Author: Mike Schumann

Former IU football quarterback Fernando Mendoza is just a little too perfect for NFL teams lower in the 2026 draft order. With his Heisman Trophy and national championship season paired with elite skills, nerves of steel and an impeccable off the field persona, it seems only one team — the Las Vegas Raiders — will have a chance to select Mendoza in April. But other teams are still trying. One approach would be to offer a trade to the Raiders to obtain their rights to the No. 1 overall pick.  But in this era of football, when you must have…

Indiana football’s 2026 on campus Pro Day is a month later than the 2025 version. IU will host NFL scouts and executives in Bloomington for workouts and evaluation on April 1 this year, just three weeks ahead of the NFL Draft.  It held the event on March 5 a year ago. The reason why is pretty simple — Indiana’s national championship season didn’t end until Jan. 19. While most college football players started thinking about draft preparation in late November/early December, the Indiana players were just getting started on a more than eight-week postseason run. And when that run ended…

IU football coach Curt Cignetti is known for his glare, especially when he senses complacency. Not many stories come out about Cignetti during the season, but they do emerge from former players.  What’s it really like playing for him? Former Indiana players Riley Nowakowski, D’Angelo Ponds and Louis Moore shared Cignetti stories at the NFL Draft Combine Thursday. Here’s what they had to say. HAND THE BALL OFF!!! Cignetti is known to get more frustrated when his team has a big lead. Nowakowski relayed a moment from the week four 63-10 win over Illinois related to backup quarterback Alberto Mendoza.…

Former IU football starting defensive tackle James Carpenter is joining the 2026 staff with a title of Defensive Quality Control. Carpenter transferred from James Madison to Indiana when head coach Curt Cignetti was hired. The Roanoke, Va. product was named Honorable Mention All-Big Ten following the 2024 season. A finalist for the Burlsworth Trophy for the nation’s most outstanding player who began his career as a walk-on, Carpenter started all 13 games for IU in 2024. He logged 37 tackles from the defensive interior, totaled 10.5 tackles for loss and 5.0 sacks.  He also broke up two passes and blocked…

After watching Indiana blitz Marquette and Milwaukee with back-to-back 14 of 28 efforts from beyond 3-point arc, any coach worth his salt wasn’t about to play straight-up man defense and chase IU’s shooters through a mesmerizing array of movement and screens for 40 minutes. Credit Incarnate Word and Lindenwood for being the first to figure that out. Lindenwood has some respectable length and athleticism, and rather than chase they switched.  The result was like kryptonite to Indiana’s then seemingly dynamic offense. There were clues switching might be effective the game prior when Incarnate Word forced IU into a 5 of…

IU football is trending for one of the top in-state players in the class of 2027. Rivals national analyst Steve Wiltfong logged a prediction for 4-star edge rusher Jayce Brewer to end up at Indiana. The 6-foot-5 and 240-pound Brewer attends Franklin Central H.S. in Indianapolis. Brewer recently announced a top-six of Indiana, Tennessee, Kentucky, Auburn, Michigan, and Purdue.  He plans to take visits before announcing a commitment.  IU offered him in Sept. 2024. Based on the industry average, Brewer is a 4-star, the No. 360 player overall, and the No. 35 edge rusher in the 2027 class. According to…

A record-setting nine former IU football players are set to compete at the 2026 NFL Draft Combine in Indianapolis this week. The on field action begins Thursday inside Lucas Oil Stadium. Here is the drill schedule for the IU players at the combine: Thursday, Feb. 26:  Aiden Fisher (Linebackers/DL) Friday, Feb. 27:  D’Angelo Ponds, Louis Moore, and Riley Nowakowski (DBs/Tight Ends) Saturday, Feb. 28: Fernando Mendoza, Omar Cooper Jr., Elijah Sarratt, and Roman Hemby (QBs/WRs/RBs) Sunday, March 1: Pat Coogan (Offensive Line) Drills begin at 3 p.m. on Feb. 26-27, and at 1 p.m. on Feb. 28 and March 1.…

There is no other way to say it — this was a devastating loss. Indiana started great on Tuesday evening, jumping out to a 23-13 lead with 10:36 left in the first half.  That advantage grew to as much as 13 before the break before Northwestern started chipping away.  The IU lead was nine at halftime, and kept shrinking.  Northwestern was within four with 17:24 to go, and they took their first lead with 5:05 left.  Indiana could never recover. Let’s take a deeper look at how Indiana lost 72-68 in Bloomington with our latest edition of The Report Card.…

If Northwestern coach Chris Collins was instructing his players to not foul in the final 10 seconds, his players weren’t listening. The Wildcats seemed to serve Indiana two opportunities to tie the game at the free throw line, but neither trip to the stripe was rewarded. With Northwestern up 69-66 with 14 seconds remaining Tuesday evening at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, Indiana guard Tayton Conerway drove the length of the floor for a dunk. Inexplicably, Northwestern guard Jake West tried to block the shot and instead swiped the head of Conerway, knocking him to the floor.  A foul call would…

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Indiana lost to Northwestern Tuesday evening at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall by a final score of 72-68. The three keys, highlights and final stats are below. The Hoosiers led 42-33 at halftime.  They were led in the game by Lamar Wilkerson with 18 points. For Darian DeVries, Tucker DeVries and Lamar Wilkerson postgame, GO HERE. Indiana (17-11, 8-9) will host Michigan State on Sunday. THREE KEYS TO THE GAME 1. Second half collapse.  Indiana led by as much as 13 in the first half, and by 11 after scoring the first points of the second half.  But…