Projecting Indiana football’s offensive two-deep depth chart ahead of spring practice
BLOOMINGTON – Indiana football exited an exhilarating 2024 momentum never before seen around here.
The Hoosiers immediately entered an offseason needing to answer several roster questions, if they wanted to maintain that momentum into 2025. Curt Cignetti and his staff spent more than a month addressing those questions and emerging the other side with a roster that looks capable of following up on his outstanding first season with more success this fall.
With that in mind, we’ll take a stab at projecting IU’s depth chart as things stand, beginning on offense:
Indiana quarterbacks
Fernando Mendoza, r-Jr.Grant Wilson, r-Sr.+Alberto Mendoza, So.Jacob Bell, Fr.
The elder Mendoza, unsurprisingly, tops this list. He passed for more than 3,000 yards last season in an otherwise modest Cal offense and led the Bears to a second-consecutive postseason appearance despite taking an eye-watering 41 sacks.
Mendoza can probably hold up his own hand on a few of those. Any quarterback will tell you pressure is on them as much as their line. But even meeting in the middle improves efficiency and output from a player who put nearly six percentage points onto his completion rate while cutting his attempts-per-interception number from 24.3 as a freshman to 64.3 as a sophomore.
Wilson was recruited from Old Dominion for veteran depth and competition. Alberto Mendoza impressed coaches during his freshman season and could push Wilson. Tyler Cherry will sit out 2025 and work as a student coach while he rehabs his knee injury. Bell won’t enroll until summer.
Indiana running backs
Roman Hemby, r-Sr. ORKaelon Black, r-Sr.Lee Beebe, r-Jr.Khobie Martin, r-Fr.Sean Cuono, Fr.
Given Black’s experience in the offense and success this season (46 carries, 251 yards, two touchdowns), it stands to reason he will compete with the newcomers at the start.
Hemby might be the pick of the bunch, having amassed more than 3,000 all-purpose yards across four seasons at Maryland, with 27 combined rushing and passing touchdowns. Black’s immediate advantage is his knowledge of the offense. Beebe provides both competition now and some long-term security as well.
Indiana really leaned on a three-back rotation when it mattered in 2024, so younger players will probably stay peripheral barring injuries. But with Hemby and Black both entering their final years of eligibility, there’s a clear pathway to playing time in the medium term.
Indiana wide receivers
Boundary
Elijah Sarratt, Sr.E.J. Williams, r-Sr.Charlie Becker, So.
Slot
Makai Jackson, Sr. ORTyler Morris, Sr.
Boundary
Omar Cooper, r-Jr.Makai Jackson, Sr.Charlie Becker, So.
Returning Cooper and Sarratt gives Indiana proven playmakers at both boundaries, with Williams providing veteran presence behind them. In truth, he could probably be listed as the No. 1 backup at both positions.
But the staff does seem to like Becker, who appeared in all 12 games last season and rushed for a touchdown against Western Illinois. Provided he keeps progressing, he should mix into this conversation as well.
Jackson (Appalachian State) and Morris (Michigan) will probably be used primarily in the slot on a rotational basis, the same way IU deployed Miles Cross, Myles Price and Ke’Shawn Williams last fall. Jackson also has experience at the boundary, and can be more positionless than most anyone else at receiver.
Keep an eye on the freshmen, Davion Chandler, LeBron Bond and Myles Kendrick. Cignetti doesn’t tend to lean too heavily on young players, but there’s not a ton of depth here if someone gets seriously injured.
Indiana tight ends
Holden Staes, Sr.James Bomba, r-Sr. ORRiley Nowakowski, r-Sr.+Sam West, r-So.
Staes, the Tennessee transfer, provides athletic receiving threat at the position, with Zach Horton now gone. Nowakowski graded out well as a run blocker last season at Wisconsin, and Bomba has Big Ten experience by the bagful.
Together, those three should be able to man the position ably in 2025. But keep an eye on West. The converted high school quarterback from Greensburg looks more impressive with each passing year. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him more involved as time goes on.
Indiana offensive line
Right tackle
Zen Michalski, r-Sr.Austin Barrett, r-So.
Right guard
Khalil Benson, r-Sr.+Adedamola Ajani, r-Fr.
Center
Pat Coogan, r-Sr.Bray Lynch, r-Jr.
Left guard
Drew Evans, r-Jr.Bray Lynch, r-Jr.
Left tackle
Carter Smith, r-Jr.Austin Liebfried, r-Fr.
Arguably the position on Indiana’s offensive two-deep that benefited most from the portal window.
Coogan slides into Mike Katic’s vacated spot at starting center. Benson, back from his one-year sabbatical at Colorado, slots in next to him.
Smith and Michalski are the logical picks, at least for now, at the tackle spots, the former where he was last year and the latter filling Trey Wedig’s considerable shoes. Benson also has college experience at tackle.
Behind them, the names are guesses. Barrett has seniority, and there are others we could mention here, like Evan Lawrence. But somebody has to be the No. 2 tackle. Keep an eye on Liebfried.
Evans is a wildcard. Still recovering from a season-ending Achilles tendon injury, the additions of Coogan and Benson mean Indiana doesn’t have to rush him back. Once healthy, he can probably reclaim his starting spot, which would leave IU to flex Lynch between all three interior positions. That’s a level of depth the Hoosiers didn’t have last year.
Ajani is young but promising.
Indiana place kicker
Nico Radicic, r-So.
Radicic was among the Big Ten’s steadiest kickers in 2024. He converted all 69 point-after attempts — a program record — and made 10-of-11 field goal tries.
The Hoosiers ranked among the best red zone offenses in the country last season, meaning Radicic wasn’t asked to handle much volume in terms of field goals. It will be interesting whether he can add range in 2025; his career long, set against Michigan, is just 41 yards.
Indiana kickoff returner
Solomon Vanhorse, r-Sr.+++
Let’s be honest: I just wanted to include the three plusses.
Vanhorse got an eighth (yes, eighth) year of eligibility for 2025. He can provide depth at running back but first and foremost slides seamlessly back into his role as kick returner. No questions or concerns.
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