Here are some quick notes from week three at IU football’s 2026 fall camp:
— Practice always moves with good pace, but by Friday of this past week, you could tell we were just two weeks away from the 2026 season. The flow was crisp, as the players spent just five or so minutes on a concept before quickly moving on to the next, jogging from station to station.
— One thing that stands out: There are never any light moments. No joking around. No side conversations. They don’t practice long, but when they do, everyone is focused. It’s all business all of the time.
— The tight end competition has been one to watch throughout fall camp, and you get the sense the evaluation will continue into the season with all of these players so young and inexperienced. Physically Andrew Barker and Brock Schott look like Big Ten tight ends and first-year Trevor Gibbs isn’t far behind. It’s just a question of who masters their assignments and executes at the highest level. That might take some time to sort out. We saw them work on blocking at practice. Whoever of the three can be the most physical and impactful in that regard is likely to win over the staff.
— Safety depth wasn’t clear heading into fall camp, but with Byron Baldwin and Quan Sanks flashing their potential this month, IU should be fairly comfortable with those two on the back end and/or in the rover role in addition to veterans Amare Ferrell and Preston Zachman. They’re a solid four for the three roles, with some promising young talent behind them.
— At cornerback, two guys we haven’t talked about this month are Carson Williams and Jaylen Bell. Williams transferred from the FCS level. He physically looks the part, and he’s someone you could see being ready for big things in a year. It won’t come as a surprise if he has some kind of role this fall. Bell looked very undersized as a freshman a year ago. But he has filled out and his athleticism really pops. There’s clear potential.
— Second-year linebacker P.J. Nelson appears to be progressing. There obviously won’t be a lot of snaps behind Isaiah Jones and Rolijah Hardy, but Nelson might be in line for some opportunities here and there. He’ll have to hold off a very talented group of freshmen.
— Wideout Lebron Bond keeps catching our eye. You know about his speed, but he is showing the ability to make tough catches, including a few with one hand. He was able to get open as a true freshman. He should be able to make some big plays in year two.
— There are a number of players who originally joined the program as walk-ons who aren’t too far down the depth chart and will at the very least have important special teams roles: Linebacker Jeff Utzinger, safety Anthony Chung, wideout Jackson Wasserstrom, and safety Clay Conner are all worthy of mention. We know Utzinger has been awarded a scholarship, there could be others who have as well.
— One thing that has stood out at the eight practices we attended was a very heavy NFL presence. Indiana confirmed there have been representatives from all 32 NFL teams at practice this month, and a total of 76 individuals from across the league.
— We still haven’t noticed any major absences from an injury standpoint. There are of course various guys sitting out here and there, but to this point there doesn’t seem to be any glaring red flags.
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