With Curt Cignetti leading the way, the Indiana Hoosiers continue to take the college football world by storm -- both in reality and in the video game world. The EA Sports College Football video game franchise made its much-anticipated return two years ago, and the 2027 edition of the game is already available to some users with the public release slated for July 9.
As the reigning national champs, the Hoosiers have been heavily featured in promotional material for the game. Cignetti appears front and center on the cover of the Deluxe Edition with Memorial Stadium serving as the backdrop. Cignetti also narrates the official trailer which features plenty of Indiana players.
The developers at EA Sports aim to make the game as realistic as possible, which includes highly-researched and details rankings for teams and players. Indiana's roster unsurprisingly receives high praise, as IU's overall rating of 90 is the second-highest in the game.
However, the rating of one position group could reveal Indiana's weakest link heading into the 2026 season.
Indiana's tight end room gets little love from EA Sports College Football 27 ratings
When looking at the EA Sports ratings of each of Indiana's position groups, the quarterbacks (88), running backs (86), and wide receivers (88) all received high praise. On defense, IU's defensive line (88), linebackers (82), and secondary (86) were all highly-rated. Each of those position groups features plenty of experience and proven talent, so it's not surprising to see the high ratings come in.
Indiana's lowest-rated position group comes at tight end with a rating of 76. Redshirt freshman Brock Schott is Indiana's highest-rated tight end with a rating of 76. Redshirt freshman Andrew Barker (72), freshman Park Elmore (68), and freshman Trevor Gibbs (68) round out the TE room.
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Indiana's tight end group features plenty of youth, as all of the players listed above have little to no collegiate playing experience under their belts. Thus, it's not a stretch to say that the TE room is Indiana's biggest question mark at this point in time.
What will Indiana's tight end group look like in 2026-27?
The Hoosiers' top tight end last season was Riley Nowakowski, who hauled in 32 catches for 387 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Nowakowski is now off to the NFL after getting drafted in the 5th Round with the 169th overall pick by the Pittsburgh Steelers. Senior Holden Staes added seven catches for 62 yards and two touchdowns on the season.
With Nowakowski and Staes both gone, it will be interesting to see who steps up at the tight end position for Indiana. Schott figure to be given the most opportunity from the jump, but nothing is set in stone.
Offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan's offenses revolves around RPOs and finding a strong balance between the run game and the pass game. When it comes to the passing attack, tight ends are not a main focal point. The 39 combined catches between Nowakowski and Staes accounted for just 13.4% of Indiana's total catches last season.
So while there are plenty of question marks as to what Indiana's tight end group will look like this season, it is not a glaring hole in the roster. If the young group of tight ends can be reliable in run blocking and pass protection while chipping in with a handful of catches, that would bring some solid balance to Indiana's offensive attack.
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