Indy Eleven 2026 Season Recap & 2027 Outlook

I normally give myself a couple of weeks after Indy's departure from the season, but I felt like working on evaluating this season and looking forward to next so we're bumping this up a little earlier than normal. Let's start out with the good news from the 2026 season.

* crickets *

Anybody?

* crickets *

Oh wait, I have a few things.

• McAuley surpassed 100 games, becoming the longest tenured (by games) coach in club history and providing some consistency to a position that has been an absolute turnstyle over the years. 
• Blake overtook club legend Eamon Zayed as the top goal scorer in team history. 
• Quinn became the league leader in assists. He also surpassed the 100 games played mark to give the current team 3 players and a coach in the Century Club at the same time. 
• Lindley became the first Indy player to surpass the 10,000-minute mark for the team. 
• Rendon scored 12 goals across all competitions (10 in league play to finish the regular season tied for 11th in the USL Championship). 
• Hafferty was an absolutely stellar acquisition late in the season.

The bad news is much easier to find. For the second year in a row, Indy had a chance to squeak into the playoffs in the last game of the year after some results went their way. However, just like last year, Indy failed to do so, losing in Charleston 1-nil. Indy only had the ball 18% of time, only made 142 passes (62 of which were considered "long" - 44%), but managed 14 shots with 4 on target from that limited amount of time with the ball. Given Indy's available players (game day roster included just 4 field players, one of which was a 15-year Academy player), McAuley came out in a highly defensive-minded 5-4-1 lineup with the apparent plan to limit Charleston chances (which was moderately successful), steal some opportunities (check), and be there at the end to try and steal a win (check). All things considered, the final game was about as good as they could do, but it wasn't enough. 

As I mentioned after the Louisville game after Louisville won their midweek game to clinch a first round home playoff game, the frustration of being an Indy Eleven fan is that even in a down year for Louisville (which included an unprecedented 4-game losing streak), they still managed to find enough results and have enough results go their way that they still ended in 4th place with a guaranteed home game. Indy, conversely (at that point of the schedule) were 90-minutes away from being eliminated from the playoffs despite having a 6-point advantage ahead of Miami with 2 games in hand just 5 weeks prior. A spectacular run-of-form from Miami, a continued string of injuries for Indy, and 1 point from their final 6 games left Indy in desperation mode headed to Charleston. Indy's early lost points from winning positions (more on that in a minute), their four-game losing streak in the middle of the season, and the absolute abysmal results to finish the year (1 point from the final 7 games) meant that they ended the season about where I thought they would be preseason; hovering around the playoff line.

Going back through some of my preseason discussions with people, John Morrisey stated, "There are enough mediocre teams that the 8 seed is on the table, but I struggle to make the argument for anything higher than that." That, my friends, is why he's so well known. Dude called it based only on the roster and some insight I gave him about what I saw in preseason exhibition games. My response was "I share your pessimism. I don't see how this team makes the playoffs, particularly if any of the veteran midfielders have to miss time." Seems like I knew what I was talking about too. As the injuries to the veterans piled up, the results flatlined. 

The starting lineup for the last game against Charleston was, by far, the most egregious version of it, with 5 defenders (Rasheed, Barry, Herbert, Craig, & Kibunguchy), 2 who have been playing wing backs throughout the season (Quinn & Hafferty), and a defensive midfielder who has been converted from a defender (O'Brien), but Indy's roster and tactics all season seemed to be based a lot on not conceding as many goals this year as last. That part was successful (56 last, 47 this year), but, conversely, Indy also didn't score as many goals either (55 last, 44 this year), still finishing the season with a negative goal differential across all competitions. Indy played to grind out games by defending and counter attacking. Sometimes that worked, sometimes that almost worked, and other times they beat themselves.

Much like 2025, the 2026 season was riddled with missed opportunities. Indy lost a significant number of points from winning positions, including 5 league games where they conceded in the 85th minute or later. In hindsight, the two games against Miami are arguably the most disheartening because a better result in even one of those games sends Indy to the postseason (assuming I'm doing my math correctly). 

