Jacob Van der Kooy left Bloomington with a strong impression after spending Saturday at Indiana’s opening game against North Texas.
The 2028 offensive lineman from Oconomowoc HS in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin measured in at 6-foot-6 and 310 pounds, and the tackle prospect told Peegs.com that Indiana continues to stand out to him for more than one reason. He pointed first to what Curt Cignetti and his staff have built, saying the program’s recent run has caught his attention.
"Coach Cignetti has done an incredible job with the team," he said. "The last two seasons were really fun to watch.
They definitely have a target on their backs after an undefeated year topped with a National Championship. The team definitely looks strong again this year.
They will be tough to beat."
Van der Kooy also said his relationship with Indiana offensive line coach Bob Bostad and assistant offensive line coach Zack Leeds has grown over time. This was his third visit to Indiana, and he noted that Bostad has also made multiple trips to Wisconsin to see him.
"Coach Bostad and Coach Leeds have been great," Van der Kooy said. "This was my third time coming to Indiana, and Coach Bostad has been to Wisconsin to visit a few times.
They always take the time to sit with me and talk. They are both very down to earth and personable."
The visit itself made an impact too. Van der Kooy said the scene around campus early Saturday was a big part of what he enjoyed most.
"I loved the gameday atmosphere," he said. "It was so cool to see so many people out tailgating at 7 AM.
Indiana will always be high on my list. It is a great combination of amazing football and a top-notch business school."
Indiana does not have an offer out to him yet, but Van der Kooy said he believes one could come if he keeps stacking good performances. He said the coaches understand the level of competition his team faces every week.
"The coaches know that my team competes against top competition every week," he said about the possibility of landing an offer from Indiana. "There are no weeks off, no plays off. I just need to keep putting out good film every week."
For now, Van der Kooy holds offers from Miami (OH) and Toledo, while Indiana remains in the mix along with Minnesota, Northwestern, Rutgers, NC State, Ball State, Kent State, North Dakota State, Western Michigan, North Dakota, and St. Thomas.
In Other News...
Indiana Still Faces An Eligibility Fight With Two Key Players
A court hearing that could affect several athletes, including two Indiana University football players, has been pushed back to Monday, leaving the Hoosiers in a familiar holding pattern as the season gets underway. For now, a temporary restraining order remains in place, giving those players an extra year of eligibility and clearing them to take the field this weekend while the legal fight plays out.
The case centers on a challenge to an NCAA eligibility rule tied to athletes in the high school class of 2022, and it has become one of those off-field issues programs would rather not have hanging over the roster. For Indiana, the immediate concern is simple enough: the players are available today, but their longer-term status is still tied to a hearing that has yet to happen. [Read more 🡒]
Indianas Dominant Rise Is Turning Into A Debate Fans Will Hate
Curt Cignetti arrived in Bloomington before the 2024 season and changed the conversation around Indiana football almost immediately. The Hoosiers went 11-2 in his first year, reached the College Football Playoff, then followed it with a perfect 16-0 run and a national championship, the kind of rise that can make a program feel brand new overnight. They opened this season ranked No. 6 and backed it up by handling North Texas 52-16, with Josh Hoover completing 13 of 16 passes for 231 yards and four touchdowns.
Now the success that once felt impossible has created a different kind of pressure, because when a program climbs this fast, the debate stops being about whether it belongs and starts being about how long it can keep this up. Indiana fans have spent years waiting for a breakthrough, but the better the Hoosiers look, the more every new win seems to invite a tougher question about what comes next and whether the standard has already become too high to sustain. [Read more 🡒]
Former Hoosiers Are Suddenly Everywhere For NFL Week 1
Indiana footballs reach into the NFL got an early-season reminder in Week 1, when former Hoosiers showed up on active rosters across the league in a way the program has never quite seen before. Indiana already had plenty to celebrate after setting a school record with eight players taken in the 2026 NFL Draft, a group led by No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza, but the next step has been even more striking: the pipeline didnt stop on draft weekend.
A total of 18 former Hoosiers made NFL 53-man rosters for Week 1, with five more landing on practice squads, giving Indiana an unusually visible footprint once the games started. The article goes on to track those ex-Hoosiers appearing in action around the league, a sign that the programs recent surge is translating beyond Bloomington and into the kind of pro-level presence that keeps a college fan base checking Sunday boxes with a little more interest than usual. [Read more 🡒]