Lists this week. The Nagurki list includes 68 defensive standouts as contenders for the national defensive player of the year, while the Outland recognizes 68 returning standout interior linemen on both sides of the ball. Indiana leads all schools with four defenders on the watch list for the Nagurski in linebackers Rolijah Hardy and Isaiah Jones, defensive tackle Tyrique Tucker and safety Amare Ferrell. Fifth-year offensive tackle Carter Smith returns to the Outland watch list after being a semifinalist for the award last season. Tucker…

Indiana’s already strong defensive line got a major boost on Tuesday afternoon. Edge rusher Stephen Daley is returning to the Hoosiers for a fifth season. After transferring in from Kent State during the offseason, Daley became one of Indiana’s most valuable defensive players as the 2025 season progressed.  He was rotating early in the season but saw his role progress over time, especially when starter Kellan Wyatt went down with a season-ending injury. Through the end of the regular season, Daley led the Big Ten and was tied for the national lead in tackles for loss.  He had 19 tackles…

The first official 2026 college football preseason poll was released on Monday afternoon. And Curt Cignetti has likely found another motivational tool for his third season in Bloomington. Indiana is No. 6 in the preseason coaches poll, a panel of 73 coaches across the nation that includes Cignetti.   The coaches put Ohio State, Oregon, Georgia, Texas and Notre Dame ahead of the Hoosiers.  Despite being ranked sixth, IU received the second-most No. 1 votes (14) behind Ohio State (38). This is the highest IU has ever been ranked in the preseason coaches poll, but a surprising outlook for the reigning…

For 63 years, as an assistant and then lower level college head coach, Curt Cignetti could leave the house while enjoying relative autonomy. His public life started changing during Indiana’s 2024 season, when the Hoosiers stunned the college football world with an 11-1 regular season and an invite to the College Football Playoff.  By then he’d be recognized while stopping at the local gas station, and on other occasions here and there. But after IU’s magical 16-0 run to the national title, the 65-year-old’s profile went global. “I’m a little surprised by that, honestly,” Cignetti said of his newfound fame,…

Can IU football have a repeat winner of the Maxwell Award? Quarterback Josh Hoover is on the preseason watch list for the honor, which goes to college football’s best player. Hoover is college football’s leading returning passer with 9,629 yards and is second in touchdown passes with 71. He has 16 career 300-yard games and three with more than 400 yards. Fernando Mendoza won the Maxwell in 2025.  He was Indiana’s second winner after running back Anthony Thompson in 1989. Semifinalists for the Maxwell Award will be announced Nov. 10, while the three finalists will be announced on Nov. 24.…

The news is not good after former IU football star Mikail Kamara was carted off the field at San Francisco 49ers camp this weekend. Kamara was diagnosed with a torn ACL, Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area reports. The 49ers waived Kamara with an injury designation on Sunday, and he will revert to the team’s injured reserve list once he clears waivers. After signing as an undrafted free agent, Kamara was competing for a role as a pass rusher and special teams contributor for San Francisco. A product of Ashburn, Virginia, Kamara appeared in 52 career games with 51…

IU football players were learning for the first time on Thursday the Big Ten Championship game might soon become a thing of the past. Commissioner Tony Petitti confirmed at Big Ten Media Days in Chicago last week the 24-team College Football Playoff he is pushing necessarily means the end of early December conference title games. “We won’t be playing a championship game if we go to 24,” Petitti said. “I think that’s been pretty settled in terms of when we make this decision as a league, are we going to support 24, that’s where you start the conversation.” In the…