Author: Mike Schumann

Ahead of the Big Ten’s annual media days this week in Las Vegas, a couple annual polls from outlets who cover the conference were released, along with some preseason award voting. In both polls Indiana is picked preseason to finish in sixth place in the league. And in both cases, IU faces three teams picked above them in 2025 — Penn State, Oregon and Illinois — with two former games coming on the road.  So the voters appear to be telling you how they think those games will go. A year ago IU was picked to finish 16th by USA…

Class of 2027 guard Dooney Johnson announced an Indiana offer on Sunday. Johnson is connected to IU assistant coach Rod Clark, who he thanked on social media when announcing the offer. Around 6-foot-5, Johnson hails from Milwaukee, Wisc. where he attends Juneau H.S.  As a sophomore there he averaged 25.1 points, 8.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game while shooting 45.9% overall including 33.3% from long range. According to the average of the national rankings, Johnson is a 4-star, the No. 39 overall player in the 2027 class, and the No. 11 point guard. Johnson’s father, Torre Johnson, played Division…

Incoming IU freshman Aleksa Ristic’s run at the FIBA U20 Eurobasket is complete. Ristic and the Serbians finished 4th at the event after losing their final two games in Greece.  Serbia started 5-0 to reach the semifinals but lost to Italy and France on Saturday and Sunday. Over the seven games, the 6-foot-3 Ristic averaged 11.3 points and 6.3 assists.  He made 9-of-30 from three over his last five games after an 0-for-10 start.  He struggled with efficiency throughout the event, but Ristic was a strong facilitator with a 2.6 assist-to-turnover ratio, and made 85.7% of his free throws. Ristic’s…

Well known for being a challenging cover for sportswriters, not even Bob Knight could bring himself to dislike Bob Hammel. In fact, the two were close friends, especially in their respective retirements. That has always been the most obvious indication there was something special about Hammel, who covered IU Athletics for decades. Truth be told, I’ve never heard a negative word spoken about the man, who passed away this weekend at the age of 88. And in several “I’m not worthy” moments, I was able to see first-hand the pedestal Hammel sat on in Bloomington. Indiana saved a media seat…

Indiana offered class of 2027 center Darius Wabbington this weekend. Wabbington attends Sunnyslope H.S. in Phoenix, Arizona, where he averaged 13.4 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.3 blocks per game as a sophomore.  He shot 26% from three on 99 attempts.  Sunnyslope reached the state finals in Arizona’s top class. Typically listed in the 6-foot-9 to 6-foot-11 range, Wabbington is one of the first centers IU has offered in the rising junior class, along with Indianapolis Pike H.S.’s Isaiah Hill. Based on the average of the national recruiting sites, Wabbington is a 4-star, the No. 23 overall player in…

A season that almost never happened became one of Indiana’s best ever. As the COVID-19 virus created chaos around the globe, the summer of 2020 saw several modifications to the Indiana football schedule. First the Big Ten canceled nonconference games, then it moved to postpone the entire season to the spring. Coming off a solid 2019 season with most of his key players back, IU head coach Tom Allen was not happy to see a promising season imploding. “It has been very frustrating,” Allen said in August after the postponement. “This has been a season that I have been looking…

The 2025 edition of The Basketball Tournament (TBT) is underway. Here’s what you need to know from an IU basketball perspective: WHO:  Assembly Ball is a team made up primarily of former IU basketball players.  Assembly Ball’s current roster includes 11 former Hoosiers: 0 – SF – Troy Williams – Indiana 1 – PG – Jordan Hulls – Indiana 2 – PF – Christian Watford – Indiana 5 – SG – James Blackmon – Indiana 10 – PG – Jordan King – Richmond 11 – PG – Yogi Ferrell – Indiana 12 – SF – Miller Kopp – Indiana 13…

Indiana continues to aggressively recruit the Washington D.C. metro area. The program’s latest offer to a DMV player went out Friday to 2027 guard Jymin Veney. A 6-foot-3 guard, Veney attends St. John’s College H.S. in Washington D.C. Veney’s only national ranking so far is by Rivals.  That outlet says he’s a 3-star and the No. 139 player in the 2027 class.  He’s been generating buzz this summer, so a move up the rankings and more offers won’t come as a major surprise. Indiana appears to be the first high major offer for Veney.  He’s also been offered by LaSalle,…

Towards the end of his second day on the job, IU coach Curt Cignetti jumped right into the Indiana and Purdue rivalry with two feet. “I’ve never taken a back seat to anybody and don’t plan on starting now.  Purdue sucks,” he told a packed house at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. A year later he backed it up, pummeling an indeed very sucky Purdue team 66-0. It was a Boilermaker loss so bad it left no doubt then head coach Ryan Walters would be fired, and he was just days later. That opened the door for new Purdue head coach…

Indiana Athletics announced its winners of the IU Athlete of the Year awards for the 2024-25 school year on Thursday, recognizing swimming and diving seniors Carson Tyler and Anna Peplowski for the second consecutive season. Combining for three national titles and 10 All-America honors between them, Tyler and Peplowski led the IU men’s and women’s programs to historic performances at the 2025 NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships. Repeating as CSCAA National Diver of the Year and Big Ten Diver of the Year, Tyler also won consecutive national championships in the 3-meter springboard and platform events while becoming the first athlete…