Spring Football 2025 – Special Teams Preview, Depth Chart and Superlatives
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Written by: Sammy Jacobs
The Hoosiers will have some new faces in impact positions on special teams. IU loses punters James Evans and Alejandro Quintero. They will have to replace kickoff specialist Derrick McCormick as well as backup long snapper Jaxson Miller. The Hoosiers also lost two impact players in the punt return department in Myles Price and Keshawn Williams, both who helped IU win conference games this season with a big return.
IU will have another year of Nico Radicic, who was automatic on extra points and missed just one field goal all year. Radicic proved himself with some big kicks late in the season after not really having a shot at field goals because IU was finding the end zone more often than not. The Hoosiers also get another year with Solomon VanHorse, but kick returns were extremely rare for IU in 2024.
To fill the holes of the departures IU went to the portal to find experienced players.
Losses
James Evans, Punter
Myles Price, Punt Returner
Keshawn Williams, Punt Returner
Derrick McCormick, Kickoff Specialist
Alejandro Quintero, Punter/ Kickoff Specialist
Jaxson Miller, Long Snapper
Newcomers
Mitch McCarthy, Punter (Transfer from UCF)
Sam Lindsay, Long Snapper (Transfer from Georgia State)
Branden Franke, Place Kicker (Transfer From Texas State)
Bryce Taylor, Place Kicker (Incoming Freshman)
Two-deep
Punter
Starter – Mitch McCarthy – Redshirt Junior (transfer from California)
McCarthy is the only player listed as a punter on the IU roster this spring. The former UCF punter transferred to IU in the off-season and brings a big leg with the ability to pin opponents deep in their own territory.
McCarthy has played in 37 career games and has 115 punts for an average of 43 yards per punt and 39 pinned inside the opponents’ 20-yard line. His experience should help IU win the special teams battles in the season’s most important games.
Backup Battle – Quinn Warren, Bryce Taylor
There is only one punter on the roster in spring practice. That could, and will probably, change before fall camp. However, there are two kickers who have punting experience in high school with Quinn Warren and Bryce Taylor.
Place Kicker
Starter – Nicolas Radicic– Redshirt Sophomore
Nico Radicic was as consistent as any kick in the country. He was perfect on extra points and was 10-of-11 on field goals. Radicic enters his third year with the Hoosiers as a key piece to the offense, when needed. His range should increase and could play a bigger role on putting points on the board. He will also be trusted with onside kicks.
Backup – Braden Franke
Franke comes over to IU from Texas State after several stops before that. He can be a capable field goal kicker, but will be primarily fighting for the kickoff specialist job.
Depth – Quinn Warren, Bryce Taylor, Josh Placzek
Kickoff Specialist
Starter – Braden Franke – Redshirt Senior+
Franke was the kickoff specialist for Texas State last season and averaged over 64 yards per kick with a touchback percentage of 82.1-percent. IU had multiple injuries at this position last year, but Franke has played in 40 career games.
Backup – Quinn Warren – Sophomore
Warren stepped into the kickoff role early last year after injuries to Derrick McCormick and Alejandro Quintaro. He kicked off 35 times with 11 touchbacks.
Depth – Bryce Taylor, Nicolas Radicic, Josh Placzek
Long Snapper
Starter – Mark Langston
Langston started all 13 games for the Hoosiers last year and will be the number one long snapper in 2025.
Backup – Sam Lindsay – Redshirt Sophomore
Lindsay is an experienced backup, giving the Hoosiers depth at the position just in case of an injury. Lindsay will likely take over the job from Langston in 2026.
Kick Returner
Starter – Solomon Vanhorse
The Hoosiers returned only six kickoffs all season in 2024, which is a shockingly low number even in this era of football. Vanhorse returned five of them for a total of 102 yards. He was an All-Conference returner at JMU, but never really got the chance to make an impact last year.
Backup Options – Tyler Morris, Makai Jackson, Lebron Bond
Punt Returner
Starter – Tyler Morris – Senior
Tyler Morris is coming over from Michigan and should be able to step into the role vacated by Myles Price. Morris has experience returning punts in the Big Ten as he had five attempts with a 7.6-yard average.
Backup Options – Lebron Bond, Makai Jackson
Surprises
True freshman Lebron Bond is the surprise of the group. Should he work his way into a role where he can help the team and not be redshirted, Bond could be a game changer at either of the return positions.
Confidence Level
My confidence level on special teams is high, but there are questions to answer and holes to fill at both return positions and in several backup roles. The Hoosiers have most of the pieces of the puzzle to be really good on special teams.