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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.

  • WEEKLY 'MIKE & MICAH' PODCAST STARTING NEXT WEEK: Indiana football stars Michael Penix Jr. and Micah McFadden have been signed by Sports Illustrated Indiana to do a 30-minute weekly podcast live from Yogi's in Bloomington every Tuesday night during the 2021 college football season, starting on Aug. 31. CLICK HERE
  • BIG TEN POWER RANKINGS: The 2021 college football season has arrived, so it's time to release our preseason Big Ten power rankings. It's no surprise that Ohio State, the four-time defending champion, is No. 1 but there are surprises after that CLICK HERE
  • MEDIA PICKS OHIO STATE, WISCONSIN: During Big Ten Media Days, Ohio State was the unanimous pick to win the Big Ten East, and Wisconsin got 29 of the 34 votes as the best in the Big Ten West. CLICK HERE
  • ASSOCIATED PRESS POLL: Ohio State was the highest ranked Big Ten team, checking in at No. 4 and claiming one first-place vote. There were five conference teams in the top-25, including Indiana for the first time since 1969. CLICK HERE
  • COACHES POLL: Ohio State was the only Big Ten team in the top 14, but there were five teams overall in the preseason coaches poll. Two other teams also received votes. CLICK HERE