AJ Barner didn’t catch a single pass during Indiana football’s storybook 2020 season, his freshman year. He caught 14 in 2021, putting up 162 yards and a single touchdown off of a deep strike from Jack Tuttle.
Now, entering the 2022 season, Barner is front and center of the Hoosiers’ tight end group. Head coach Tom Allen made that literal when he brought Barner along with him to Big Ten Media Days.
Barner is slated to start for Indiana following Peyton Hendershot’s departure for the NFL, but he didn’t get into that position by passively moving up the Hoosiers’ depth chart.