2023 Countdown to IUFB Kickoff: 1 Days (Andre Carter)

Written by: TJ Inman (@TJHoosierHuddle)

The 2023 edition of the Hoosier Huddle Countdown is down to just one single day remaining! We are counting down from 100 to the beginning of the 2023 Indiana University football season. Each day, we will take a look at one (or two) players on the current Indiana football roster and highlight the player’s role in the upcoming season. Today’s article focuses on a pair of players, one on each side of the ball: Andre Carter and Donaven McCulley.

Name: Andre Carter

Hometown: Detroit, Michigan (Western Michigan transfer)

Position: Defensive Line

Year: Redshirt Senior

Height/Weight: 6’5”/273 pounds

The Indiana Hoosiers needed an influx of talent and experience at multiple positions but perhaps no position was more positively impacted by the transfer portal than the defensive line. IU brought in multiple defensive linemen that will see immediate playing time in IU’s rotation. In fact, Indiana’s most impactful player on defense might just be a transfer defensive lineman from Western Michigan: Andre Carter. The super senior from Detroit had 13.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks along with second-team All-Mid-American Conference honors. He was pursued by several high-major programs he hit the transfer portal but committed to the Indiana Hoosiers. Carter quickly stood out in spring practice and he has continued to shine in the lead up to the 2023 season.

“Andre Carter has been working his tail off the whole year,” defensive line coach Paul Randolph told the media in early August. “There’s a lot of depth. That depth with Andre (Carter) being able to do both, inside or out, Marcus Burris being able to do both, inside and out, naturally (Venson) Sneed is an outside-only guy. To be able to move guys in and out, and then inside, they’re interchangeable, also.” 

That versatility is going to help the Hoosiers as Carter can play anywhere on the defensive line and against any type of offensive formation.

“I started as a defensive tackle my freshman year at Western Michigan, so I am familiar being up and down the defensive line,” Carter said during fall camp. “I enjoy it a lot, it allows me to be able to make plays and open up plays for my teammates, as well.”

Andre Carter has the talent to play in the NFL. If he can produce against Big Ten competition, he’ll be selected in the 2024 NFL Draft. For now, he’s focused on converting the work the Hoosiers did in the offseason to results on the field. “This team, along with myself, has put in a lot of work this offseason and done a lot of work together. So, when you trust your preparation and you know how hard you have been working, it makes everything a lot easier.”