Written by: TJ Inman (@TJHoosierHuddle),

Rankings by: Alex Compton, TJ Inman and Sammy Jacobs

Barring a cancellation or COVID-related delay, the 2020 college football season is quickly approaching. This edition of the Indiana Hoosiers is, at least on paper, perhaps the most talented roster that has been in Bloomington since the best of the Bill Mallory squads. The Hoosier Huddle staff thought it would be a fun exercise to develop a point system that would give us a ranking of the position groups. While the Hoosiers don’t have any glaring weaknesses, where do we feel they are strongest and where are the biggest question marks?

The point system is based on three categories and scored from one to ten: star power, positional depth and experience. The categories are weighted equally and the overall score determined the position’s final ranking. Alex Compton, Sammy Jacobs and TJ Inman provided position rankings and our composite list along with brief analysis, from weakest to strongest, is as follows:

#11 - Defensive End – 5.08

Defensive end checks in as the lowest-rated position group. This was not surprising but it was interesting to see the gap between #11 and every other group. The position suffers from the lack of a standout pass rusher and while the group has some depth and returning experience, there are serious question marks about how effective the pass rush can be unless IU schemes to create advantageous situations (blitzing). James Head and Michael Ziemba lead the group and Lance Bryant showed flashes last season but the Hoosiers need a couple of guys from the group of Beau Robbins, Caleb Murphy, Jaylen Mayala and Tramar Reece have to step up to provide some quality depth. The emergence of someone from that group to push Head and Ziemba or James Head turning into a consistent force will certainly prove us wrong.

#10 – Kicker and Punter – 6.66

Rare are the kickers or punters who are stars so that drags this group down but Haydon Whitehead has a whole lot of experience and he is capable of being a very good punter for the Hoosiers. Charles Campbell will handle the place kicking duties and Jared Smolar will likely be kicking off. Together, the pair form a nice duo. As is the case with most any program, there is not much you’d feel confident about behind the starters.

#9 – Offensive Line – 6.73

If we were only ranking the starters, the IU offensive line would likely be much higher on this list. Matthew Bedford and Caleb Jones are cornerstones that most Big Ten schools would be happy to have. Harry Crider is a very solid veteran piece in the middle and they have a quality transfer in Dylan Powell and a young player in Katic that they are really excited about at the guard positions. It is the depth that puts them at ninth. I feel good about Mackenzie Nworah and Aidan Rafferty as backups. Ideally, you can get to at least nine guys that you would feel confident if they were forced to play in a Big Ten game. That means IU needs at least two of the interesting group of Chris Bradberry, Luke Haggard, Tim Weaver, Britt Beery, Charlie O’Connor, Nick Marozas and some true freshmen (that they really want to redshirt) to gain the trust of the coaching staff and the quarterback.

#8 – Cornerback – 7.03

I ranked cornerback higher than my collaborators and I will admit to basing that entirely on my belief in two things: the star potential of Tiawan Mullen and the development of Reece Taylor, a player I have long been a fan of. The slightly lower ranking from Sammy and Alex is probably much more based in the current reality of things. Either way, this is a good group that is well-built for success, especially in the future. It is fair to say that there is not much experience in this group. Reece Taylor is a junior but he has never played extensively at cornerback. I think he’s going to be the second DB on this team and I think he’ll be awesome but this will be a new role for him. Mullen won’t be sneaking under the radar on anyone anymore and he’ll get every opposing team’s best wide receiver. That is a lonely island. After that, Jaylin Williams is a solid veteran and good third corner. Behind him, you have no experience but lots of talent with Larry Tracy, Christopher Keys and electric athlete Lem Watley-Neely.

#7 – Defensive Tackle – 7.22

The Indiana Hoosiers have something that has been a rarity in Bloomington, a very solid interior defensive line. Jerome Johnson and Demarcus Elliott are back as the veteran leaders of the group and they are joined by a mix of returning quality and exciting newcomers. Jovan Swann is back in Indiana after a successful career with Stanford and he’ll play all over the line. Sio Nofoagatoto’a had a nice freshman campaign and he has room for growth. Jonathan King, Gavin McCabe, C.J. Person, Jeramy Passmore, Antoine Whitner and Shamar Jones are all capable to fill in and depth in this group is important in the Big Ten. The potential star of the group could be true freshman Damarjhe Lewis. If he can provide the kind of penetration up the middle that the coaches are hoping for, this could be a terrific unit.

