After JUCO transfer Chris Bradberry’s commitment to Indiana, the Hoosier staff has added eight contributors to its offensive line in the Class of 2020, all with varying degrees of eligibility and 2020 playing time ahead. With the anticipation of losing three starters up front – even though Coy Cronk’s season-ending injury and eventual transfer to Iowa was unconventional – the focus in the 2020 cycle was always the offensive line and discovering ways to keep the line old over the coming years.
RELATED: Indiana 2020 football scholarship chart
But as the number of additions at one position pushes the double-digit mark, it’s important to compartmentalize the intentions behind each signee. This is the anticipated plan for each new Hoosier offensive lineman.
Objectives in the Class of 2020
Load up on interior offensive linemen: Before any 2020 additions are considered, the only returning interior offensive linemen for Indiana in 2020 are Harry Crider, Mackenzie Nworah, Britt Beery and Mike Katic. Indiana needed to not only find a starting guard but also find guards to pick up after Nworah and Crider leave after next season.
Add a center: Center was crucial, as the only center on the roster after Crider is now 2020 signee Cam Knight, with Powell carrying some experience at center as well.
Find depth at tackle: The loss of Cronk in 2019 created thoughts that he might return for a redshirt senior season in 2020, but after he transferred to Iowa, Indiana was left without the significant third tackle spot filled. Reviews of Nick Marozas and Aiden Rafferty haven’t been glowing yet, and slotting in another true freshman at tackle in 2020 likely isn’t a place Darren Hiller wants to be again. So, during the spring, the Hoosiers searched for a transfer tackle to not only fill that third spot but also challenge Bedford for the starting right tackle spot.
Solder together the scholarship chart along the line: Exiting the 2019 season, Indiana’s offensive line scholarship chart was all over the place. The Hoosiers were young at tackle, old at guard and had only Crider at center. As Tom Allen said on the first day of the Early Signing Period, the staff wanted some continuity in that room. Now, it’s only expected to graduate two contributors along the line after 2020 – potentially just one starter – has two two-for-two transfers, a three-for-two transfer and five true freshmen. This recovery was perhaps the greatest accomplishment during this cycle.
Anticipated starters in 2020
To understand the blueprint the new new linemen are walking into in Bloomington and when they might hit the field, the starters along the line must be laid out. These are the anticipated starters at each position for 2020:
LT: Caleb Jones
LG: Dylan Powell/Mackenzie Nworah/Mike Katic
C: Harry Crider
RG: Dylan Powell/Mackenzie Nworah/Mike Katic
RT: Matt Bedford
The only perceived weak link along the offensive line is one of the guard positions. Mackenzie Nworah played well in spotting Simon Stepaniak twice in 2019, but when Stepaniak wasn’t on the field against Tennessee in the Gator Bowl, the line suffered. Whether it would have struggled with Stepaniak on the field will always be unknown. Dylan Powell is the transfer who is essentially written in pen in the interior starting spots, and Mike Katic is expected to be in the mix there as well.
But Indiana might have another option for guard. Caleb Jones was the best offensive lineman on the team in 2019, according to Pro Football Focus, so moving him to left tackle is the expected move this offseason. Matt Bedford will compete with the third tackle – JUCO transfer Chris Bradberry –for right tackle. If Bradberry beats Bedford for the right tackle position, Bedford will move inside to fill the guard position Indiana feels least comfortable with.
Harry Crider, as expected, will make the move from left guard to center, where he’s earned plenty of praise throughout his time at Indiana.
The additions
Immediate contributors
Dylan Powell
As noted before, the Stanford transfer is the only new lineman who is expected to start immediately on the line. He was expected to start on the interior of Stanford’s line in 2019 before he tore his labrum. With two years to play two seasons, Powell is the most sure-fire addition in this class.
Chris Bradberry
While Chris Bradberry has only been in the IU atmosphere for about 24 hours, as of Monday morning, the staff would not have welcomed him in and told him to compete for the right tackle job unless it felt he could. He has the size, at 6-foot-6, and will likely add to his 280-pound frame. If he does, in fact, beat Bedford for the tackle job, it could take care of concerns on the inside of the line, but the worst case for Bradberry is that he doesn’t beat Bedford for the tackle job and he sits behind Bedford and Jones as a depth addition. He, like Powell, has two years to complete two seasons.
True freshmen who might see the field in 2020
These are purely hypotheticals, and after the Cronk injury and Bedford’s efforts at left tackle in 2019, Indiana has learned the importance of young linemen in depth positions. These freshmen could see the field in very specific situations. Otherwise, they will all redshirt in 2020, which would be the best-case scenario for Indiana.
The brother of former Hoosier and current Dallas Cowboy Brandon Knight is the only other center on the roster behind Harry Crider. While centers don’t often suffer injuries, Crider’s versatility lends itself to moving to either guard position in the case of an injury there. While there is some depth at guard now, if the staff feels comfortable enough with Knight’s progression at center, it might feel compelled to slot him in at center and move Crider to guard. The odds of this are very low, but Knight has earned some praise for his football intelligence.
The tackle spot is the most likely position for true freshmen to see the field. Wiginton had four practices to gain some experience with Hiller and the Indiana staff in the spring and has a head start with Aaron Wellman and the college level, but Benson comes in with high expectations, as Indiana pulled him out of the SEC’s clutches in Mississippi. Depending on how both of these tackles develop over the next few months, combined with how well Bradberry makes an impression, will determine whether either of these two are lined up for time at tackle in 2020.
Feeney, no relation to former Indiana All-American guard Dan Feeney, is one of the more underrated additions in this class. He is one of the most intelligent signees in the class, and coming out of Missouri, he was not recruited or rated as highly as others. He will see the field in his time at Indiana, and if any of the older guards fall lackluster in the summer or early-fall and he wows the staff, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Feeney enter some games. At 6-foot-5, 285 pounds, it won’t take too long to get his body into playing shape, and he will certainly tackle the high school-to-college learning curve quickly.
Adds who are expected to serve a role eventually but need development
Luke Haggard
Haggard is the three-for-two transfer, meaning he has three years to complete two seasons. Indiana is taking advantage of that eligibility by redshirting him in 2020 to add to his 6-foot-7, 265-pound frame. Based on the glimpse the media got of Haggard in the spring, he has quite a ways to go in bulking up for Big Ten play, but the athleticism is there in ways it isn’t for other tackles. One year can do wonders for changing a lineman’s body, though. Katic is a good example, as he added 40 pounds during his redshirt season. By the time Haggard is a senior, Jones will have graduated and Bedford will be a senior too, so opportunity is ahead for the JUCO transfer out of California.
Randy Holtz
Holtz is a big body, at 6-foot-7, 310 pounds, but his limited mobility is what has relegated him to guard. His pass protection is what needs to improve the most, but his run-blocking capabilities on the inside are some of the best in Indiana’s 2020 class. Getting his body into shape is the primary goal for 2020, so he is expected to redshirt.
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