IU football's leading receiver, top playmaker Cam Camper out for season with torn ACL

BLOOMINGTON — Indiana's learned during its bye week its most productive offensive skill player will be out for the rest of the season, creating even more problems for an offense that has fizzed in five consecutive losses.

Wide receiver Cam Camper, who is leading the Hoosiers with 46 receptions and 569 yards and has two touchdowns this season, tore his ACL in the Hoosiers' loss to Rutgers on Oct. 22, IU coach Tom Allen said at his news conference Monday. The first-year transfer from Trinity Valley Community College in Texas ranks sixth in the Big Ten and fifth in yards.

Hilinskis' message to IU athletes:Hilinskis' powerful message to IU athletes: 'You don't need a tragedy to ask for help'

"Obviously feel terrible for him," Allen said. "He's part of our team. He'll be in that long road to recovery. Our staff will do a great job of getting him back and having him ready for the fall."

Camper was barely recruited out of Lancaster (Texas) High School because he was only about 5-9 as a senior. He tried walking on at Football Championship Subdivision power Sam Houston State but went virtually unnoticed before deciding to go the junior college route. He grew to 6-2, 200 pounds and quickly became a go-to receiver at Trinity Valley and was the top-rated junior college wide receiver recruit in the 2022 class. He signed with the Hoosiers and immediately impressed the coaching staff when he arrived in the spring. He won a starting job in preseason camp and caught 11 passes for 156 yards against Illinois in the season opener, helping the Hoosiers rally to a 23-20 win. He also caught 10 passes for 126 yards in a loss to Cincinnati and was clearly IU quarterback Connor Bazelak's most trusted target.

With Camper out, the Hoosiers (3-5, 1-4 in the Big Ten) will be in desperate need of production from other receivers. First-year Tennessee transfer Andison Coby has started at the other outside receiver position, but hasn't been relied on nearly as much as Camper, posting 16 catches for 153 yards and a touchdown so far. The likely competitors for Camper's job would be junior Javon Swinton (10 receptions, 110 yards) sophomore Malachi Holt-Bennett (two receptions, 12 yards) and sophomore Donaven McCulley, (12 receptions, 112 yards) who is in his first season as a receiver after moving over from quarterback. Camper's loss could also mean more reliance on slot receivers Emory Simmons and D.J. Matthews, who has been slowly recovering from a hamstring injury suffered against Cincinnati on Sept. 24. Simmons is second on the team with 29 receptions and 309 yards and Matthews has 20 catches for 219 yards and two touchdowns.

"For us moving forward, a bunch of young guys are going to have to step up and make plays," Indiana offensive coordinator Walt Bell said. "Malachi, Javon Swinton is going to have to step up. Hopefully we can kind of get D.J. Matthews back to full speed. He played a little in the Rutgers game and still wasn't back all the way. ... We've got enough people. We just have to make sure we're in position to be our best."

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Indiana football: Top WR Cam Camper out for season with torn ACL