The Indiana Hoosiers are off to a 2-0 start in the new college football season thanks in large part to a high-flying offense. Josh Hoover has been in firm control at quarterback, the receiving corps has thrived, the offensive line has been steady, and the running game has remained dependable. Put it all together and the Hoosiers have scored 107 total points through two games. The early-season offensive performance, albeit against inferior opponents, is certainly an encouraging sign for Hoosier fans.
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With all of that being said, there is still one position group on the offensive side of the ball that has several question marks: tight end. Indiana's group of tight ends is extremely inexperienced, and haven't played a big role through two games this season. Curt Cignetti and offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan have been shuffling through different players, meaning that a TE competition is likely still in the works.
Indiana's TE competition has yet to be resolved heading into Week 3
Last year, Indiana's TE room featured plenty of veteran experience in the form of Riley Nowakowski, Holden Staes, and James Bomba. Nowakowski led the group with 32 catches for 387 yards and a pair of touchdowns. With all three of those playmakers gone, the Hoosiers entered the 2026 season with a brand new TE depth chart.
Now, Indiana's TE room features six players that are all freshmen or redshirt freshmen:
Andrew Barker: Redshirt freshman, 6'4" 255 lbs
Blake Thiry: Redshirt freshman, 6'4" 242 lbs
Parker Elmore: Freshman, 6'4" 242 lbs
Trevor Gibbs: Freshman, 6'2" 250 lbs
Brock Schott: Redshirt freshman, 6'3" 245 lbs
PJ McFarlane: Freshman, 6'5" 238 lbs
This group is extremely inexperienced and unproven. Those six tight ends have a combined 17 snaps of college football experience under their belts, with Miami (FL) transfer Brock Schott owning 16 of them from last season with the Hurricanes. Given the vast amount of inexperience and unproven production, Indiana's TE room was the biggest question mark on the roster heading into fall camp.
Now that the regular season is underway, that question mark remains.
The main competition appears to be between Schott and Barker. The pair have seen the vast majority of opportunities through two games, and even saw split playing time by rotating drives in Week 2 against Howard.
Schott is the only Hoosier tight end to record a reception this season, hauling in a 25-yard catch in the season opener against North Texas. Outside of that reception, the tight ends have primarily been utilized as blockers.
Week 3 against Western Kentucky is the perfect time to find Indiana's TE1
Indiana's non-conference schedule has allowed for further evaluation to take place during the regular season. The Hoosiers have made light work of North Texas and Howard, and have been able to explore positional depth across the board.
Heading into Week 3, the Hoosiers find themselves as massive favorites against Western Kentucky, and should be able to further evaluate both Schott and Barker at TE. In an ideal world, Indiana races out to a large lead and is able to give both Schott and Barker plenty of opportunities to earn the TE1 job.
With conference play looming, it may be beneficial to have the TE competition settled before IU hosts Northwestern on Friday, September 25 in the Big Ten opener. Having as little uncertainties as possible during Big Ten play would be advantageous for Cignetti and company. On Saturday, it's worth monitoring how the TE rotation develops.
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