Spring ball for the Indiana Hoosiers will start on Saturday, March 8th and the Hoosiers will have many newcomers in the building, both by way of the transfer portal and high school recruiting. Today, we’ll identify a few of the 14 high school enrollees that we’ll be keeping a close eye on as the Hoosiers look to build on their historic 2024 season.
Byron Baldwin Jr
When you combine recruiting rankings and the potential playing time at the position, there’s a clear number one guy to keep an eye on as this freshman class begins their first collegiate practices and that is Byron Baldwin Jr. Indiana was in early on Baldwin and though he decommitted for a time when his recruiting stock soared, he eventually recommitted to the Hoosiers and now joins the program as the 7th highest ranked recruit in program history. He projects as a safety in college, but he has the ball and coverage skills from his time playing both corner and safety. He processes the game at a high speed and with how quickly his stock has risen, he has the potential to develop into an NFL-caliber defensive back.
LeBron Bond
If one thing stood out in Indiana’s losses to Ohio State and Notre Dame this past season it was a lack of speed. There should be no issue with that with LeBron Bond, a 3-star speedy slot receiver out of Norfolk, Virginia. Bond excelled in high school not only on the football field, but also as a track athlete. The speed stands out on tape; Bond scored 16 touchdowns and had over 1,300 yards receiving as a junior while helping Maury High School to a Class 5 Virginia State championship.
Baylor Wilkin
I always like to keep an eye on the offensive line recruits that Bob Bostad brings in so I will have my eye on how Baylor Wilkin looks early on this spring. Wilkin fit’s Bostad’s mold of a guy that starts slight off other recruiter’s radars, but one who has the frame to be a strong collegiate offensive lineman. When Wilkin committed to Indiana in July he held mostly non-power four offers, though Michigan State tried to make a run at him in September by offering a scholarship. The now 3-star recruit out of Ohio stuck with the Hoosiers and is ready to begin spring ball.
Keishaun Calhoun
It took one season of Pat Kuntz leading the Hoosiers’ defensive line for me to trust his judgement of the position, so I’ll have my eye on his top ranked defensive line recruit Keishaun Calhoun. Calhoun is 6’4 and 245 pounds and was ranked the 51st best player out of the state of Ohio. He held 13 total offers when he commit to the Hoosiers, mainly from MAC schools. Ohio’s 270GridIron described Calhoun as having been “disruptive no matter where he lined up.”
Andrew Barker
Indiana has a bit of a hole to fill at tight end this offseason and hopefully in-state recruit Andrew Barker can help out with that. Barker is an extremely cerebral 3-star recruit, amassing offers from many of the prestigious academic schools like Dartmouth, Penn, Army, and Navy, among others. He earned First Team All-State honors in 2023 after catching 23 passes for 324 yards. He ultimately chose to stay in-state with Indiana, and I imagine Coach Cignetti is extremely excited to have such a smart player at the tight end position, a position he commands a lot from in both the blocking and receiving game.