Indiana Football: Hoosiers Visited by In-State Blue Chip Quarterback

Center Grove High School product Tyler Cherry visited Indiana Football on Friday.

New Indiana football head coach Curt Cignetti is showing his aggressiveness on the recruiting trail, and all he had to do was drive about an hour up I-69 to Center Grove High School. Local high school product Tyler Cherry visited Cignetti and the new Indiana football staff. Cignetti and the staff have an opportunity because Mike Elko left Duke for the Texas A&M job.

Cherry is a four-star prospect who is the 6th-rated player in Indiana, 22nd-rated quarterback, and a top-300 player. If Indiana signed Cherry, he’d be the 11th-best signee — and highest-rated quarterback — in school history. Cherry led Center Grove High School to a combined 23-4 record, two state semi-final appearances, and a state title in 2022.

Indiana is not the only Big Ten team in the running for Cherry’s services. Illinois, Maryland, and Penn State have offered. Cherry intends to visit Michigan State next. “My family and I had a great time back down in Bloomington,” Cherry said. “Really enjoyed getting to talk with the new staff again and see all the amazing plans they have for Indiana football.”

Cignetti and Indiana Football benefit from bolstered NIL campaign.

After Indiana announced Cignett’s hiring, Hoosiers Connect announced a fundraising campaign. Back the Rock intends to support the football program by recruiting players in the transfer portal and the high school ranks. Cherry is the type of player Indiana rarely signs out of high school. That is precisely what this campaign seeks to correct.

Indiana likely won’t get the top-end high school players in the state. Indiana has two top-100 players — Mylam Graham and NiTareon Tuggle — going to Ohio State and Georgia, respectively. However, landing a player of Cherry’s caliber would be a big deal for Indiana. Their collective recognizes this and is pooling resources so Indiana can land the best recruits possible.