No matter the place, success seems to follow IU wideout Elijah Sarratt
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - When Indiana welcomes Florida International to Memorial Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 31 for the 2024 season opener, wide receiver Elijah Sarratt will be making his debut for the cream and crimson.
Set to begin his junior season this fall with the Hoosiers, Sarratt is now at his third different school in as many years. Change is nothing new for the Stafford, Virginia native.
A two-star recruit out of high school, Sarratt began his collegiate career in the FCS at Saint Francis (Pa.).
After receiving Freshman All-America honors at Saint Francis, Sarratt made the leap to the FBS level to James Madison.
It was a trust and belief in head coach Curt Cignetti that drew Sarratt to Harrisonburg -- a chance to play alongside his brother with the Dukes played a role as well -- and it's that same trust and belief in Cignetti that has Sarratt set to rock the cream and crimson this season at IU.
"I had my options open definitely," Sarratt said during the spring regarding his time in the portal. "(Indiana) was the only visit I took -- I had other visits planned -- but (the coaching staff) told me everything I needed to hear, so I came here."
A new program and a new campus isn't the only thing Sarratt must adjust to ahead of the upcoming season. The former first team All-Sun Belt selection will be catching passes from his third different starting quarterback this year at Indiana.
At this point, adjusting to and building chemistry with a new quarterback is something Sarratt is comfortable with, although he knows that developing that ever-important bond with his quarterback will take some time.
Last season, it took Sarratt until the seventh game of the season to tally seven or more catches in a game -- a figure he eclipsed in all but one game in his final seven contests of the year.
"It comes with bumps throughout the road," Sarratt said. "Getting that chemistry down -- (the quarterbacks and I) are still early on in the process -- but we're getting better day by day. We have to keep on stacking those days up."
Amidst an offseason filled with changes for Sarratt, a few things have remained constant.
For starters, the coaches Sarratt is playing for have remained the same from last season. Cignetti is still his head coach and Mike Shanahan is still coaching his position group.
The practices have remained mostly the same, meetings haven't changed much and there's still that fine attention to detail in each and everything the players do throughout practice and in the weight room.
Throughout his collegiate career, Sarratt has been able to adjust and produce no matter where he is and no matter how long -- or how short -- he's been there.
As a true freshman at Saint Francis, Sarratt caught 42 passes for 700 yards. A season ago at James Madison, Sarratt hauled in 82 passes for 1,191 yards and eight touchdowns.
Wherever the wideout goes, individual success seems to follow.
"Patience," Sarratt responded when asked how he's able to quickly acclimate himself to new places. "Some days aren't going to go how you want them to. You just have to be consistent every single day."
"You might catch one pass today, you might catch eight passes tomorrow," Sarratt continued. "I put that work in everyday. If I just keep on working everyday, then everything that I want is going to come to me."
Despite entering the 2024 season with a pair of All-Conference selections under his belt, Sarratt knows he can't become complacent.
Making the jump to a power conference, Sarratt -- like many of his fellow JMU transfers -- doesn't feel like he's made it just yet. At Indiana, he just has a bigger and brighter stage to put his hard work on full display.
"No spot is guaranteed," Sarratt said. "I know I have a lot of work to do."
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