2024 Spring Football: Position Battle – Stud

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Written by: TJ Inman

The excitement surrounding the Indiana University football program is palpable. Curt Cignetti and his coaching staff have injected a sense of hope and optimism and seriousness into the team that has permeated the fan base and has many looking forward to the 2024 edition of spring practice more than any version in recent memory. Part of the excitement is based on a massive number of changes to the roster and uncertainty on the roster means there will be a whole lot of position battles unfolding on the practice field.

Today’s article focuses on the “Stud” position. The “stud” is similar to the “Bull” position from Tom Allen’s defense and it is best described as a hybrid of a defensive end and a linebacker. Players that excel at stud need to be adept as pass rushers and capable of supporting against the run and dropping back into pass coverage, if necessary. Indiana has a variety of players that could factor in here but no definitive answers. 

-The Favorite-

  • Lanell Carr – Senior+ - 6’1”/240 pounds

Lanell Carr transferred to Indiana from West Virginia prior to the 2023 season and he was a difference-maker for IU’s embattled defense. He had 33 tackles and lined up mostly as an outside linebacker or at the Bull position. Carr was second on the team in sacks with five and third on the team with 8.5 tackles for loss. Carr is only 6’1” which is not the ideal length for a player that would line up opposite an offensive tackle but he’s has a high motor and good strength to be an effective, if not necessarily dynamic, pass rusher. Carr is a versatile player that, based on past productivity, is the favorite to land the starting role at the stud position.

-Rotation Contenders- 

  • Jacob Mangum-Farrar – Senior+ - 6’4”/240 pounds

Jacob Mangum-Farrar, better known as “JMF”, transferred from Stanford to Indiana prior to the 2023 season. Many assumed he was a one-year player that would provide linebacker depth for the Hoosiers. He started every game for IU in 2023 and it appeared his career was over but after the coaching change, word began to circulate that he was going to utilize his “Super Senior” season provided by the shortened COVID season and he was returning to the program for the 2024 campaign. After being utilized on the defensive line a bit towards the end of last season, Mangum-Farrar is now listed as a defensive lineman on the Indiana roster and he is expected to compete for time at the stud position. Mangum-Farrar is 6’4” and has the ideal length the Indiana coaches look for in this position. JMF needs this spring to prove that he can provide a pass rush to the defense but this role suits him better than the linebacker spot did as it should limit what he is required to do in pass coverage. 

  • Ta’Derius Collins – Redshirt Freshman – 6’4”/235 pounds

Collins is probably best suited as a defensive end but he could end up being a good fit for the stud position. At 6’4” and 235 pounds, he has the length, size and speed that Indiana needs from the hybrid spot and if he could show IU’s coaches that he can provide the adequate pass coverage needed occasionally from the stud spot, Collins could be a rotation option. With Carr and Mangum-Farrar both playing their final seasons, IU needs some options for the future and Collins could be a guy to look at this spring.

  • Mikail Kamara – Senior – 6’2”/270 pounds

Mikail Kamara is a transfer from James Madison and he’s likely going to start at defensive end. However, he has the versatility to play all over the defensive line and that will almost certainly include snaps played at stud. Kamara had 7.5 sacks and 18.5 tackles for loss last season for the JMU Dukes. He knows Bryant Haines’ defensive system and he knows everything that is required from the stud spot. It will be very interesting to see how the IU coaches utilize him this coming season because he could be the flexible puzzle piece that gets plugged into defensive end, defensive tackle or stud depending on how other players are playing or the opponent’s formation and personnel.

-Sleeper-

  • Trey Laing – Redshirt Senior – 6’2”/240 pounds

Indiana is the fourth school for redshirt senior Trey Laing. He began his career in 2019 at South Florida and spent two seasons with the Bulls before transferring to East Mississippi Community College for the 2021 campaign and then transferring to Southern for the 2022 season. At Southern, he had five sacks and 14 tackles for loss and then transferred to IU prior to the 2023 season. He was lost for the season with an early injury and did not see any action for the Hoosiers. Laing is using his medical redshirt season and he will have a chance to get into the rotation at stud. 

Hoosier Huddle will have more coverage of the first spring camp under new head coach Curt Cignetti.