State of the Room - IUFB Quarterbacks
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Written by Alex Compton
Nick Sheridan is out, and Walt Bell is in. Tons is riding on this choice to lead the offense and quarterback room for Tom Allen, so let’s hope it works out.
After a disastrous season on the offensive side of the ball that saw Indiana start four different quarterbacks, the page has been officially turned and it’s time for a new group to learn and lead a new offense for the Hoosiers in 2022. Let’s take a look at where the personnel in the room currently stands.
Departures
The biggest news of the offseason for Indiana Football was the departure of Michael Penix Jr. via the transfer portal. One of the most electrifying players to ever suit up in Bloomington was one of the best QB’s in the nation when he was healthy, but unfortunately four season-ending injuries in four seasons just didn’t allow that to happen. After rehabbing all offseason, it was clear this year that Penix wasn’t completely healthy and/ or didn’t have enough time to prepare in the offseason. The 2021 season was the worst of his three more complete seasons, as he finished 87-162 (53.7%) for 939 yards, with a 4 TD to 7 INT ratio. A 373 yard outing at Western Kentucky looked like the old Mike, but an injury in the Penn State game would unfortunately be the last time IU fans would see Mike in an Indiana uniform. With Mike gone, many eyes turned to incoming 2022 freshman Josh Hoover from Texas, but a combination of the change at OC and a new staff at TCU led Hoover to flip his commitment to his home state Horned Frogs just one day after Penix hit the portal. Hoover had put up great numbers during his senior season of high school, but the three-star recruit likely wouldn’t have been a good fit in the new-look Indiana offense, and IU is also looking to bring some experience into the group.
Returnees
Jack Tuttle has been in the Indiana QB room for three seasons now, but has never started the season as “The Guy”. With Penix off to a different school, could this be Tuttle’s time to take control of the starting job in Bloomington? There is actually not a ton of tape to evaluate Tuttle on, as surprising as that may sound. He’s thrown 170 passes over 14 games at IU, and has only gone over 100 yards three times in his career with one 200+ yard outing (Outback Bowl vs. Ole Miss). Tuttle has also battled injury during his Indiana career, including being knocked out of the game against Ohio State this season and then had to leave the Rutgers game after giving it a gritty effort to play. We know that the quarterback run is going to be more of a focus of Walt Bell’s offense in Bloomington, which may make it tough for Tuttle to grab a hold of that starting job heading into 2022. He does provide outstanding leadership, experience and depth, so hopefully a healthy Tuttle can help stabilize the QB room as it is in a bit of a transitional state at this point.
Kudos to you, Grant Gremel! The Indiana native walked on to the IUFB program during fall camp in 2019 and has been a solid contributor behind the scenes. He didn’t play at all in 2020, as most walk-on quarterbacks in the Big Ten rarely play at all, but always remained ready in case his number was called. That turned out to be exactly what happened in 2021, as Gremel ended up playing in five games for IU. He completed 32 of 58 passes for 269 yards, 1 interception, and a 29-yard touchdown to freshman Malachi Holt-Bennett in the Minnesota game, and led a really nice opening drive at Purdue that was capped off with a McCulley rushing touchdown. While Gremel doesn’t offer much in the run game, he’s a nice player to have in the quarterback room, especially with some very inexperienced players in the room right now.
The next guy up is someone many fans have forgotten about, and that’s RS Sophomore Dexter Williams II. Williams II originally came to Indiana in the 2019 recruiting class as the 34th best dual-threat QB per 247Sports. The Georgia native redshirted during his true freshman season and was unfortunately lost for the year this past offseason with a torn ACL. With absolutely no game experience after two years in Bloomington, it’s not exactly clear what fans can expect from Williams II if he were to crack the rotation. We do know he’s very athletic and can move the pocket, but the challenge for Williams II now will be to prove he’s 100% healthy, can learn the new playbook, and compete for playing time. The new scheme that Walt Bell will run should benefit Williams II greatly, so we will have to wait and see what the initial reports are on his ability (and availability) coming out of spring ball.
Last but certainly not least, it’s Donaven McCulley (#iufb fans, please spell his name right!). The four-star dual-threat QB recruit in the 2021 class was supposed to come to Bloomington, hit the weight room, and learn the playbook behind Penix and Tuttle. As we all unfortunately saw, this plan was completely thrown out of the window pretty early on. McCulley played for the very first time on Homecoming against Michigan State, and then played in six more contests in 2021 with five starts. He flashed some real potential, had a few really bad interceptions, and was working with a really limited playbook due to how quickly the QB room and offense went off the rails. Once the season was lost, one of the most frustrating parts of the season became the lack of willingness to let McCulley air it out and learn from his mistakes. After burning his redshirt and playing in seven games, he only threw 82 passes, with 35 completions for 475 yards with 2 TD and 2 INT. #0 added 135 yards on the ground along with 2 rushing touchdowns, which is an explosive weapon to have on offense, and one that Walt Bell may look to build the new-look Indiana offense around. At 6’5” with really good athleticism, McCulley could become a star in due time, but it’s up to Tom Allen and his offensive staff to bring that out of him. The hope is that a full offseason with true practice and weight room reps can give McCulley the opportunity he needs to start and improve on his production in 2021.
Newcomers
None for now! The Penix departure certainly leaves a huge number of snaps, games and yards behind, and the question will be whether or not Allen and new OC Walt Bell look to add a player that they feel could battle for the starting job to the room or if they feel a combination of McCulley and Tuttle is ready to roll. As of now, with Josh Hoover flipping from IU to TCU, there are no new QB’s heading to Bloomington.
Connor Bazelak is transferring in from Missouri after playing three seasons for the Tigers. He earned SEC co-freshman of the year in 2020. For his career, he completed 66 percent of his passes for 5,084 yards with 23 touchdowns and 17 interceptions.
Final Group Projections for 2022
Four Scholarship Quarterbacks
Donaven McCulley - Sophomore
Jack Tuttle - Senior
Dexter Williams II - RS Sophomore
Transfer QB - Connor Bazelak RS Sophomore
Walk-On With Experience
Grant Gremel - RS Junior
The Hoosiers brought in Connor Bazelak from Missouri to shore up the quarterback room. Bazelak played three seasons for the Tigers and will have three years left for the Hoosiers. The Hoosiers should have a three-way battle for the starting job between Bazelak, McCulley and Tuttle. All three will have be on level ground when it comes to the new scheme, but Tuttle has the benefit of being at IU for several seasons. Each quarterback has their strengths and weaknesses, so it should be an intriguing battle to follow throughout the spring and fall.