If you want to know why the Indiana Hoosiers are two wins away from completing one of college football’s most improbable stories, ask their best player and the current face of the sport.

“Congrats to all my teammates, my brothers. This is our trophy,” Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza said through an ear-to-ear smile, moments after winning the award last month. “I love you guys, more than you know.”

Mendoza and head coach Curt Cignetti get most of the public praise for steering the magic carpet Indiana’s football team is riding. Rightly so, too. Mendoza’s performance this season was absolutely Heisman-worthy, and Cignetti’s work in Bloomington has been among the best coaching jobs college football has seen in at least 50 years.

But the Hoosiers, maybe more than any other program right now, are a team. The depth of talent Cignetti and his coaching staff assembled this year was outstanding and ranged beyond its QB. We’ll see that play out on NFL Draft weekend, too.

With that in mind, let’s look at the most intriguing Indiana NFL prospects aside from Mendoza.

Carter Smith, OT

Mendoza won the Heisman, but those subsequent comments about it being a team award were both gracious and accurate, as the efficiency of Indiana’s offensive line (both in the run game and protection) is really what makes Cignetti’s attack soar. And Smith, a 6-foot-5, 315-pound fourth-year junior who signed with Indiana out of high school, is the most talented of the bunch.

A three-year starter (with another year of eligibility, if he wants it), Smith is a very smooth all-around athlete with quick hands, quick feet and enough explosion to be a force. A former high school volleyball player, Smith weighed around 280 pounds prior to college and still moves like a man that size. His anchor is a bit of a question mark, and his technique in the run game needs more consistency, but Smith has top-50 talent right now. We’ll see if Indiana convinces him to stay.

Smith ranked No. 50, exactly, on Dane Brugler’s midseason draft board.

Omar Cooper Jr., WR

Another fourth-year junior, Cooper — like Carter Smith — was already on the roster when Cignetti took the job. He has exploded as a big-play weapon over the past two seasons.

Cooper is a bit small for his position, at 6 feet and 205 pounds, but he plays much bigger in the air, with ball-tracking skills that are hard to rattle. He can get to throws most guys his size can’t, and he’s even more dangerous in the open field.

Cooper has averaged better than 7 yards after catch over the past two seasons and forced a whopping 24 missed tackles this year, the fourth-highest number nationally. Indiana’s receiver crew is extremely dynamic, but Cooper is my favorite prospect there. He has another year of eligibility, but he’s pretty firmly a top-100 player on my board for this draft cycle.

D’Angelo Ponds, CB

A third-year junior who followed Cignetti to Indiana from James Madison, the diminutive Ponds (5-9, 173) is one of the toughest pound-for-pound corners in America. He forced 15 incomplete passes over the last two seasons as a starting outside corner, with 13 pass breakups and four interceptions.

Ponds is an effortless mover with outstanding speed, but his mindset and competitiveness are probably his biggest assets in man coverage. He’s limited physically and will not be a dynamic run fitter in the NFL, but he’s going to give you all he has and won’t miss many tackles. Ponds has slot skills, can hang outside and probably could even manage to give a defense some reps at safety. He reminds me of current Washington Commanders cornerback Mike Sainristil and also could flirt with the top 100.

Indiana CB D’Angelo Ponds has some similarities to Mike Sainristil – undersized at a position where size matters, but just a dang good player who will be a good pro.

Smart, tough, athletic.

— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) December 7, 2025

Aiden Fisher, LB

A fourth-year linebacker, Fisher also followed Cignetti from James Madison. He is a former high school running back with terrific speed and burst in coverage and an improved ability to run fit from the box. Twitchy enough to line up off the edge or run with a tight end in the slot, Fisher (6-1, 231) is a bit small but brings enough thump to be the type of linebacker who never has to leave the field.

Missed tackles have been a problem for him, as he has 48 for his career, but that number has decreased every year — he has 12 this season, a personal single-season low. Fisher also is known inside the Hoosiers program for his terrific attitude and the example he sets for others. He’s perhaps a fringe Day 2, or high Day 3, prospect.

