Meet the Top Targets for #IUFB's Class of '19

Written by: Kris Shankle (@Hoosierkris)

There is never such a thing as too early when it comes to recruiting no matter what class we’re talking about. The class of ’18 has came to a close pretty much as Tom Allen has gave the Hoosiers an amazing foundation to build upon for the future. The focus of that class was mainly on the defensive end as the team loses a bunch of leaders and production to graduation. Those roles will have to be filled, but that is a topic that Hoosier Huddle has been attacking the past few weeks with the position battle previews. This incoming class may be very good and comes with plenty of potential, but to really take advantage of it, they will need to keep the momentum coming in this year’s class and beyond. That’s why I’ll be taking a shot at pinpointing the top targets for the class of ’19 for Tom Allen and the Hoosiers.

WR Eli Pancol- is an in-state talent from Pendleton Heights, IN. Pancol has the perfect height at 6’4 for the position and fits the mold of previous IU wideouts like James Hardy, Cody Latimer, Kofi Hughes and Simmie Cobbs who is going to be auditioning for a full-time job on Sundays soon at the combine. Pancol is rated as the 290th best prospect in ’19 by 247 and holds several offers. Iowa, Duke, Louisville, Vanderbilt and Purdue are just some of the schools the Hoosiers will be battling for his talents.

OT Karsen Barnhart- Fresh off his unofficial to Michigan State last week, Barnhart the Paw Paw, MI prospect is 6’4, 282. Very highly rated, Barnhart ranks as the 361st best prospect. He holds offers from both in state powers, Michigan and Michigan State. He recently visited IU for Junior Day and though MSU is a strong favorite at the moment, but the Hoosiers have a shot in this one.

OLB Spencer Lytle- Lytle is from the west coast, but that hasn’t stopped offers from coming from all over the country. He attends St. John Bosco out of Bellflower, CA. This 6’3, 215 -pound pass rusher had 3 sacks last season and added 77 tackles for his squad. Lytle is ranked 446th in the nation and the 31st best OLB and that has led to several Power Five offers. UCLA, Minnesota, Utah, TCU, Texas A&M, Virginia are just some that have shown interest so far. The trick for Tom Allen will be luring him away from California, but this kid is worth the effort.

DE Karter Johnson- Johnson is a prospect many Hoosier fans have read about recently as he was in attendance for IU’s Junior Day. Since then Johnson who hails from Pickerington Central in Ohio has gained a few more admirers including TCU. 6’2, 270, Johnson has great size for a DE and that has led to some big time offers. Michigan State and Kentucky seem to be out in front at the moment, but the Hoosiers are right in there on this one.

OLB Brody Ingle- Ingle is another prospect who made the trip to Bloomington for Junior Day. Coming from Lasalle which is based in Cincinnati, OH, Ingle isn’t a big name at this point, but the Hoosiers have been on him for awhile as they extended an offer in November of 2017. The 6’1, 215 pound linebacker is rated as the 1038th best prospect according to 247.

OLB Richie Hagarty- Hagarty is a kid whose name comes up a lot in the state of Indiana. Coming from Cathedral in Indianapolis, IN, Richie Hagarty is rated as the 974th ranked prospect by 247 and the 21st best recruit in the state currently. The Power 5 schools haven’t offered as much as he would like, but the interest is there. Boston College joins the Hoosiers in extending an offer his way, but Notre Dame, Wisconsin and Michigan State have shown interest in him.

WDE Beau Robbins- Beau Robbins stands in at 6’4 and weighs 238 pounds is flat out one of the best prospects in the state of Indiana. Robbins attends Carmel and helped lead his team to an 8-5 record last season. Robbins was also in attendance for IU’s Junior Day and has been regarded as one of their top targets in the whole class. He is rated 280th by 247 and has a composite average of 236 by other recruiting services, so the talent is obvious. Weirdly, the rest of the country hasn’t took notice like the B1G has in Robbins, but there is definitely power 5 interest and I expect his stock to continue to rise.

TE Erick All- All is from Fairfield, OH and helped lead the Fairfield Indians to a 6-2 conference record last season. This is becoming a trend, but All was also in attendance for IU’s Junior Day and has since picked up a few more offers to go along with several others that ends up totaling 16 altogether. The 6 foot 4 senior to be is rated as the 431st best prospect and has great hands for a tight end.

