IU Football announces Big Ten Media Day Participants

The Big Ten Media Days are set to kick off in two weeks (July 24-26) at Lucas Oil Field in Indianapolis and IU Football has announced its participants.

Among the three players who will be joining head coach Curt Cignetti for Indiana football’s media day on July 25th are two transfers.

Wake Forest transfer running back Justice Ellison, and James Madison transfer linebacker Aiden Fisher highlight the many new faces on the roster along with offensive lineman and 2023 captain Mike Katic who will be in attendance in Indianapolis.

IU Football’s media day participants signal the changes to the program

See you in the Circle City. 👀 pic.twitter.com/FtfFPG4zAl

— Indiana Football (@IndianaFootball) July 11, 2024

Mike Katic, the only returning player to be on the podium, is going into his fifth season with IU Football after being chosen as a captain for the 2023 season. Katic has appeared in 39 games, starting in 37, with 27 of his starts coming at left guard. 

Katic’s return to the roster was big for Cignetti as he figures to be one of the leaders of the team as a returning captain.

Running back Justice Ellison is one of the many transfers that IU Football added this offseason. In four years with Wake Forest, Ellison ran the ball 427 times for 1,901 yards and 15 touchdowns. 

He figures to play a big role on the offense as Indiana completely replaced its running back room this off-season.

“Every day I think about being resilient, detailed, and dominant. That’s the only three words every single time we wake up and they’ve installed that over and over again,” Ellison said earlier in the spring. It’s hard, I ain’t going to lie it is tough. Your back against the wall every single day, but I feel like that breeds success.”

Ellison has emphasized hard work and with his experience, he could wind up as one of the vocal leaders on the roster. 

RELATED: Justice Ellison’s ‘go get it’ mentality made Indiana football the perfect fit for him

The last of the three is former JMU linebacker Aiden Fisher. Fisher led the Dukes in tackles a season ago with 108. He also had eight pass breakups and an interception. His performance led him to be named to the All-Sun Belt Conference third team.

He showcased his talent for IU Football during the spring game with 7.5 tackles and was everywhere on the field.

“I think Bryant Haines sleeps a lot better at night with him,” Cignetti said of Fisher after the spring game. “He’s like a quarterback of the defense. Knows it inside out, really studies, really respected by his teammates too, helps get others lined up. So making progress, good football player.”

Fisher could be the next off-the-ball linebacker to reach the NFL, following in the footsteps of Micah McFadden, Cam Jones, and Aaron Casey.

The trio of players attending Indiana’s media day signals the transition into a new era of IU Football as Cignetti continues to add players that fit his vision to the returning players from the Tom Allen era.

SEE ALSO: Indiana football details multiple new gameday changes, enhancements to Memorial Stadium

Make sure to follow Hoosier Illustrated, part of the Full Ride Network, on Twitter @Indiana_FRN, Facebook and YouTube to stay up to date on all of the news, updates and coverage of Indiana University athletics. You can also listen to the Talking’ Bout the Hoosiers podcast on Spotify.

Looking for a place to get more Indiana content? Hoosier Illustrated has partnered with Tom Brady’s company ‘Autograph’ to streamline our coverage, so you can continue to do what you do best – follow IU sports. Use the CODE: Indianafr to get started today. For more info, you can start here.