Court ruling allows 2 starting defensive linemen to play for No. 6 Indiana against North Texas

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — No. 6 Indiana will have two starting defensive linemen from its national championship team, Stephen Daley and Kellan Wyatt, on the field Saturday for its opener against North Texas following a court ruling Friday night.

Indiana circuit court Judge Kara Krothe of the Monroe Circuit Court in Bloomington issued a temporary restraining order barring the NCAA and its conferences from prohibiting any of the case’s seven plaintiffs from competing in Division I athletics in 2026-27.

Daley and Wyatt each were granted a fifth year of eligibility in a previous court decision.

Daley led the Big Ten with 19 tackles for loss last season after he moved into the starting lineup midway through the season but missed the College Football Playoff after suffering a season-ending knee injury during the Big Ten championship postgame celebration.

Wyatt started the first seven games last season and had 28 tackles, eight for loss, and 2 1/2 sacks before suffering a season-ending knee injury last October.

Neither player was drafted and neither signed with a pro football team as undrafted rookies.

Their eligibility had been in doubt since an Aug. 21 from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit that overturned a lower court’s ruling that granted an additional season of eligibility to the high school graduating class of 2022.

Daley and Wyatt were allowed to practice with the Hoosiers with their status in jeopardy, and coach Curt Cignetti said the school and the program would support both players as they continued to battle in court.

Indiana faced a similar situation with starting defensive back Louis Moore last summer. He was allowed to compete in the Hoosiers first two games before eventually being allowed to play the entire season, and he became a key cog on a defense that helped the Hoosiers win their first national championship and become the first major college football team with a 16-0 record since the 1890s.

The current case in Monroe Country also involves former Indiana basketball player Malik Reneau, now at Miami, an Indiana women's volleyball player, two Hoosiers swimmers and a Butler University basketball player.

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