EA Sports’ latest college football ratings put Indiana in a spot that should feel pretty good overall, even if it doesn’t come with the No. 1 label.
The reigning national champions checked in with a 90 overall team rating, which ties Ohio State for second in the game. Oregon landed at 91 and was given the top spot, even though Indiana is coming off the title and Ohio State brings back plenty of firepower of its own, including Jeremiah Smith, Julian Sayin and Kenyatta Jackson Jr.
Indiana’s 90 is still a strong mark, especially after losing a wave of key players to the NFL Draft, including Fernando Mendoza, Pat Coogan, Omar Cooper Jr. and D’Angelo Pond. Replacing that kind of production is never simple, but EA still clearly views IU as one of the elite teams in the game.
The biggest individual rating on the Indiana roster belongs to left tackle Carter Smith, who came in at 97 overall. That makes him the highest-rated offensive lineman in the game and the second-highest rated player overall. The numbers back up the placement: Smith posted an 87.7 pass block grade in 2025 and an 82.9 run blocking grade, while also being credited as quick off the snap, technically sound and experienced with more than 2,700 snaps entering 2026.
Smith’s case gets even stronger when you look at what he just did last season. He was the Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year, allowed two total sacks and is projected as a first-round pick. The only real question hanging over him is the offseason shoulder surgery, which makes his current health something to watch before anyone knows whether he’s fully back.
At quarterback, Josh Hoover enters the game with an 88 overall rating, which ties him for 15th best nationally. Hoover arrives after transferring from Texas Christian, where he put up big passing numbers: a 65.2% completion rate, 9,629 passing yards, 71 passing touchdowns and eight rushing touchdowns. He also threw a career-high 13 interceptions last season, and the fact that he’s moving from the Big 12 to the Big Ten is part of why an 86 would have made more sense to some.
Still, Indiana’s supporting cast should be better around him, and that likely played into the 88. Whether that number holds up will come down to how he performs against stronger competition this fall.
EA also gave Memorial Stadium the 15th “toughest place to play” rating in the game, a placement that doesn’t exactly line up with the idea of Bloomington being an automatic nightmare for visitors. Curt Cignetti has not lost a home game since taking over at Indiana, and the team’s home field has plenty of reason to feel hostile again.
Even so, the game’s rating is just a game. The real answer will come once the season starts.
In Other News...
Indiana Suddenly Has A Veteran Backcourt Option Worth Watching
Darian DeVries is heading into his second season at Indiana after an 18-14 debut, and the Hoosiers have already used the transfer portal to reshape the roster. Now there is another backcourt name worth tracking as the staff looks for more depth and experience on the perimeter, the kind of addition that can matter over the grind of a Big Ten schedule.
The latest option is a veteran guard who has taken a winding path through four different programs and just became eligible for one more season. His most recent stop was his best, which is why Indiana is taking a hard look at whether he fits into what the Hoosiers are building next, even as the final details of his college future still need to settle into place. [Read more 🡒]
Curt Cignetti Just Turned Up The Heat On Memorial Stadium Talks
Indianas recent run of sellouts at Memorial Stadium has moved the long-running stadium conversation from theoretical to increasingly practical. Curt Cignetti and athletic director Scott Dolson have both shown support for upgrades, and the focus around campus now includes the kind of work that can happen sooner, like concourse refinements, mechanical and infrastructure improvements and more luxury suites, while the bigger question of what comes next keeps lingering in the background.
The momentum is easy to understand when the building is packed as often as it has been lately, with four sellouts in each of the last two seasons and a chance at something Indiana has not seen in decades. The university is still sorting through what a larger Memorial Stadium could eventually look like, and the conversation has already reached beyond maintenance and amenities into the kind of structural changes that would reshape the place for the next era. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Just Landed A Massive National Spotlight Moment
Indianas recent run of national relevance has spilled well beyond the usual Big Ten conversation, with ESPNs 2026 ESPY nominations giving the program another jolt of attention. Former IU quarterback Fernando Mendoza landed a pair of nods, one for Best Breakthrough Athlete and another for Best College Athlete, while Indiana football itself is in the mix for Best Team. Former Hoosier OG Anunoby also drew an ESPY nomination, adding another high-profile name to a list that has put Indiana back in the national frame.
The team category is especially notable because Indiana is being judged alongside a crowded field of championship-level competitors, a reminder of just how rare these spotlight moments can be for a college football program. The Hoosiers place on that ballot traces back to a 16-0 season that ended with a national title, and the nomination alone is a sign of how loudly the sports biggest stage has noticed what happened in Bloomington. [Read more 🡒]