• March 28 draw vs Hartford (88' - O'Brien Own Goal) - 2 points lost
• April 4 draw vs Pittsburgh (90') - 2 points lost
• April 19 draw vs Birmingham (89') - 2 points lost
• May 16 USL Cup "draw" vs Fort Wayne (90'+1') - win in shootout
• June 13 loss vs Pittsburgh (90'+2') - 1 point lost 
• August 9 draw vs Hartford (74') - 2 points lost
• October 3 draw vs Loudoun (90'+5' - Farr) - 2 points lost
• October 10 loss vs Tampa Bay (85' & 90'+2' for good measure) - 2 points lost

In 2025, Indy finished the season in 9th place with 35 points and a 10W-5D-15L record in league play.

In 2026, Indy finished the season in 9th place with 34 points and a 9W-7D-14L record in league play. 

"Deja vu all over again."

Last year, Indy had a 5W-3D-10L record on the road across all competitions, but they did even worse this year with an astonishingly garbage 1W-5D-11L record across all competitions away from Carroll Stadium. Indy were reasonably effective at home, despite the terrible turf, but Indy couldn't buy a result on the road. Indy's lone victory on the road this year was a 1-nil win against Sporting JAX, the worst team in the league, thanks to a 90'+2' own goal. If you can't get any results on the road, you have to be absolutely perfect at home and Indy wasn't that. Whoever works on the scheduling next year for Indy really needs to pay attention to the homestretch of games. This year, Indy was on the road in 4 of their last 5 (0W-1D-4L); in 2025, they traveled in 6 of the last 9 (losing all 6).

Looking forward to 2027, unless something drastically changes (more on that later), then I don't see Indy being anything beyond what they have been recently. A middle to low end of the table team who might squeak into the playoffs and then lose their first playoff game on the road.

Here are my thoughts when looking towards next season.

Looking to 2027

Stadium

Until an actual plan from the team or Ersal gets announced for what they intend to do now that the Eleven Park site is mired under the history of being a former cemetery with an unknown amount of human remains still located on the site, Carroll Stadium can be expected to be the team's unfortunate home field. And until they announce it (probably in conjunction with an an IBJ article), nobody else is going to know the plan. Players and coaches have complained about Carroll Stadium's turf since the beginning, and a replacement project in 2022 did very little to quell those complaints. Fans have complained about the amenities. A large track surrounds the entire field, pushing fans further from the action and periodically catching a player by surprise as their cleats slide out from under them and they find themselves on their ass. As I said last year, "American Soccer's Greatest Dive Bar" is losing its charm. Despite what announced attendance may tell you, actual attendance from my perspective continues to drop. The midweek games look horrendous on camera.

I know I'm in a minority of the outspoken fans on this, but I know there's also a low-key agreement with me by some too. Until I hear a better plan from the team and the ownership group, I will continue to argue that expanding the "championship stadium" listed in the Grand Park Master Plan to be large enough to support an Indy Eleven USL Premier level team (and meeting U.S. Soccer's First Division requirements) is the right plan. It has the ability to consolidate the entirety of the Indy Eleven infrastructure into a single location since the team's training facilities are already located there, the Academy train there, and the USL W team train and play there. From rumors, the smaller stadium in the Master Plan allows for Indy to meet the requirements to have a women's team in the USL Super League, which was supposed to have already happened in 2025 until the Mayor Hogsett/MLS fiasco started and pulled the Eleven Park rug out from under the team. Make the stadium a bit bigger with the ability to expand further and condense everybody into the location where Ersal and Indy Eleven are already managing the facilities. I fully believe that whatever fans you lose from the Indy/southside areas will be more than made up by new north side fans and/or promotions with soccer tournaments that allow youth players to come to games. Can you imagine a weekend soccer tournament at Grand Park with an Indy Eleven game on Saturday night where hundreds/thousands of young soccer players and their families can attend the game with a reasonable add-on to the tournament cost? Indy Eleven attendance numbers might actually be accurate and the atmosphere might improve to the early days of the team.

I've spelled out why this makes sense to me (Eleven Park at Grand Park) and until somebody explicitly tells me a different, better plan, it's going to continue to be my opinion.

Yes, I know Mayor Hogsett and MLS are still a thing. I took their MLS team and stadium survey. I still don't believe Indy is their first choice. 