Elijah Sarratt, WR

Yet another James Madison transfer, Sarratt is not an overwhelming athlete and probably won’t blow anyone away with testing numbers, but his ball skills and athletic balance in the air are as good as anyone in the class. Sarratt (6-2, 209) has made 51 contested catches as a college player.

He lacks ideal speed, but he is a twitchy player with plenty of explosion and power. Like Cooper, Sarratt is fearless over the middle and has been extremely dependable in basically any situation, both for Mendoza this year and Kurtis Rourke in 2024. Athletically, many will slot Sarratt as a Day 3 prospect, but his unique skill set could push him into Day 2. It only takes one team to fall in love, and Sarratt has some of the QB-friendly stuff teams often find hard to ignore.

Why Elijah Sarratt could be a top 100 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft@dpbrugler | @davehelman_ pic.twitter.com/zIOBAQM4gE

— The Athletic Football Show (@TA_FootballShow) October 15, 2025

Pat Coogan, IOL

The Most Valuable Player of the Rose Bowl, and one of the most underrated transfer pickups for the 2025 season, Coogan has been worth his weight in gold at center for the Hoosiers. A Notre Dame transfer, Coogan started at left guard (2023) and center (2024) for the Irish, but he’s currently enjoying the best season of his career.

A good-sized center interior lineman, Coogan (6-5, 311) isn’t an elite athlete, but he plays with enough burst and power to make an impact in the run game. His football IQ sets him apart, though — Coogan’s ability to keep the Hoosiers in the right play and proper protection has been a hallmark of the Indiana offense this season. Coogan probably was a UDFA (undrafted free agent) on most boards when the year began, but he’s played like a high Day 3 prospect.

Roman Hemby, RB

A fifth-year senior who transferred in from Maryland ahead of the season, Hemby has had a career year as an explosive and decisive runner with good hands. He made only 14 catches for 160 yards this year, but has 127 career receptions for 1,101 yards.

Hemby is powerful enough between the tackles to be seen as a capable gap runner, and he’s fast enough to the edge to be considered a serious option as a zone runner. The 6-foot, 208-pounder mostly translates as a No. 2 back in an NFL rotation, but he’d be a potentially valuable one for a team that runs the ball a lot. Another Day 3 prospect.

82 yards to the house for Roman Hemby 😤 @IndianaFootball

📺: NBC pic.twitter.com/yzYqfTLCcl

— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) November 29, 2025

Mikail Kamara, IDL

An oddly shaped edge rusher at 6-1, 260, Kamara, a sixth-year who transferred in from James Madison, has put up 122 pressures against Big Ten teams over the past two seasons at Indiana. His body type and athletic profile might disqualify him from a number of boards this spring, but there will be plenty of forward-thinking clubs who watch enough tape to see Kamara’s savvy up front as a pass rusher.

Kamara plays with great instinct, quick hands, sturdy power and all-out effort, no matter the situation. He might still wind up as a UDFA when all’s said and done, but you’ll read about him in a training camp somewhere next year. He’s one of those guys who just knows how to get off a block, and it’s really hard to outwork him.

Kahlil Benson, OT

A two-time Indiana Hoosier, Benson signed with Indiana out of high school in 2020, started for two years (2022, 2023) before transferring to Colorado last season, and then came back to Bloomington in 2025.

A fluid mover for a man his size, Benson (6-6, 320) is a prospect who has tackle traits but might make a better guard in the NFL. He’s been a right tackle all year for the Hoosiers, but he started at right guard (with some reps at left guard) last year at Colorado and in 2022 for the Hoosiers.

Louis Moore, S

Another two-time Hoosier, Moore entered the transfer portal after the 2023 season, played at Ole Miss in 2024, then returned to Indiana in 2025. He’s an extremely versatile defensive back, having played free safety, box safety and slot corner this year.

Moore has also been one of the most productive coverage players in the country this season, racking up six interceptions with three pass breakups and three forced incompletions. A great ball tracker who is physical in the run game, the sixth-year safety and Day 3 prospect brings plenty of savvy on the back end.