Following a historic week for Indiana football against Western Illinois University, featuring a school record 77 points and 701 yards, there were plenty of players that stuck out. Here are five players to watch as Indiana enters Big Ten play this Saturday against UCLA.
Justice Ellison
Coming off a week where the Hoosiers proved to be a run dominant team, senior back Justice Ellison found himself at the top of the rushing leaders. During Indiana’s game against Florida International University on Aug. 31, Ellison was third on the team in rushing yards, second in carries and led all Hoosiers in total yards. Ellison continued this trend against Western Illinois, finishing with nine carries for 117 yards and two of Indiana’s seven rushing touchdowns.
Ellison found a way to get downhill with power, carrying the ball four times on the second drive of the game. That same drive resulted in Ellison scoring the first of his two touchdowns on Saturday. While it is a small sample size against a largely inferior opponent, Ellison showed promise with five of his nine carries going for 10 or more yards, including a 47-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter. The Hoosiers are proving to have one of the best rushing attacks in the Big Ten with running backs combining for 557 yards through the first two games.
Tayven Jackson
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Tayven Jackson was the premiere name for Indiana in last year’s pre-season after he transferred from the University of Tennessee. But in 2024, Jackson is the backup behind Ohio University graduate transfer Kurtis Rourke, who looked near perfect against the Leathernecks. However, Jackson played two drives [in Indiana’s game against WIU] that both resulted in touchdowns — one rushing and one through the air with a 69-yard pass thrown to sophomore receiver Omar Cooper Jr.
Jackson showed off the talent Indiana fans noticed a season ago against Indiana State on Sep. 8th, and Louisville Sep. 16th. Should he continue to prove he can string together quality performances for the Hoosiers, the Indiana football program is heading in a great direction with Jackson at the helm.
Elijah Sarratt
While Jackson was the biggest “splash” a season ago in the transfer portal, wide receiver Elijah Sarratt was one of the top names to follow Curt Cignetti from James Madison University this year. The junior had 82 receptions for 1,191 yards and eight touchdowns last season with the Dukes, and he was looking to carry that over to the Big Ten. However, he racked up a measly two receptions for 12 yards against FIU, leaving questions about how it would translate to the rest of the season. Sarratt turned things around this past week, finishing with 137 yards and a touchdown on six receptions, five of which came in the first half.
Sarratt playing well elevates the Indiana receiving room to new heights that are unheard of. It felt as if every route he ran opened against Western Illinois, especially his 71-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter. If he can put up performances like this consistently and in big games, the offense is going to continue to gain respect amongst opponents, and so will the Hoosiers.
Mikail Kamara
Heading into the 2024 season, junior defensive lineman Mikail Kamara felt like one of the biggest additions to Indiana. Coming off a year that saw him finish with 7.5 sacks, 51 tackles and 17.5 tackles for loss, Kamara was looking to do huge things in Bloomington. While he didn’t jump off the box score against FIU, he was a force against Western Illinois, picking up two sacks and four tackles. The 6’1”, 265-pound junior transfer from JMU is a force off the edge for the Hoosiers, causing a mismatch for virtually every opponent.
For a defensive line that lost players like Aaron Casey and Andre Carter to the NFL, Indiana needed the players from the transfer portal to step up in a big way. Bringing in players such as James Carpenter from JMU and CJ West from Kent State University was massive for the Hoosiers. The defensive line continues to wreak havoc on opponents with 10 sacks through the first two games, with Kamara leading the team with three.
Tyrique Tucker
One of the most underrated acquisitions in the transfer portal was sophomore defensive lineman Tyrique Tucker, who followed head coach Curt Cignetti from JMU. He showed promise as a freshman with the Dukes a season ago and has already been an important player for Indiana through two games. He finished with four tackles and 1.5 sacks, which ties his total sacks from a season ago. Tucker continues to prove his value on the defensive line that has shown its depth early on.
While Tucker is listed as a second stringer behind junior Marcus Burris Jr., he is still showing his value. It has been a good problem for the Hoosiers to have with the surplus of capable defensive lineman, but it will certainly prove valuable by the end of the season. Tucker is almost guaranteed as the “next-man-up” and will continue to prove himself over the course of the season.
The Indiana Hoosiers look to continue their early hot streak this Saturday against UCLA at 7:30 p.m. in Pasadena, California.
