Jamier Johnson started the first 11 games of the 2024 season for Indiana and averaged nearly 60 snaps a contest.
But something seemed to change in the final weeks.
Johnson missed Indiana’s game against Purdue for undisclosed reasons.
He was back and started in the College Football Playoff first round game at Notre Dame, but had a very limited role, playing just 14 snaps, all in the first half.
Last week we reported Johnson was no longer with the IU program. And he formally entered the transfer portal this week.
On a defense that didn’t give up 300 yards in a single game and had more interceptions (15) than passing touchdowns allowed (11), losing a player like Johnson seems like a big deal on the surface.
But head coach Curt Cignetti suggested Wednesday that Johnson was not expected to continue as a starter for the Hoosiers in 2025.
“We didn’t lose, you know, anyone that we were projecting to start in the fall, let me just put it that way,” Cignetti said when asked specifically about the turnover at cornerback. … I think we have an opportunity to have better depth (at cornerback) than we did last season.”
With Johnson no longer in the picture, it appears three veterans will be competing to play along with All-American D’Angelo Ponds.
Indiana added Pitt starting corner Ryland Gandy and Northern Illinois starter Amariyun Knighten via the transfer portal over the last two months. Cignetti suggested those additions likely influenced the decision by Johnson to transfer, along with reserve corners JoJo Johnson and Josh Philostin.
The Hoosiers also return Jamari Sharpe, who played in place of Johnson in the win over Purdue, and a significant portion of the Notre Dame game. Sharpe played in nine games and saw 234 snaps for the Hoosiers in 2024. He also saw 516 snaps in 2023.
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 Twitter: @daily_hoosier
- Find us on Facebook and Instagram
- Seven ways to support completely free IU coverage at no cost to you.
