Cornerback D’Angelo Ponds has committed to Indiana football out of the transfer portal, the sophomore announced on social media Saturday. The West Park, Fla. native comes to Bloomington after a stellar freshman season at James Madison. He was named to several freshman All-American teams, and was a second-team All-Sun Belt selection. Ponds finished third in the conference and tied for 11th in the nation with 15 passes defended last season — more than any Big Ten player. He added two interceptions and 51 combined tackles, including two tackles for loss. Ponds is the 12th JMU player to follow head coach…
Author: Seth Tow
For some people, it’s LeBron Bond’s name that grabs their attention. Bond knows his name can raise eyebrows. He is, in fact, named after NBA legend LeBron James. When people hear his name, they sometimes turn their heads or ask him to repeat it, to make sure they heard what they thought they heard. But for others, it’s his the wide receiver’s speed that draws people in. Bond, in addition to playing football, runs track at Maury (Va.) High School. He competes in the short-distance sprinting events, with success: Bond finished first in the 100m (10.91 seconds) and the 200m…
Arizona safety DJ Warnell Jr. has committed to Indiana football out of the transfer portal, as he announced on social media Wednesday. Warnell played for the Wildcats for two seasons after transferring from Pac-12 foe UCLA, where he spent two years. He’ll have one year of eligibility remaining at IU — his COVID year. Last season, Warnell played in all 13 games for Arizona and finished with 15 combined tackles, including three sacks. He posted 26 combined tackles in 2022 with one tackle for loss and one pass breakup. Warnell recorded 11 total tackles with two pass breakups and one…
Indiana women’s basketball has promoted Ali Patberg to full-time assistant coach and added IU alum Keyanna Warthen to its staff as team and recruitment coordinator and assistant coach, the program announced Wednesday. Patberg is entering her third year on Indiana’s staff. She spent the last two years in the role Warthen takes over, though she didn’t add the assistant coach title until last season. Warthen served as an assistant coach at Miami (Ohio) last season under former IU associate head coach Glenn Box. These moves come after assistant coach Amber Smith and IU parted ways, creating the opening for Patberg.…
With spring football over, Indiana football is quickly turning its attention to further roster turnover and, eventually, the start of preseason camp over the summer. Head coach Curt Cignetti has seen several players enter the transfer portal since the spring game. The spring window to enter the portal closes at the end of April, though more names could trickle out in the first few days of May. But May is more likely to feature commitments than outbound transfers. But coming out of the spring game, there’s still plenty to analyze of the roster IU already has. Taylor Lehman from Bite…
Indiana women’s basketball assistant coach Amber Smith and IU have parted ways, a program spokesperson confirmed to The Daily Hoosier. “Amber is no longer on the Indiana women’s basketball staff and is pursuing other opportunities both within and out of basketball,” the spokesperson said in a text. Smith spent one year in Bloomington, working with IU’s guards. She helped the Hoosiers to a 26-6 season with their third Sweet 16 appearance in the last four years. Among other developments, Smith’s coaching helped Sara Scalia enjoy one of the strongest seasons of her five-year college career. The Minnesota transfer averaged 16.3…
Karoline Striplin remembers watching “Hoosiers” many times growing up. The Hartford, Ala. native is a movie buff. She doesn’t have a lot of free time, given her academic and basketball demands. But she works movies into her schedule as much as possible, whether at home or at a movie theater. Her favorites are “About Time,” “Good Will Hunting,” and “The Dark Knight.” She’s a Regal Unlimited member, giving her unlimited movie tickets for a monthly subscription fee. Striplin said she tries to see movies in the theater at least twice a month — even during basketball season. “When I go…
Former IU quarterback Michael Penix Jr. was the first big surprise of the 2024 NFL Draft. Penix was selected with the eighth overall pick Thursday by the Atlanta Falcons, who just signed Kirk Cousins in free agency in March. This was higher than most mock drafts projected Penix to go, though some had him going a few picks later. No Hoosiers have been taken in the first round since wide receiver Thomas Lewis was taken No. 24 overall by the New York Giants in 1994. The last IU player to go in the top 10 was tackle Eric Moore, taken…
The upcoming NFL Draft will see at least one former Hoosier selected. But Indiana may still not be called during the draft. Quarterback Michael Penix Jr. is a potential first-round pick, but — of course — he transferred from IU to Washington in 2022. When Penix is selected, it will be as a Husky. The Hoosiers will be hoping one of their players earns a call on day three. And that is far from certain. Many mock drafts that project all seven rounds have IU getting shut out. If that happened, it would be the second consecutive season for the…
Curt Cignetti doesn’t call out his players very often. Sure, he’s unafraid of criticizing his team as a whole, or maybe even a position group. But he usually avoids identifying any individuals in those sorts of remarks, even if asked to. That made it more noteworthy when he did it twice this spring. At separate points, he said that redshirt sophomore quarterback Tayven Jackson’s development has “been a little slower,” and that senior wide receiver Donaven McCulley needed to pick it up. Both players seemed to heed the message. Jackson enjoyed a strong spring game, showing a clear grasp of…