2026 Countdown to Indiana Football Kickoff: – 76 Days Billy Gowers

2026 Countdown to Indiana Football Kickoff: – 76 Days Billy Gowers

Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there. We hope you are celebrating with some Indiana football gear and maybe a Hoosier Lager! The Hoosier Huddle countdown carries on to day 76, and a look at sophomore punter Billy Gowers.

Billy Gowers

Height: 6’2”

Weight: 205 pounds

Hometown: Melbourne, Australia/Xavier College

Class/Position: Sophomore/Punter

Gowers is a 29-year-old sophomore (cue the outrage on social media). After five seasons in the Australian Football League, Gowers found American football and ProKick Australia. He played his freshman season at Hawaii in 2025.

How he found out he could potentially punt in the U.S. was incredibly random. 

“I had a little kick at a park in Melbourne and the guy who I kicked with is the owner and the head coach of Prokick Australia. They’ve obviously got a big allegiance in American sport at the moment, and they’ve done so well with getting guys prepared and ready… so I started training with them.”

With the Rainbow Warriors in 2025, Gowers punted 49 times for an average of 46.2 yards per punt. He had 18 punts over 50 yards, forced 16 fair catches while pinning opponents inside the 20-yard line 25 times with only two touchbacks.

The Hoosiers have not punted often during Curt Cignetti’s tenure, but when they have, the Hoosiers have been really good.

The Hoosiers did not punt in their spring game, and the special teams units usually practice away from the media during open sessions. However, the reviews of Gowers is that he has a big leg and can kick both rugby style and spiral the ball with more hang time.

While Mitch McCarthy was not going to win the Ray Guy Award, he was a key piece in Indiana’s national title run. The expectation is for Gowers to step right in and do his job without making mistakes.

Off the field, Gowers is the co-owner of a barber company called Zeppelin. 

The countdown continues each day on Hoosier Huddle until IU kicks off the 2026 season against the North Texas Mean Green!