A dominant defensive line can wreck everything an offense is trying to do.
Just ask Michigan State last fall.
After allowing 10 points and 123 yards on Michigan State’s first two drives, the IU defense took over in East Lansing. The Hoosiers only allowed 82 yards the rest of the game. The Spartans had -24 net rushing yards for the entire game. Indiana had 15 tackles for loss, seven sacks, and two interceptions.
It was a complete annihilation by the IU defense, and it all started up front.
“That’s really impressive,” IU coach Curt Cignetti said after Indiana’s 47-10 road victory over the Spartans. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen those kinds of numbers on a team. Credit to the coaches, that’s a great credit to our defensive players, staff, and they got after them up front.”
Dominant defensive line play is becoming a trademark of Cignetti’s defense going back to his time at James Madison.
Two former James Madison defensive linemen played in the NFL in 2024, Mike Greene for Tampa Bay, and Isaac Ukwu for Detroit. Another, Jamree Kromah, was on the Chicago Bears practice squad.
From last year’s Indiana team, C.J. West was drafted by San Francisco, and James Carpenter is currently on the Jacksonville Jaguars roster. Meanwhile, Mikail Kamara is back with Indiana after an All-American season that has him firmly on the 2026 NFL Draft radar.
Indianapolis native Pat Kuntz coached Cignetti’s entire defensive line in 2022-23 for James Madison, and he now focuses on the interior and has meshed well with IU defensive ends coach Buddha Williams, who Cignetti hired from Colorado State a year ago.
At least one of Williams’ players has produced 8.0 sacks or more in four straight seasons, with the last two being double-digit sack seasons. Mohamed Kamara (Colorado State) and Mikail Kamara (Indiana) – no relation – produced 13.0 and 10.0 sacks, respectively, over the past two seasons. Mohamed was drafted by and played for the Miami Dolphins in 2024. Mikail led the FBS in QB pressures last year.
There’s more than enough defensive line accolades across the IU staff to tell a convincing story on the recruiting trail. And now Cignetti, Kuntz and Williams have combined to build a 2026 defensive line class that projects to be wreaking havoc on the Big Ten for years to come.
Dominance in the trenches has typically been what has separate the elites from the rest in college football. Former IU coach Kevin Wilson liked to say you can’t run on offense what you can’t block. A year ago Michigan State couldn’t run much of anything.
It isn’t easy for young linemen on either side of the ball to make an early impact in college, but in a few years, IU’s 2026 defensive line haul just might be the foundation of an elite defense.
Led by Cignetti, Williams and Kuntz, IU has a total of six, maybe seven defensive linemen in its 2026 class combining both interior and edge rushers, including four who have been graded a 4-star by at least one national outlet.
Four of the top-five highest-ranked players in IU’s national top-30 2026 class will be playing along the defensive line in college. Those four are also four of the 25 highest-ranked IU football recruits all-time during the rankings era.
Here’s the impressive group the IU staff has assembled:
- Gabe Hill, DT, 6-foot-1, 290 pounds. 4-star at On3 and ESPN.
- Ronelle Johnson, DE, 6-foot-4 and 245 pounds. 4-star at On3.
- Kevontay Hugan, EDGE, 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds. 4-star at ESPN.
- Cameron McHaney, DT, 6-foot-1 and 315 pounds. 4-star at ESPN.
- Trevor Gibbs, EDGE, 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds. Could play tight end.
- Blake Smythe, DL, 6-foot-3 and 275 pounds.
- Rodney White, DL, 6-foot-1 and 280 pounds.
For complete coverage of IU football recruiting, GO HERE.
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