Mullen, McFadden Named AP Preseason All-America Second Team

Indiana's Tiawan Mullen and Micah McFadden are both coming off stellar seasons in 2020 and will look to be some of Indiana's top defenders again in 2021.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Indiana's Tiawan Mullen and Micah McFadden were named to the Associated Press Preseason 2021 All-America Second Team on Monday afternoon.

Mullen and McFadden are the lone Hoosiers on the list.

Both are coming off stellar seasons in 2020.

McFadden led the team with 58 tackles, 44 solos, six sacks (31 yards) and 10.5 for loss (39 yards) last season. He shared second with three quarterback hurries, and finished fourth with two interceptions. McFadden topped the Big Ten in sacks, the first Hoosier to do so since Greg Middleton (2007), tied for second in solo stops, shared third in TFLs and tied for eighth in INTs.

After the season, McFadden earned second-team All-America honors from Phil Steele and third-team accolades from the AP. He was also a first-team All-Big Ten honoree (coaches, media).

As for Mullen, he became the first cornerback in program history to earn first-team All-America honors (FWAA, Phil Steele) one year ago.

He made 38 tackles, 27 solo, with 3.5 sacks (32 yards), 4.5 for loss (33 yards), three interceptions, one forced fumble, four pass breakups and one quarterback hurry in eight games.

Mullen is currently the team's active leader with eight career takeaways (three interceptions, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries).

Indiana opens the season on Saturday, Sept. 4 against the Iowa Hawkeyes in Iowa City. The game starts at 3:30 p.m. ET, and will be televised on the Big Ten Network. As of Tuesday morning, Iowa is a 3.5-point favorite according to sports gambling website FanDuel.com. The over/under is 46.5 points.

Below are the full first and second AP All-America teams.

FIRST TEAM

Offense

Quarterback — Spencer Rattler, sophomore, Oklahoma.

Running backs —- Breece Hall, junior, Iowa State; Bijan Robinson, sophomore, Texas.

Tackles — Evan Neal, junior, Alabama; Kenyon Green, junior, Texas A&M.

Guards — Cain Madden, senior, Notre Dame; Zion Johnson, senior, Boston College.

Center — Tyler Linderbaum, junior, Iowa.

Tight end — Charlie Kolar, senior, Iowa State.

Wide receivers — Chris Olave, senior, Ohio State; Justyn Ross, junior, Clemson.

All-purpose player — Kyren Williams, sophomore, Notre Dame.

Kicker — Cade York, junior, LSU.

Defense

Ends — Kayvon Thibodeaux, junior, Oregon; DeMarvin Leal, junior, Texas A&M.

Tackles —- Haskell Garrett, super senior, Ohio State; Bryan Bresee, sophomore, Clemson.

Linebackers — Will Anderson Jr., sophomore, Alabama; Nik Bonitto, junior, Oklahoma; Mike Rose, senior, Iowa State.

Cornerbacks — Derek Stingley, Jr., junior, LSU; Ahmad Gardner, junior, Cincinnati.

Safeties — Kyle Hamilton, junior, Notre Dame; Brandon Joseph, sophomore, Northwestern.

Punter — Jake Camarda, senior, Georgia.

SECOND TEAM

Offense

Quarterback — Sam Howell, junior, North Carolina.

Running backs — Mohamed Ibrahim, senior, Minnesota; Isaiah Spiller, junior, Texas A&M.

Tackles — Thayer Munford, senior, Ohio State; Darian Kinnard, senior, Kentucky.

Guards — Jamaree Salyer, senior, Georgia; Emil Ekiyor, junior, Alabama.

Center — Jarrett Patterson, junior, Notre Dame.

Tight end — Jalen Wydermyer, junior, Texas A&M.

Wide receivers — Garrett Wilson, junior, Ohio State; John Metchie III, junior, Alabama.

All-purpose player — Jerrion Ealy, junior, Mississippi.

Kicker — Anders Carlson, senior, Auburn.

Defense

Ends — Aidan Hutchinson, senior, Michigan; George Karlaftis, junior, Purdue.

Tackles — Jordan Davis, senior, Georgia; Dante Still, senior, West Virginia.

Linebackers — Devin Lloyd, super senior Utah; Christian Harris, junior, Alabama; Micah McFadden, senior, Indiana.

Cornerbacks — Kaiir Elam, junior, Florida; Tiawan Mullen, junior, Indiana.

Safeties — Jalen Catalon, redshirt sophomore, Arkansas; Jaquan Brisker, super senior, Penn State.

Punter — Lou Hedley, senior, Miami.

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Dylan Wallace
DYLAN WALLACE

Dylan Wallace is a reporter for Sports Illustrated Indiana. He is a 2020 graduate of Indiana University in Bloomington, and is from Crown Point, Ind.