What will we remember from the 2025-26 Indiana high school sports season?
Now that we have officially ended the 10-and-a-half-month marathon known as the IHSAA season, it offers time for reflection. Time to look back at the highlights — and lowlights as well.
It was a newsworthy 2025-26 for the IHSAA. Here are the five things we will likely remember the most from it.
Myles McLaughlin’s pursuit of history
It was THE story of the football season. Not just in Indiana, but nationally.
Myles McLaughlin flirted with the all-time high school football rushing yards record. The one set by future Pro Football Hall of Famer Derrick Henry.
Facebook pages would be flooded with “how many yards did Myles have tonight” posts every Friday. It did not matter where in the state you lived. If you were a high school football fan, you knew the name Myles McLaughlin.
He became a lightning rod in a lot of ways. “Who was he actually playing against?” Anyone could put up his stats when getting all the carries against “farm schools,” the critics would say.
You still have to be good enough to execute the game plan. Myles McLaughlin was.
Knox won its first 12 games before running into a school with bigger, better athletes in Fort Wayne Bishop Luers. McLaughlin finished third nationally in all-time career rushing yards. He earned himself Mr. Football honors, a rarity for a Class 3A school that isn’t an Indy suburb.
Myles McLaughlin captured the state’s attention like few athletes ever have. He’ll be remembered forever because of that.
Luke Ertel stays home, becomes a hero
In an era where more and more basketball players are going to prep schools instead of finishing their high school careers at home (see: Jalen Haralson, Trent Sisley), Luke Ertel stayed.
He was rewarded with a 4A state title and Mr. Basketball honors.
It felt refreshing to see the Purdue commit wear the gold and black of Mt. Vernon (Fortville) all year. Once Fishers was upset in the sectional final by Carmel, it opened up the path for the Marauders to win the state’s richest prize.
The impact on the next generation of players in Fortville that Ertel left is unquantifiable.
NIL, er, “PBA,” passes
This might be one that’s better to analyze after 2026-27, but the legislation passed this spring. A version of NIL, called “Personal Branding Activities,” is coming to Indiana high school sports.
This felt inevitable. Almost every state has similar rules now. With how much college athletics has changed because of Name, Image and Likeness, it was only a matter of time that high school kids were presented with similar opportunities.
There will be way more restrictions with PBA than NIL. No using school name or logos in your advertising. No donor groups coming together to “buy” players. But if a business wants a kid to put some ads on their social media pages, they can do that now while also paying the kid.
It will be intriguing to see where this all goes. If it’s legislated correctly, there shouldn’t be any issues. But that’s also what we said about NIL five years ago, so.
Shot clock? Not so fast
On the same day PBA passed, adding a shot clock for high school basketball failed. Despite most coaches pushing for it, a 17-1 majority on the IHSAA board of directors voted against it.
School principals and superintendents argued it’d cost too much money to install the shot clocks. That it’d be hard to find another person to run the machine at a game.
It’s just being lazy, honestly.
Nearly every state has a shot clock for basketball now. It’s fine. Their games aren’t ruined because of it.
Indiana is a state blindly loyal to tradition. It’s why the multi-class system still gets debated by some 28 years after taking effect. Nobody wants to see Bethany Christian play Northridge in a sectional game anymore. It’s fine. Move on.
Same thing with a shot clock. Crown Point tried to stall their way to a state title against Ertel’s Mt. Vernon squad in March. Nobody is asking for that anymore. It’s fine. Move on.
Maybe someday a shot clock will come to Indiana. A man can dream.
The new transfer rule takes effect
Twelve months ago, we were all wondering how the new one-time transfer rule would take shape in Indiana.
It’s been mostly positive? Sure?
There were some notable moves, but nothing crazy. Some happened mid-season, which created headlines. But for the most part, it felt like everyone followed the rules as intended — hey, what a concept!
Between June 1, 2025, and February 16, 2026, there were 3,254 transfers, per the IHSAA data. More than 95% were given full eligibility. Only 25 total were ruled ineligible.
There will always be people who try and take advantage of the system. But so far, it feels like the rule is working how it was intended.
Honorable mention: New Prairie wrestling volunteer assistant coach Chris Fleeger gets in a confrontation with Notre Dame football coach Marcus Freeman. As of this writing, Fleeger is appealing his 100-year suspension from the IHSAA after they investigated his actions both around the Freeman incident and alleged IHSAA violations related to recruiting athletes, among other things.
Austin Hough is a sports editor within the Center for Community Journalism at USA Today Co., overseeing high school sports and Notre Dame athletics coverage for five Indiana newspapers. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @AustinRHough. Hough can be emailed at ahough@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: What will we remember from the 2025-26 IHSAA season? Five things that stand out
Reporting by Austin Hough, USA TODAY NETWORK / Muncie Star Press
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By Austin Hough, USA TODAY NETWORK | USA TODAY Network