#6 – Quarterback – 7.32

The most important position on the field falls right in the middle of our rankings. IU has a lot of talent in the group and Michael Penix could certainly turn into a star but there is a lack of experience now that Peyton Ramsey is not there as a safety net if the injury bug bites Penix again. Dexter Williams is a true freshman that impressed in the short period of spring ball and we know Reece Taylor could be used in an emergency but IU needs Jack Tuttle to be a reliable backup that can push Penix in Nick Sheridan’s offense if this team is to be successful.

#5 – Wide Receiver – 7.63

IU lost Nick Westbrook and Donavan Hale but they return a couple of really good and productive receivers and have a number of young options ready to set up. Whop Philyor is a playmaker and if he can stay healthy, he is an absolute difference maker that’s a handful to stop. Ty Fryfogle is the other returning wide receiver and at times, he looked like IU’s best outside threat a season ago. After those two, IU has versatile weapon David Ellis and he should be set for a breakthrough role. Miles Marshall, Jacolby Hewitt, Da’shaun Brown and Jordan Jakes are returning players ready for a chance. Rashawn Williams, David Baker and Javon Swinton are true freshman hoping for an opportunity to get an impact. IU has three players you feel really good about and if one or two others can be reliable options, this becomes a very difficult group to matchup with.

#4 – Running Back – 7.66

This position group is top-heavy but boy oh boy, those top two are really good. Stevie Scott and Sampson James form an outstanding one-two punch that give IU an excellent opportunity to grind opponents down with a physical running game while also splitting carries and keeping the two backs fresh. With more depth, this group could be in the top three but there is uncertainty and inexperience behind Scott and James. Tim Baldwin was a nice addition and the well-built back from Virginia will have an opportunity to get some snaps. Ahrod Lloyd is a really solid walk-on and I am irrationally high on true freshman Charlie Spiegel, a production monster from New Palestine. Nick Sheridan will likely try to mix David Ellis in for some carries because he should have the ball in his hands often but we are not considering him an RB for this exercise.

#3 – Linebacker – 7.85

The Hoosiers are not necessarily filled with stars at the linebacker position but they are very deep with experienced, productive and talented players. Micah McFadden is a rock-solid tackling machine and Cam Jones, when healthy, is a playmaker. Add James Miller, Thomas Allen and up-and-comers like Cam Williams, D.K. Bonhomme and Aaron Casey as well as true freshman Ty Wise and you have more than enough talent to make this a strong third in our rankings.

#2 – Safety/Husky – 8.2

This one was a bit tough to evaluate because we are including a large group of players that are playing three different positions. The talent pool is outstanding though and there are some really versatile football players in this group and quite a bit of experience. Marcelino Ball is perhaps the most experienced player in the lineup and he’s back for his final campaign. He certainly could improve in pass coverage and cut out the costly penalty here and there but Ball offers a lot to this squad. Jamar Johnson is an outstanding ball-hawk of a safety, Juwan Burgess and Bryant Fitzgerald are both experienced playmakers and Devon Matthews is a reliable option with lots of snaps under his belt. Raheem Layne has made the switch from corner to safety to add to the depth, Noah Pierre is a heavy hitter and Josh Sanguinetti has a lot of promise. There is just a whole lot to be excited about.

#1 – Tight End – 8.67

The top-rated position group on our list: the tight ends. IU did a much better of using this personnel group last season and I would expect the same to continue under new OC Nick Sheridan. The return of Peyton Hendershot makes this a potent unit as Hendershot is a matchup problem for every defense IU faces. He’s a unique player that can block well enough and gives linebackers and safeties alike all kinds of problems if they try to cover him. After Hendershot comes Matt Bjorson a reliable and experienced junior that is a strong blocker with sure hands as a receiver. While not a dynamic receiver, Bjorson is a good pass-catcher. T.J. Ivy is another good option that just needs more reps to prove himself and Gary Cooper is an exciting redshirt freshman that could break out if given the chance. Recent addition Kham Taylor is an experienced transfer that can be used as an extra big blocker in special situations and could be a good option as an eligible extra lineman if needed.

We hope you enjoyed reading through this and we encourage you to submit your own rankings in the comments section below.

The Huddle

Indiana Football Position Rankings Heading into the 2020 Season

Hoosier Huddle