WDE Dontay Hunter ll- One of my favorite prospects in the 2019 class, Dontay Hunter is an intriguing target for the Hoosiers. Hunter is 6’5 and is from nearby Ohio. Westerville Central where Hunter just wrapped up his junior season at, struggled on the field last year, but Hunter made an impact as much as he could. He finished the year with 14 TFL and 6 sacks, but also showed his versatility by playing on the offensive side as well. The Hoosiers will have plenty of schools to battle for Hunter. He has interest from Clemson, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin, USC among others. He is rated as the 512th best prospect by 247, but that looks to be underrating him as I believe he is in store for a rise in the rankings. It’s still early in the process for the Hoosiers and Hunter as they just offered on February 2nd.

OLB Luke Fulton- Fulton, another Ohio prospect from Cardinal Mooney is ranked as the 428th best prospect in the nation. He is also just visited MSU after they extended an offer his way. They are far from the only school interested as Fulton has 19 total offers from around the country. OLB is a position IU is clearly targeting as they have offered numerous prospects at the position, but Fulton is definitely at the top of the list.

WDE Ruke Orhorhoro-  Ruke Orhorhoro is a name that has began to become popular amongst IU fans. He has perfect size at 6’5, 250 pounds for the DE position. Ruke holds 15 offers from different division 1 programs. He attends River Rouge in Michigan and is rated as the 549th prospect in the country. Expect to hear this name quite a bit in the future.

WR Craig Young- Finally another playmaker on the offensive side of the ball. Young is also an in state prospect from Wayne High School in Indiana. He originally planned on making the trip to IU’s Junior Day, but he couldn’t make it. Young made a big impact on the field this season, as he had 749 all purpose yards and even attempted a few passes on the year. Going into his senior year, Young has become a popular name as he just picked up an offer from Ohio State. He holds 9 other offers, but the 6’3 wideout has favored IU as well as Wisconsin for awhile. This is recruiting so obviously things can change, but Young is a prospect Hoosier fans should keep an eye on.

TE Ben Castellano- Another prospect that attended Junior Day, Castellano who attends Woodgrove, VA. He is a prospect on the rise as the interest is piling up for him. Maryland, Penn State, Vanderbilt, Virginia Tech, Syracuse and even Yale which shows what kind of kid he is. Last season he had an awesome year with 61 catches for 804 yards along with 9 touchdowns. He runs an unofficial 40 at 4.7 and at 6’4, 225 pounds, the talent is there and IU did great work getting in on him early. As the relationship between the two build, Castellano is a name to watch out for.

WDE Spencer Bono- Bono is a prospect from Cincinnati, OH and attends Elder High School. The 6’4 WDE prospect was just offered by the Hoosiers on January 30th and made the trip to Bloomington shortly after for Junior Day. He’s ranked 511th in the country and 24th in the state of Ohio, which has tons of Division 1 talent in the state. At the moment Cincinnati and Indiana are considered the favorites for him, but he holds offers from 10 schools and plenty of interest elsewhere.

QB Peter Parrish- Parrish is from Phenix City, AL and attends Central. Coming off a year where he accounted for 31 touchdowns and only 4 interceptions, Parrish is a big time dual threat prospect ranked as the 383rd prospect and the 9th best at his position. Parrish isn’t the biggest quarterback as he is 6’2, but his talent is obvious. He has recently picked up interest from Alabama and Florida State, but no offer at the time. That doesn’t mean he is hard up for them as Georgia Tech, Maryland, Vanderbilt, Virginia, MSU, FAU and Cincinnati have offered. The Hoosiers have been on Parrish for awhile and they are after a few other quarterback prospects, so things may change in the future. Parrish will keep Tom Allen’s attention as long as he wants though.

This list is far from the only targets for the Hoosiers at the moment as there are probably 15-20 more prospects I feel confident about IU’s chances. I will be writing a few articles that will detail the others and I will be interviewing some of them as well.

Fans of Hoosier Huddle can help support the site by shopping on Amazon using the ad below at no cost to the shopper. Thank you for your support.