2024 IU Football Early Signing Period: Defensive Profiles

Written by Sammy Jacobs and Ethan Roberts

With the 2024 recruiting class officially signing today, here is a working list of the official defensive signees of coach Curt Cignetti’s first class. (Offensive Signees)

High School Commitments

Quentin Clark – Linebacker – 6’1”/205 pounds – Dublin, GA – 88 (247)

Clark is one of the highest rated defensive commitments for the Hoosier class. He committed to the Hoosiers in June 2023 under former head coach Tom Allen’s staff. He is a multi-sport athlete who also competed in basketball, track and field and weightlifting. He also displayed position versatility in high school, taking snaps at linebacker, running back and wide receiver. He is rated as a consensus top-100 player at his position and is the 66th rated linebacker on 247Sports.

William Depaepe – Edge – 6’6”/225 pounds – Moline, IL – 87 (247)

Depaepe is a former Georgia Tech commit that flipped to the Hoosiers Dec 15, one of several key flips for coach Cignetti. He has a knack for getting to the quarterback and disrupting plays. He is rated as a 3-star on 247Sports and is the highest rated front seven player in the Hoosier class. He is a consensus top-100 edge rusher and is ranked 64th positionally on 247Sports.

Jah Jah Boyd – Safety – 5’10”/170 pounds – Philadelphia, PA – 86 (247)

Boyd is a former James Madison commit that followed coach Cignetti to Bloomington. He has the versatility to play any position in the secondary. Although he only played four games in his senior season, he tallied 11 catches for 196 yards and a touchdown as a wide receiver and 10 tackles and an interception at defensive back. Boyd was reportedly going to be given the chance to play both sides of the ball at James Madison and will be something to monitor as he has stayed tightly knitted with the new staff in Bloomington. He is rated as a 3-star athlete on 247Sports and is rated 125th nationally at his position.

Dontrae Henderson – Defensive Back – 6’1”/170 pounds – Charlotte, NC – 79 (247)

Henderson is another former James Madison commit that followed Cignetti to Bloomington. The utility secondary prospect who has the ability to play on the boundary as well as the last line of defense. He is rated as a 2-star prospect on 247 but is a composite 3-star prospect and rated the 206th overall safety in the class. His ability to play multiple positions on the field will offer great opportunities for playing time under Cignetti’s staff. He played his high school football for Julius L. Chambers in Charlotte, North Carolina. Last season he averaged 4.8 tackles per game and tallied 4 interceptions on the season.

Daniel Ndukwe- Defensive Line- 6’3”/220 Pounds- Lithonia, GA- 85 (247)

Ndukwe is a three-star prospect who had committed to James Madison and Cignetti back in July.

He played both ways as a junior in high school and finished his senior season with 35 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, one sack, one interception, one fumble recovery, and one forced fumble.

Ndukwe also runs track and throws the shot put. As a junior, clocked a 11.49 in the 100-meter dash. Also tossed a 43’9” effort in the shot put. He has the potential to grow into his body and become a freak athlete that will be hard to keep out of the backfield.

Mario Landino- Defensive Line- 6’5”/265 Pounds- Macungie, PA- 80 (247)

Landino was a productive defensive lineman in Pennsylvania where he won Eastern Pennsylvania Conference South Defensive Player of the Year as a senior in 2023. He finished his final high school season with 97 tackles and 20 tackles for loss (three sacks). He was committed to new IU head coach Curt Cignetti at JMU, but flipped his commitment soon after Cignetti left for Indiana.

Landino is expected to be an interior lineman for the Hoosiers. He clearly has believers in defensive line coach Pat Kuntz and defensive coordinator Bryant Haines and his visit to Indiana this past weekend solidified his decision for college.

Josh Philosten- Defensive Back- 5’11” 180-pounds- West Palm Beach, FL (89 247)

Philosten is IU’s second-highest rated high school signee in the 2024 class and committed to IU when Tom Allen was still the head coach. He has six interceptions the last two seasons of high school football and could find his way into the rotation at defensive back early should he perform well in camp.

Transfer Commitments

Mikail Kamara- Defensive Line- 6’2/280 Pounds- James Madison

Thus far Kamara is the only defensive player from the transfer portal to sign with IU. He probably won’t be the last. Kamara was a 20-game starter for the Dukes on the defensive line and was extremely productive. He was selected to the All-Sun Belt team in 2023 after having 17.5 tackles for loss. Kamara figures to play on the edge of IU’s defensive line and brings veteran production to a unit that struggled to create havoc in 2023.

Hoosier Huddle will have ongoing coverage as Curt Cignetti and his staff continue to round out the 2024 recruiting class.