Countdown to Kickoff: 55 Days (Nick Carovillano

Written By T.J. Inman (@TJHoosierHuddle)

#55

55 days stand between now and the start of IU’s 2015 football season. That means our countdown has reached #55, IU defensive end Nick Carovillano.

Nick Carovillano

-Height: 6’4”

-Weight: 241 pounds

-Hometown: Cincinnati, OH (St. Xavier High School)

-Year/Position: RS Freshman/DE

Before coming to Bloomington, Nick Carovillano played for Cincinnati power, St.Xavier High School as a defensive lineman. He led the Great Catholic League in sacks as a senior and racked up 53 tackles, nine sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss during his senior season. Carovillano was a three-year letterwinner in football and a two-year letterwinner in track and field for the Bombers and he was ranked as a three-star prospect in the Class of 2013. He chose IU over offers from many schools (his other finalist was Purdue) and came in as a Top 40 recruit in the state of Ohio.

Carovillano redshirted the 2014 season and participated on the scout team. The primary issue standing between the RS freshman and playing time would be his weight. He projects as an outside pass rusher and needed to put on some weight to compete with the offensive tackles in the B1G. The Hoosiers have Nick Mangieri, Shawn Heffern and Robert McCray and all are probably ahead of Carovillano at on the depth chart. However, it’s entirely possible that the RS frosh from Ohio could earn some playing time in 2015 and if he can successfully add some weight without losing his explosiveness, he figures to be a prominent member of the IU D-line in 2016 and beyond.

The Hoosier Huddle Countdown chugs right along tomorrow as we reach #54. Come back daily to read our continuing preseason coverage!