The memories of IU’s unprecedented and historic unbeaten run to the National Championship are still fresh in our minds but the work is just beginning for the 2026-2027 Indiana Hoosiers. As Curt Cignetti and his staff gear up for year number three in Bloomington and embark on a quest to become repeat champs, Hoosier Huddle’s Countdown to Kickoff rolls on! In less than a month, the Hoosiers take the field against North Texas.
Height: 6’0”
Weight: 202 pounds
Hometown: Tampa, Florida (Armwood)
Class/Position: Freshman/Defensive Back
National champions are determined by which teams have the greatest strengths and which teams are able to eliminate weaknesses. Indeed, the 2025 Indiana Hoosiers were a team with great strengths: a fantastic run defense, a great running game, the Heisman Trophy winner at quarterback and a generational great head coach and coaching staff.
Furthermore, IU had no weaknesses for teams to exploit. That extended to a secondary that was led by headline cornerback D’Angelo Ponds (61 tackles) but also included Louis Moore, Amare Ferrell, Jamari Sharpe and others.
While Moore and Ponds are now in the NFL, several pieces of the title-winning secondary return for the 2026 season and the talent includes a true freshman that arrives to Bloomington from the Sunshine State: D’Montae Tims.
D’Montae Tims played defensive back at Armwood High School and was a consensus three-star prospect ranked as a top 50 safety nationally by ESPN and Rivals/On3. As a senior, Tims racked up 50 tackles with 12 tackles for loss and six forced turnovers. He was originally committed to Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes but signaled he was open to a change as he visited Florida State on November 1 and then Indiana on November 14. Less than a week later, Tims made his mind up. He decommitted from Colorado on November 20 and committed to Curt Cignetti and the Indiana Hoosiers on the same day.
Tims joins a safety room that is stocked with talent. Byron Baldwin Jr. is a potential breakout star as a sophomore with senior Amare Ferrell locked in as the leader and potential All-American. Wisconsin transfer Preston Zachman will play a ton of snaps if he can stay healthy and young players like Seaonta Stewart Jr. and Garrett Reese will begin the fall ahead of Tims on the depth chart.
The expectation for nearly every freshman in Curt Cignetti’s program is to redshirt and that holds true for D’Montae Tims. Look forward to the 2027 season and the depth chart could be wide open as Ferrell and Zachman will almost certainly both be gone (Ferrell will have another season available but the NFL will likely beckon).
The countdown continues each day on Hoosier Huddle until IU kicks off the 2026 season against the North Texas Mean Green!
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