How Oklahoma State’s Zane Flores and Sesi Vailahi are approaching their redshirt rookie seasons
Two redshirt freshmen are ready to take bigger roles for Oklahoma State in 2024.
Sesi Vailahi was able to take advantage of the moment, despite losing the game.
It was his third appearance of his collegiate career and he was playing on the field that he grew up thinking about AT&T Stadium as the mecca of football and here he was running around on it. The Utah native running back is a Dallas Cowboys fan, to most people’s surprise.
‌Against Texas in the Big 12 Championship in December, the freshman played 12 snaps in Oklahoma State’s loss.
Indiana football is less than four weeks away from its much-anticipated 2024 season. Following a whirlwind offseason that began with the hiring of head coach Curt Cignetti, followed by a significant roster and coaching staff overhaul and the ensuing spring and summer workout months, Hoosier Nation is understandably eager to step into a new era of football under Cignetti.
It’s been several years since IU experienced this much palpable excitement and buzz heading into a season, but it’s all part of Cignetti’s plan since he arrived in Bloomington this past December. Now, the cream and crimson will have a chance to prove it on the field when IU hosts Florida International on Aug. 31 at Memorial Stadium in the season opener.
With that, Peegs.com asked its VIP members for their bold predictions ahead of Indiana’s 2024 season. Here are some of the top-voted and most common predictions, with extended analysis and thoughts for each prediction.
‌Fall Camp Kickoff Special: Get 60% off an annual VIP Peegs.com membership!
“Donaven McCulley gets All-American honors.” – bannersandbirdies
What a career trajectory this would be for Donaven McCulley if it comes to fruition, huh? From four-star quarterback recruit to being forced into six games as a true freshman to switching to receiver, and then as a senior you exit with All-American honors… all at the same school. That’s some 30-for-30 documentary type stuff.
McCulley has always been a fascinating case study. Coming out of high school, he was set on being a quarterback at the college level but was also being recruited as a receiver by some schools. Of course, McCulley ultimately chose Indiana and gave quarterback a shot for one season before ultimately making the position change. And at 6-foot-5, with his blend of athleticism and build, plus last year’s breakout season, it’s hard to fault his decision.
This is going to be a huge senior season for McCulley for a multitude of reasons. Foremost, it’s likely his final year of eligibility (unless he redshirts, which would be wildly unexpected) and he has aspirations of playing in the NFL, so he’s got one last shot to prove himself to scouts. Also, McCulley’s decision to return to Indiana after initially entering the portal in the offseason — and Cignetti’s decision to want McCulley back, which was not the case for several other IU players from last season — will put an even bigger chip on his shoulder.
After the team-leading 2023 season that McCulley had, he will no longer have the luxury of being overlooked by opponents. You can almost bet that the opposing team’s top corner will be matched up against McCulley on a weekly basis. If and when that comes to fruition, there won’t be any doubt if McCulley has what it takes to play at the next level.
Fortunately, McCulley will have plenty of help in the receiving room. If teams want to bracket McCulley, that likely means other talented receivers such as Elijah Sarratt, Myles Price, EJ Williams etc. will have one-on-one coverages to exploit. That will be a tough task for opposing defenses to matchup and scheme against. And if you leave McCulley on an island, we saw last season how much he can stress opposing secondaries, especially with the deep ball.
But back to the initial prediction… All-American Donaven McCulley? It would take a significant step in his development for that to happen, but I don’t think it’s out of the realm of possibility. McCulley has all the tools to put together an All-American type season, but it would also mean a very productive year for Kurtis Rourke and a terrific first year for new offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan. I’m not ruling it out, but the stars would have to align like we haven’t seen before at IU.
“Kurtis Rourke becomes a dark-horse Heisman candidate, Curt Cignetti wins Big Ten Coach of the Year.” – JHeibner, GOIUHoosiers
I could envision a scenario for the latter with Cignetti, but the former with Rourke as a Heisman contender would be crazy levels of chaos at IU and around the nation.
