Two more IU football players put their names in the transfer portal this week as linebacker/bull D.K. Bonhomme and defensive lineman C.J. Person became the latest to move on from the program.
The exit by the pair this week marks the latest of several in season transfers including wide receiver Jacolby Hewitt, running back Tim Baldwin, cornerback Larry Tracy, wide receiver Da’Shaun Brown and tight end Kham Taylor. Running back Sampson James also left during fall camp.
While head coach Tom Allen had expressed frustration with some of the earlier midseason entries into the portal, conversations, especially with injured players, have now commenced as it relates to future plans with the program.
“It’s just open and honest conversations with guys, and I think it’s just going to be a reality of the new era of college football with the transfer portal and the way that effects things,” Allen said during a media availability on Wednesday.
Allen doesn’t believe the number of transfers out of the program is anything unique to Indiana at this point.
“I think it is just going to be a very interesting offseason across this entire country at a lot of different schools, and I think it’s going to be consistent across the board,” he said.
While Bonhomme and Person weren’t major contributors in 2021, they were two players who appeared on track to step into significant roles after promising 2020 seasons.
Hailing from Canada, Bonhomme arrived at IU in 2019 via Clearwater Academy in Florida. In three seasons with the program he registered 17 tackles including two for a loss, a sack and a safety. He started three times in 2020 and appeared to be trending towards becoming a high impact player in 2021, but that never occurred. Bonhomme played in just five games in 2021 and registered one tackle.
An Alabama native, Person was IU’s defensive newcomer of the year in 2020. After playing in four games as a redshirt in 2019, he played in eight games and made his first career start at end in the win at No. 16 Wisconsin in 2020. He made eight tackles, five solo, a half for loss, and one pass breakup on the 2020 season and posted a career-high four solos against the Badgers. In 2021 he appeared in the defensive line rotation in nine games and registered four tackles.
The departures by Bonhomme and Person before the end of the season may be in large part due to injuries, although nothing specific about either player has been disclosed.
Allen said that once players are injured, the staff proceeds with having discussions about their future fit with the team.
“It effects the conversations we have with guys, once they are injured and not able to play, those conversations happen sooner,” Allen said.
And while Allen has expressed frustration in the past with players putting their names in the portal without first talking it through with him, that does not appear to be the case with Bonhomme and Person.
“I respect those guys, they came, we sat down and talked it through face-to-face, and I respect that and appreciate that,” Allen said.
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