Author: Seth Tow

Sitting on the Indiana football team bus in Columbus, Ohio in November 2022, Carter Smith could hardly contain himself. The offensive tackle, who grew up around 20 minutes from Ohio Stadium, knew he’d make his collegiate debut that day. And the true freshman couldn’t hide his excitement as he left the team hotel. Smith was so amped up, some teammates became concerned. “I will never forget, on the bus ride over there, he had his sunglasses on and Beats headphones in. I was freaked out, like how excited (he was),” former IU center Mike Katic said in 2023. “I was…

BLOOMINGTON — At long last, Indiana football is set to take the field. It’s officially game week for the Hoosiers, for the first time in 2025. They open the season against Old Dominion on Saturday, with a 2:30 p.m. ET kickoff at Memorial Stadium televised on FS1. IU head coach Curt Cignetti met with local media on Monday for his weekly in-season press conference, to talk about his team entering the season, the upcoming opponent, and more. Here’s a few key points he discussed. Game week is back Indiana worked hard throughout fall camp, spanning around three and a half…

BLOOMINGTON — For Zen Michalski, switching from left tackle to right tackle is like writing with his non-dominant hand. And for the Ohio State transfer, that’s more than just a metaphor. He joined Indiana football out of the transfer portal in the offseason, and head coach Curt Cignetti and offensive line coach Bob Bostad told him they envisioned him on the right side of the offensive line. So he started making an effort to use his right hand — his non-dominant hand — more frequently in routine daily actions. “I was like, ‘I’m going to start doing everything with my…

With football season approaching, we went through Indiana’s roster to look at each position group on the team. The Hoosiers have a strong team going into 2025, entering the season ranked No. 20 in the AP preseason Top 25. They kick off the new campaign on Saturday, August 31 against Old Dominion at 2:30 p.m. ET at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington. If you missed any of our position previews, or want to revisit them with the season drawing near, here is a full collection of all 10. https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/iu-football-2025-position-snapshot-defensive-line-depth-chart-and-outlook/ https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/iu-football-2025-position-snapshot-linebacker-depth-chart-and-outlook/ https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/iu-football-2025-position-snapshot-cornerback-depth-chart-and-outlook/ https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/iu-football-2025-position-snapshot-safety-depth-chart-and-outlook/ https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/iu-football-2025-position-snapshot-quarterback-depth-chart-and-outlook/ https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/iu-football-2025-position-snapshot-running-back-depth-chart-and-outlook/ https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/iu-football-2025-position-snapshot-offensive-line-depth-chart-and-outlook/ https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/iu-football-2025-position-snapshot-wide-receivers-depth-chart-and-outlook/ https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/iu-football-2025-position-snapshot-tight-end-depth-chart-and-outlook/ https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/iu-football-2025-position-snapshot-special-teams-depth-chart-and-outlook/ For complete…

With football season approaching, we’re going through Indiana’s roster to look at each position group going into fall camp. Indiana has most of its specialists back this season. The Hoosiers brought in some pieces for special teams this offseason, including their starting punter for this season. But other than that spot, most of the additions were more about depth and future potential than anyone who will contribute this season. Roster turnover — who’s gone James Evans (P) (exhausted his eligibility) Derek McCormick (K) (exhausted his eligibility) Roster turnover — who’s back Mark Langston (LS) (sixth-year senior) Nico Radicic (K) (redshirt sophomore)…

When Mark Langston started long snapping, he intentionally misfired. He wanted to play punter in middle school, but his coach put him at long snapper. He wasn’t keen on the move, initially. So in Langston’s mind, if he purposely messed up on his snaps, his coach would move him off snapping duty and over to punter. His coach soon sat him down and told him, ‘You’re not going to do either, now.’ It all worked out eventually. Langston played outside linebacker at Kennesaw State in 2019 and 2020, though he didn’t see any game action. He kept long snapping on…

BLOOMINGTON — Ahead of Indiana football’s big game against Michigan in November 2024, guard Drew Evans felt something strange. While hitting a sled in practice during the week leading up to the game, Evans felt like someone kicked him in the back of the leg. He turned around to look and see who did it, and nobody was there. IU’s starting left guard quickly realized he had a serious problem. Then a redshirt sophomore, Evans suffered an Achilles injury that ended his season early, just as the Hoosiers prepared to enter a critical stretch run. “That was a really devastating…

After a historic 2024 season, Indiana football is living in a bigger spotlight. The Hoosiers are ranked No. 20 in the preseason AP Poll entering 2025. They checked in at No. 19 in the Coaches Poll last week. IU began last year unranked, but cracked the polls in week five after defeating Charlotte. The team finished the season No. 10 in the final AP Poll after reaching the College Football Playoff. This is the program’s first preseason AP Poll ranking since 2021. Indiana opens the year against Old Dominion on Saturday, August 30 at 2:30 p.m. in Bloomington. For complete…

Indiana head football coach Curt Cignetti typically doesn’t shy away from utilizing freshmen he deems ready for collegiate game action. In 2024, linebacker Rolijah Hardy and defensive lineman Mario Landino both saw meaningful playing time as true freshmen. Cignetti preaches a recruiting philosophy of preferring production over potential, but once players enter the building, he’s unafraid of using a less experienced player if he and his staff feel they’ve earned a role. IU’s head coach acknowledged that he doesn’t recruit high school players thinking they’ll immediately contribute as freshmen, because most won’t be ready for that responsibility. True freshman have…

Preseason recognition for Indiana football continues to stack up. Quarterback Fernando Mendoza has been named to the Davey O’Brien Award preseason watch list, for the honor given to the top quarterback in college football. Mendoza transferred to IU this past offseason from Cal. In 2024, he finished third in the ACC with 273.1 passing yards per game, and his 68.7 completion percentage ranked second in the conference. He’s received buzz this summer and early in fall camp as one of the top quarterbacks in the Big Ten this year, and as a player who could end up going high in…