On October 16, 2021, Indiana started a true freshman at the quarterback position. The Hoosiers were going up against the No.10 team in the country, Michigan State, and because of a plethora of injuries, Tom Allen inserted Donaven McCulley under center.
The Indianapolis native became the third true freshman quarterback in Indiana history to start a game. McCulley had now become the face of the Hoosiers and he was their man moving forward. Indiana had high hopes for the talented freshman and they were right, just not as a quarterback.
McCulley transitioned from quarterback to wide receiver after his freshman season and after talking to Coach Allen about making the switch. This came as a bit of a surprise considering McCulley was a talented quarterback at Lawrence North High School and was even Indiana‘s highest-highest-ranked quarterback to ever commit to play for the Hoosiers. But McCulley always wanted to play the wide receiver position and with the athletic ability that he brings to the team, the move made sense for all parties.
Two years into the process, McCulley is now showing flashes of greatness as a star wideout. It has been two weeks in a row where McCulley has shown to be a valuable weapon for the Hoosiers. Against Penn State, he was able to record four catches for 96 yards. Seven days later against Wisconsin, in the Hoosiers' first Big Ten win of the 2023 season, McCulley reeled in five catches for 67 yards including a highlight reel catch.
“D Mac to me is a guy I've always challenged,” Allen said. “I've always felt like that he was a guy that should have the mindset that they just can't guard me. If the ball is anywhere near me, I'm going to come down with it. They're going to have to grab me, hold me, interfere with me in order to make a play. If that continues, it becomes very dangerous. You have the chance to come down with a ball if you seek and do that, but also a chance to create a penalty, which gives us first downs in that situation. Huge weapon for us. Continues to develop and continues to elevate his play. Just keep making those plays because we're going to need him down the stretch here. Proud of D Mac. He's coming into his own and he's playing the way I expect he should.”
His first year as a receiver had several good step in the right direction. McCulley finished with 16 catches on the year and a total of 169 yards. It took some time for McCulley to get fully engraved into the position. The highest number of catches he had in his first year was three but now in his second year, he's had a career-high six catches which came against Maryland.
The confidence within McCulley in thriving as trusting the process is finally paying off. Changing your position is never easy as you basically have to learn a whole new language within the game of football but so far its been a great move for the Indiana kid.
“I've always felt like that,” Go out there every play and just tell yourself you're unguardable. Just try to impose your will. I'm 6-foot-5 210 and I feel like I need to impose my will on almost every play. That's a big thing for me.”
With the Indiana offense now moving in the right direction and a Big Ten win to their name, McCulley looks to be Indiana's new top receiver. He’s a multi-tool weapon. He can catch, throw the ball if he needs to, and is one of the most athletic players on the field. McCulley’s progress is a testament of hard work. Everyone knew McCulley could make the change successfully and that it was only a matter of time until we saw the results.
After the game, McCulley had a grin from ear to ear after his best performance of the season. He’s now up to nearly 400 receiving yards this season through ten weeks. After the Wisconsin game, he admitted that he feels like things are different now. That he is now found his true position.
“Now I'm like a real wide receiver”
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