Five Key Questions Facing Indiana Football as 2026 Fall Camp Begins

The Indiana Hoosiers defined success in the 2025-26 season, bringing home the first national championship in Indiana football history. Now a new challenge is set to begin for the Hoosiers, as they hope to handle expectations and compete at the highest level. On Wednesday, fall camp begins, and with that comes opportunity. While there is a lot of excitement in the air, there are many lingering questions that require answers.

1. How Quickly Can Josh Hoover Adapt To The Offense?

This is likely a question on most people’s minds. Fernando Mendoza left many shoes to fill in skill, leadership, and character. Hoover will be arriving in a completely new offense under Mike Shanahan, and that is a difficult task for anyone to manage; it takes patience, and hopefully fall camp will provide that. 

Hoover’s time at TCU proves that the Hoosiers have acquired a difference-maker. While at TCU, Hoover appeared in 35 games with 31 starts over four collegiate seasons. Over the course of his career, he completed 771 passes over 1183 attempts, with a completion rate of 65.2%. He threw for 9,629 yards and found the end zone 71 times. 

Hoover is known to struggle slightly with turnovers, throwing 33 interceptions across his career. A major focal point for Hoover in fall camp will be awareness, pre-snap reads, and smart playing. However, Indiana’s strong offensive line should keep Hoover well-protected in the pocket, leaving him with plenty of time to throw.

One of his strengths is his arm talent and deep-ball capability, which should mesh nicely with wide receiver Charlie Becker on big plays. He also gets the ball out quickly with a smooth release, and with this offensive line, his job should get much easier.

Fall Camp will give a glimpse into these qualities, and a sneak peek of how Hoover will operate with this Hoosier offense come September 5.

2. Will Offensive Lineman Carter Smith Receive Full Medical Clearance ahead of Fall Camp, and how is the whole unit shaping up?

During Big Ten Media Day last week, Smith said he is awaiting a medical clearance call ahead of fall camp. There is no news yet, but there should be information soon. Smith has been recovering from a torn labrum that occurred during the National Championship game in 2025. He received surgery before spring camp and has been sidelined and recovering since then. The process has been a patient one, and Smith made it clear during Media Day that he was ready to get back to the gridiron. It is just a matter of how soon. 

Smith is a proven veteran and a consensus All-American who anchored the offensive line last season during the championship run. Having Carter back healthy and in full swing at left tackle during fall camp will be essential to setting the tone for the rest of the offensive line group. 

The offensive line looks a little different this season with Pat Coogan gone, and as a result, some adjustments have been made. Transfer Joe Brunner will move from left guard to right tackle, and Adedamola Ajani will move to right guard. Bray Lynch is expected at center, with Drew Evans occasionally rotating in or playing at guard. With Carter Smith healthy during Fall Camp, the offensive line can spend camp building on communication and pass protection, rather than navigating position rotations and uncertainty.

3. Who Will Emerge As Top Targets?

Omar Cooper Jr. and Elijah Sarratt dominated the receiving room last season, and they were the main targets for Mendoza. Sarratt and Cooper Jr. are both in the NFL now, leaving a wide area of opportunity for players like Charlie Becker, Tyler Morris, and Nick Marsh. 

Becker emerged as one of the top receivers in the country last season and is likely to build off of that this season. Fall camp will serve as a strong indicator of Becker’s growth and his chemistry with Hoover. 

Marsh and Morris have arrived in Bloomington through the transfer portal. Both players had a noteworthy career at their previous schools, and it will be interesting to see their impact as fall camp begins.

In the backfield, Turbo Richard is another transfer to watch for. Richard brings speed at every level and is clearly productive on the ground. This season, Khobie Martin has an opportunity to secure an expanded role and compete for a starting spot. His veteran experience as a Hoosier will help set the tone for the running backs, especially during camp.

4. How will some key transfers elevate the secondary under Coach Bryant Haines?

With D’Angelo Ponds and Louis Moore’s departure to the NFL, there must be some rebuilding in the secondary. Senior Amare Ferrell seems likely to anchor the defensive backs, but Haines went to the portal for many of his answers in the offseason. 

A.J. Harris is one of those exciting additions. He’s coming from Penn State, where he tallied 25 solo tackles, 8 assists, and one tackle for loss in his junior season. Harris will be lobbying for that CB1 position during fall camp. 

Preston Zachman from Wisconsin will make a case at safety. Transfers Jiquan Sanks and Carson Williams will also solidify a spot during fall camp. Overall, this will be a relatively new group that requires some development, but fall camp is the perfect space to do so.

5. How will Indiana Football Manage Expectations?

Mental fortitude is essential to the success of any team. Players can have all the talent in the world, but without mental toughness, success can slip away. Indiana Football is quite aware of this fact. So, how will they handle expectations coming off of a national championship title? For Coach Cignetti and his program, the approach remains simple: block out the noise and get back to work.

While at Big Ten Media Day, Coach Cignetti, Carter Smith, Isaiah Jones, and Tyrique Tucker clarified that the National Championship title is in the rearview mirror; now they focus on what’s next. After all, the score is 0-0 now; back to square one. 

A person can tell a lot about a team through the atmosphere of a practice. All they must do is sit, listen, and quietly observe each moment before them. If a team is on the right track, they can feel it; they can feel it in the air, amongst the grass, and in each huddle. And so, as fall camp is on the brink of tip-off, Indiana Football will tell the nation all they need to know. All we have to do is listen and watch the next four weeks unfold.