Nine IU football players invited to Indy for NFL Combine

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Indianapolis takes center stage in the NFL in less than two weeks, with the NFL Combine in the Circle City.

The full list of draft prospects that were invited to the NFL Combine was released on Wednesday, and a program-record nine IU players from the national championship-winning team were on the list, headlined by the Heisman Trophy winner, Fernando Mendoza:

• QB Fernando Mendoza
• RB Roman Hemby
• WR Omar Cooper Jr.
• WR Elijah Sarratt
• TE Riley Nowakowski
• OL Pat Coogan
• LB Aiden Fisher
• DB Louis Moore
• DB D’Angelo Ponds

Mendoza threw for 3,535 yards and led the nation with 41 touchdowns in 2025. He also rushed for seven more touchdowns. Mendoza is the projected No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.

Hemby rushed for 1,120 yards and seven touchdowns in 2025, averaging 4.9 yards per carry. He also had 165 receiving yards.

Cooper caught 69 passes for 937 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2025. He was IU’s leader in receiving yards. Cooper played his entire career with the Hoosiers, hauling in 115 catches for 1,798 yards and 22 touchdowns from 2023-25.

Sarratt had 65 catches for 830 yards and led the country with 15 receiving touchdowns in 2025. He had 118 catches for 1,787 yards and 23 touchdowns in his two years in Bloomington.