2025 Countdown to Kickoff: 28 Days (Khobe Martin)

Height: 6’0”

Weight: 208 pounds

Hometown: Fishers, IN (Fishers)

Class/Position: RS Freshman / RB

Justice Ellison and Ty Son Lawton depart IU after record-breaking seasons, and Roman Hemby and Lee Beebe join the fold looking to add to the success of the ground game in year one of the Cignetti era.

The running back room last year was deep, effective, and something the offense could lean on to win games. IU hadn’t had that type of consistent production on the ground in a long time, and while it’s a whole unit that’s responsible for running the ball, the running backs themselves were very talented and fit the system very well.

Without getting into the actual depth chart too much on this piece, we assume right now that Roman Hemby, Lee Beebe and Kaelon Black are the top three running backs that will get a heavy percentage of the carries during the season. Hemby and Black offer great speed, while Beebe offers something in the passing game out of the backfield that IU hasn’t had in a while. Beyond those three, you have Khobe Martin and incoming true freshman Sean Cuono. Martin played in two games last year as a true freshman, carrying the ball 14 times for 73 yards. He has a really compact frame and a burst once he hits the hole that you could see during those games. We’ve spotted Lee Beebe in a small boot during practice so he may be mixing in and out right now and not going full bore in practice. That would be good news for a guy like Martin who is continuing to develop his game in year two, but should be ready to increase his workload a little bit. He’s highly athletic and has shown flashes (albeit in limited action) so far that should make people excited.

Beyond this season, the running back room will start to balance itself out a bit more in terms of class. Hemby and Black will use their final years of eligibility this season, and in 2026-27 you’ll be looking at Beebe as a RS junior, Martin as a RS Sophomore, Cuono as a Sophomore or RS Freshman, and Jayreon Campbell as your incoming true freshman. That leaves you a slot to bring in a one-year transfer as well and have the room perfectly balanced across years of eligibility. All of this is to say that while Martin may not play a “ton” this season, he should be in line for more carries than he had last season and is someone that is being set up to take on a much larger role as he becomes a third-year player for the Hoosiers.

Four weeks ’til kick…