Indiana football receiver Donaven McCulley is leaving the program

Senior receiver Donaven McCulley is leaving Indiana’s football team, an Indiana Athletics spokesman told the Indiana Daily Student on Tuesday.

McCulley entered the transfer portal, the spokesman said, and was removed from the Hoosiers’ roster. The 6-foot-1, 200-pound wideout caught two passes for 21 yards and a touchdown in four appearances this season.

McCulley is from Indianapolis and attended Lawrence North High School. He arrived in Bloomington before the 2021 season and began his college career as a quarterback before moving to receiver in the spring of 2022.

In 2023, McCulley led the Hoosiers in receiving, catching 48 passes for 644 yards and six touchdowns. He received All-Big Ten Honorable Mention honors.

McCulley first entered the transfer portal on November 27, 2023, one day after Indiana Head coach Tom Allen fired. But after McCulley began discussions with new head coach Curt Cignetti, he returned three weeks later.

But McCulley’s role in Indiana’s offense was minimal. Cignetti said in a press conference on September 23 that McCulley was still trying to get back into the swing of things after his injury.

McCulley caught a 12-yard touchdown on the Hoosiers’ final game, a 42-28 triumph over Maryland on September 28, which marked his first reception since Week 1.

Unless there is a change of heart, this grip appears to be the last of McCulley’s cream and purple ’66s.

Indiana, without McCulley, returns to action Saturday at 3:30 p.m. EST against Northwestern at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium in Evanston, Illinois.