The historic IU football achievements appear set to continue in the spring.
Several members of the 2025 Indiana football team are projected to be NFL Draft picks in April.
The list includes quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who is likely at this point to 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.
Mendoza has at least one No. 1 overall projection (from ESPN’s Matt Miller). That has only happened once in IU history — when Corby Davis was chosen with the first pick 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 appears set to change in April.
NFL Mock Draft Database aggregates data from multiple sources for a balanced prospect ranking. It says it uses rankings from 67 big boards, evaluating talent across positions. It also incorporates 277 first-round mock drafts, showing team priorities for top prospects. Additionally, 181 team-specific mock drafts provide context on franchise-specific selections.
The output of the aggregation is a consensus projection for the draft. And for 2026, seven IU players are projected to be drafted as of Friday. Here’s what NFL Mock Draft Database has come up with for Indiana players:
- Fernando Mendoza – 1st round, No. 3 overall
- Elijah Sarratt – 3rd round, No. 66
- D’Angelo Ponds – 3rd round, No. 87
- Amare Ferrell – 4th round, No. 125
- Omar Cooper, Jr. – 4th round, No. 129
- Mikail Kamara – 5th round, No. 143
- Carter Smith – 5th round, No. 157
Obviously high profile moments like the Big Ten Championship game and the College Football Playoff will go further to cement the draft outlook for these players and others.
And just because they currently don’t have a draft projection in the aggregate, players, like Pat Coogan, Roman Hemby, Stephen Daley and Aiden Fisher and others are on the radar. And of course, as was the case in 2024 with undrafted players such as Ke’Shawn Williams and Myles Price, there’s a path to an NFL roster without being drafted.
We’ll continue to check in on the IU football 2026 NFL Draft outlook in the months to come.
For complete coverage of IU football, GO HERE.
The Daily Hoosier –“Where Indiana fans assemble when they’re not at Assembly”
- You can follow us on X: @daily_hoosier and find us on Facebook and Instagram
- Seven ways to support completely free IU coverage at no cost to you.