We’ll start with the Cignetti scenario. In my mind, for him to win Big Ten Coach of the Year it would take a season similar to Tom Allen in 2019, when the Hoosiers went 8-4 in the regular season and shattered expectations. For Cignetti, he’s entering a program that’s won just nine total games over the previous three years, so if he can completely turn that trend in year one with immediate success and a comfortable bowl berth, then it’s possible he’s looking at a Big Ten Coach of the Year. I think he’d probably have to reach the eight or nine win mark for that to happen, but it’s possible.
For Rourke, he would need a monster season to creep up into the Heisman conversation, even as just a dark-horse. Not only would he have to perform as one of the Big Ten’s best quarterbacks — a conference which boasts the likes of Dillon Gabriel, Drew Allar, Will Howard and more — he’d also have to guide Indiana’s offense as one of the best in the nation.
There would need to be a ton that goes right for Rourke, in his first and only season at IU, to sneak into Heisman talks. I think if he can even play at an All-Big Ten level, that’s a positive sign for IU as a whole. The Hoosiers don’t need Rourke to be an All-American; they just need him to be serviceable or better, and the rest of the offensive talent will take care of the rest.
‌”Indiana football becomes #9Windiana by actually starting 9-0.” – KGreve6
Optimism and hype is fun to watch from afar, so hopefully the Hoosiers can hold up their end of the bargain. But starting the season 9-0, woof. For IU to do that, it would have to defeat the likes of UCLA and Northwestern on the road, Maryland and Nebraska at home, then back on the road at Michigan State in East Lansing, along with all three non-conference opponents at home. If IU can run through that stretch with nine-straight wins, we might all be transported into some kind of alternate universe.
That said, it’s not like any of those nine games are completely unwinnable. The three Big Ten road games won’t be easy — they rarely ever are in this conference — and Maryland and Nebraska are trending upward, even if IU does get to play both in Bloomington. Unless the season goes completely off the rails early on, the Hoosiers should at least have a shot to win in each of those games. Do I think the Hoosiers win all of them? No, but I could see them stealing a win or two in games that they enter as underdogs, and I could also see them losing a game or two that they’re favored in.
Taking it a step farther, I’m not even bought into IU winning nine games this whole season. I think six wins and a bowl berth is a successful season, and everything after that is just icing on the cake. Perhaps in a few years, if Cignetti and his staff can build the program into a consistent winner, #9Windiana will be in the cards. But for now, in year one, I’m not buying it.
This depends on if you mean top-10 in the Big Ten or top-10 nationally; I could buy into the former, but not the latter. New defensive coordinator Bryant Haines led a prolific unit last season at JMU, one that led the nation in tackles-for-loss per game and owned the top rushing defense in the FBS. Haines’ work earned him a Broyles Award Semifinalist nod, and it was well-deserved.
Stepping into a new program, at a higher level, and with dozens of new players will be quite the task for Haines this fall, though. Replicating JMU’s defensive success from last season will be no easy feat, and I’d foolish not to think there won’t be some level of regression or early struggles in year one.
The flipside is Haines is inheriting more defensive talent than he’s probably ever had in his coaching career. Indiana should at least be average, if not better amongst its defensive starters, but its depth is where things could get dicey. Especially on defense, keeping players fresh is imperative to success — that’s obviously no secret to Haines. Does Indiana have enough horses on its depth chart, especially on the defensive line, to perform at a high level each week?
I’m not so sure right now. Top-10 in sacks would be a significant accomplishment for a first-year defensive coordinator in the Big Ten. But Haines has earned the benefit of the doubt based on his track record, so I’m not ruling anything out until I see on the field. Top-10 in sacks in the Big Ten, I could be convinced. Top-10 in sacks nationally, I’m staying far away from that this fall.
‌I know these are bold predictions, and I know IU fans have a wave of optimism heading into this season, but 10-3 and a New Year’s Day bowl is aiming for the stars — just don’t tell Curt Cignetti, because he’ll tell you it’s very doable.
If you’re looking at Indiana’s first season under a new staff with pragmatism and rationality, predicting a 10-3 seas
