Projecting Indiana football's 2026 offensive depth chart

BLOOMINGTON — Indiana football reloaded for 2026 after winning the national title.

The Hoosiers reeled in the No. 9 ranked transfer class in the country with four players ranked in the top 100, according to 247 Sports rankings.

While IU graduated plenty of key contributors — replacing Heisman Trophy Fernando Mendoza won't be easy — and had a pair of starters (D'Angelo Ponds and Omar Cooper Jr.) enter the NFL Draft with eligibility left, Indiana brings back double-digit starters from last season.

Here's an initial projection of IU's depth chart on offense for 2026:

More: Curt Cignetti among highest paid college football coaches. See new IU football contract

Quarterback

1. Josh Hoover
2. Grant Wilson

The addition of Hoover means there will be little QB1 drama in spring camp. TCU's former quarterback is the most productive returning starter in the country — he's thrown for 9,629 yards and 71 touchdowns — and he came to Bloomington to pick up the baton from Fernando Mendoza. The backup spot has more intrigue with Tyler Cherry back in the fold and Grant Wilson opting to return. Wilson gets the edge ahead of spring camp since he's healthy and has a significant experience advantage.

Running back

1. Turbo Richard
2. Khobie Martin OR Lee Beebe Jr.

It should be clear by now that Curt Cignetti prefers a running back by committee approach. There should be enough carries to give all three backs plenty of opportunities. Martin was mostly used in a mop-up role last year, but he still managed to put up 78 carries for 505 yards with six touchdowns next to a pair of 1,000-yard rushers. The redshirt freshman actually had more carries for 20-plus yards (seven) than Roman Hemby did (four) on 152 fewer carries.

Wide receiver

1. Nick Marsh, Charlie Becker, Shazz Preston
2. Tyler Morris, LeBron Bond and Davion Chandler

Indiana would easily be able to claim it had the top receiver room in the country if Cooper came back. The Hoosiers should still be in the mix for that designation with the way Charlie Becker emerged as one of the most reliable receivers in the country during the CFP run last year along with the addition of Marsh, who joins an offense that will be better able to take advantage of his skill set, and Shazz Preston. It's a room with a nice mix of veterans and young guns (Bond and Kendrick) as well.

Offensive line

1. Carter Smith (LT), Joe Brunner (LG), Drew Evans (C), Bray Lynch (RG), Adedamola Ajani (RT)
2. Ben Novak (LT) Evan Parker (LG), Austin Leibfried (C), Matt Marek (RG), Baylor Wilkin (RT)

Indiana's experience on the offensive line is big reason why there's high expectations surrounding Josh Hoover. He will line up behind a group with four multi-year starters, including the Big Ten's reigning Offensive Lineman of the Year. The projected first-team line has combined for 119 career starts and the least experienced member of the unit (Adedamola Ajani) played key snaps last year throughout the postseason. The biggest question mark is what the interior of the line will look like with the addition of Wisconsin left guard Joe Brunner. Drew Evans sliding over to center would keep Brunner and Lynch at their most-experienced positions, but don't rule out Lynch ending up in that spot. With four incoming true freshman, IU's second-team group could end up looking a lot different going into the season.

Tight end

1. Brock Schott
2. Blake Thiry OR Andrew Barker

Indiana not pursuing an experienced tight end out of the transfer portal was a surprise. The Hoosiers landed Miami transfer Brock Schott, but he only played 16 snaps as a true freshman last season. Blake Thiry and Andrew Barker will get a head start on landing the starting role with Schott (hip) expected to miss spring camp.

Michael Niziolek is the Indiana beat reporter for The Bloomington Herald-Times. You can follow him on X @michaelniziolek and read all his coverage by clicking here.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Projecting Indiana football's depth chart on offense or 2026 season