Coach

Don Thompson Photography

I've had enough conversations with Coach McAuley now to know that he wants to come back. I also suspect that despite the lack of playoff appearances, he is probably getting offers from other teams. Maybe not high level teams, but maybe he is. He and I haven't talked about that. 

What I said last year stays true this year. "I fully expect McAuley to be back next year, trying to overcome the limitations that are set on Indy Eleven coaches with players. I don't think McAuley did enough to warrant being fired," but a second season not making the playoffs does begin to start a fire under his seat.  

What I don't know is how next year will be any different. I'll get into the players next, but if you assume a majority of this year's players return, in part because of financial limitations, but also part of the reason I think McAuley wants to return is that the club needs some consistency. Sign players, develop those players, and get better. Unless you have the financial backing to go out and buy talent, you have to accept that the seasons are going to swing back and forth between maximizing your available talent to make a playoff appearance and succumbing to injuries and failing to make the playoffs because the overall depth isn't there to compete week in and week out with the top teams in the league. 

Given the operational constraints of the club (stadium, budgets, etc.), the fact that McAuley wants to be here to try and improve the club says a lot about Sean the man.

Sidenote discussion: If/when McAuley gets tired of being in Indy or he gets let go, I would be intrigued by a Eamon Zayed-led Indy Eleven. I know from talking to him over the years that he would like to be here and has tried a couple of times when Indy has been between coaches. Z has been a successful League One coach and it might be time for someone to take a chance on him as a Championship coach.

Players

After a second consecutive season where Indy just missed out on participating in the postseason, you might think that there will be, again, an overhaul of the roster. I keep harping on the budget, but with that constraint, the current budget-friendly contracts might get renewed. 

After last year, McAuley stated that he was going to bring in players for 2026 that were younger and hungrier. I think he did that, but what we also found out was that while this year's roster was younger and hungrier than last year's, the younger showed to not be experienced or talented enough. As a result, McAuley had to rely on the veterans more who all became injured late in the season because they had to play so many minutes.

Last month, I wrote about the possibility of Indy, either willingly or by relegation once the USL Premier league starts and pro/rel enters the American chat, drops down to League One. Indy only had moderate success against the League One sides they played this year, and I stated at one point that Indy might be a mid- to low-Championship side, but might be an upper- to mid-League One side. I've said a few times in recent months that Indy had the lowest budget in the league at $1.2M. I recently found out that one of the top spending teams in League One was Boise who spent...$1.2M. 

It's starting to feel like I know what I'm talking about.

As I mentioned in my "Could Indy Eleven's Inaugural Season Been Different?" article from a few years ago, Peter Wilt let me know that Indy's inaugural player budget was...$1.2M. I'm nearly positive that the salary has gone up over the years, but for whatever reason, it has come back down. Actually, I do have a bit of a theory.

At best, Indy's on-field performance has been spotty over the years and definitely not consistent top-of-the-league results. As the team continues to be stuck in mid-table seasons, more and more people have stopped buying tickets. Fewer people in stands means less ticket sales, less merch sales, and less concession sales. As a result, the club has to try and find the money in other ways, which is typically through sponsorships and ads. However, as fan attendance decreases, corporate sponsors see less value in providing the same amount of money to reach fewer people. As a result, they begin to decrease their dollars. With decreasing fan money and decreasing sponsor money, the club has no choice but to decrease their player budget. Decreased player budget means that the players brought in are "hungrier," "younger," or maybe "aging out veterans" that aren't able to get consistently good results. More fans stop coming to games, sponsors spend less, budget decreases. Rinse and repeat until 1) club fails entirely, 2) drops down a league (soon a possibility in the USL pyramid), or 3) somebody comes in Wrexham style and infuses a new about of capital. While the 3rd doesn't always guarantee success, the jolt of money does make it feel like the team is trying to do something and fans and sponsors might come back too. 

Feel like this could be Indy's scenario. Minus the infusion of capital, which doesn't seem like is going to come from Ersal, and despite additional owners being listed on the website, none of those other guys are ever mentioned as being significant financial providers for the team. If I'm honest, that leaves options 1 and 2 as viable possibilities.

