Curt Cignetti Expects Indiana Linebacker Jailin Walker To Play Against Nebraska

Starting linebacker Jailin Walker left Indiana's game at Northwestern with an injury, but coach Curt Cignetti thinks Walker will be back to full speed on Saturday against Nebraska.

Linebacker Jailin Walker directs Indiana's defense during practice. / Grace Urbanski, Indiana Athletics

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana has largely stayed healthy during its 6-0 start to the 2024 season, and it appears to have avoided a serious injury to starting linebacker Jailin Walker.

Walker left the Hoosiers' game at Northwestern on Oct. 5 during the second quarter and did not return to action. But following Indiana's bye week, coach Curt Cignetti gave a positive update on Walker heading into Saturday's game against Nebraska.

"J-Walk is a guy you never count out, and I expect him to be full speed on Saturday," Cignetti said Monday.

Walker has started all six games for Indiana this season, and he's eighth on the team with 272 total snaps, according to Pro Football Focus. The 6-foot, 218-pound linebacker is second among Hoosiers with 34 total tackles, trailing fellow starting linebacker and James Madison transfer Aiden Fisher with 55.

Walker also has three pass breakups, two tackles for loss, one quarterback hit and an assisted sack. He joined the Hoosiers as one of 13 transfers from James Madison, where he played in 32 games with 20 starts across three seasons. Walker earned All-Sun Belt honorable mentions during the 2022 and 2023 seasons.

Walker and Fisher have combined to play 600 snaps, accounting for the vast majority of playing time at linebacker. Indiana has certain defensive packages where it plays three linebackers, and Cignetti named Isaiah Jones and Rolijah Hardy as two developing depth pieces behind Walker and Fisher.

Jones, listed at 6-foot-2 and 230 pounds, is in his third season with the Hoosiers. Playing 134 snaps across six games, Jones has made 21 tackles this season.

He originally committed to Indiana under former head coach Tom Allen as a three-star recruit out of London, Ohio, where he was named first-team All-Ohio Division II-III as a senior.

Hardy joined Indiana prior to the 2024 season. Out of Lakeland, Fla., he signed with Navy and spent his first collegiate season with the Naval Academy Preparatory School. Appearing in four games and playing 40 snaps at Indiana this season, Hardy has made nine tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack, one forced fumble and returned an interception for a touchdown against Western Illinois.

Kickoff between Indiana and Nebraska is scheduled for Noon ET on FOX on Saturday at a sold out Memorial Stadium.

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