Until that happens, Indy's going to probably be towards the bottom of the budget spenders in the league with somewhere in the mid- to low-table results. With all that as a backdrop, here are what I think happens to this year's roster in the off-season.

Gone:

1. Okello - That's obvious. He was transferred to Lexington in the deal that brough Henry-Scott and Hafferty to Indy late in the season. McAuley thought highly of Okello, but I doubt it's enough to re-sign him.
2. Neidlinger - One of Indy's Academy products, and Indy's youngest goal scorer in team history, but Logan's defensive deficiencies and Indy's desperation to get results forced the team to find somebody in his place. Neidlinger's time in Fort Wayne FC in League One seems like it might have been good for him. I suspect his was on a 2-year deal, which is ending this year and while I don't think Indy will re-sign him, I wouldn't be surprised if FWFC sign him for next season.
3. Williams, K - he could never find minutes in McAuley's lineup (just 40 minutes in 4 league games, but he did find just under 400 minutes in the various Cup games) and eventually was loaned to Detroit FC. Those kinds of guys rarely make it back for another season, unless he had a guaranteed 2-year deal.
4. Thomas - Played 107 minutes across 4 games. Unless he's on a guaranteed 2-year deal or is making the league minimum (which could be possible), I would suspect he's not around next season.
5. Gavilanes - Only time he broke into the lineup was during the USOC games. Otherwise, he had a very noticeable 0 minutes played in 0 games. Like Neidlinger above, Gavilanes was loaned to a League One side with Union Omaha and seems to be having a good run there, including being named to the USL Prinx Tires Cup Team of the Tournament. Most of his time has been in USL League One (or Miami FC, which arguably was like a League One team those seasons), so that may just be his level. Won't be surprised if he signs with a team in League One, but I doubt he returns to Indy.
   Sidenote: that team has 5 players with Indy Eleven ties. Not sure what that means, but it is an interesting fact.

Possibly Gone:

1. Craig - I'm not confident on this placement though. He was brought into the team, presumably for depth, but had to play a much more active role due to injuries to the other players. Craig battled his own injuries and just turned 34. Not saying he can't return, because he generally looked good most of the season, but he's also at that age when I could see him hang up the boots. This may hinge on whether he was on a 2-year deal.
2. Hogan - No idea what to think here. I had Hogan in this exact same category last offseason because he was non-existent in the final third of the 2025 season. However, coming into this year, it was looking like he was going to be one of the starting center backs until his season-ending injury in preseason. If he was on a 2-year contract, it would be expiring. So I have no idea what may happen with Pat.

3. 

   Don Thompson Photography

   Rendon - Not because McAuley doesn't want him, but because I wouldn't be surprised if other teams with deeper pockets have expressed interest in having him. Even if he has contract remaining for Indy, for the right dollar amount, I could be gone. Where Indy's offense comes from if that happens will have to be sorted out with other signings this off-season.
4. Kizza - Something just tells me he might not be back.
5. Quinn - Dude's still playing at a high level, but he will be 35 years old when the season kicks off next year. He's already been doing some coaching with the Academy team. Is next year the year he transitions to the first team? If he's not ready to retire to the sideline, I would place him in the Probably Returning group because he's started setting down roots here in Indy and wants to be here. Don't think he pulls a Crash Davis-style end of his illustrious USL career to get one more season somewhere other than Indy. 

Probably Returning:

Literally everybody else. Due to the budget-friendly nature of this year's roster, there's limited risk to keeping everybody else, even if the team didn't make the playoffs. It will all come down to what pieces get added around them on whether this core of players repeats this year's meh season or can over-achieve. 

1. Barry
2. Blake
3. Charles-Cook
4. Dick
5. Hafferty
6. Henry-Scott
7. Herbert
8. Kibunguchy
9. Lindley
10. Mesanvi
11. Mitrano
12. O'Brien
13. Omar
14. Rasheed
15. Sharp
16. Sing
17. White

Something that Coach McAuley has stated few times that has resonated with me is that, "In football, if you stay the same, you're probably getting worse. So we need to improve next year and improve again and just keep improving."

Looking at that potential returning roster, the obvious question that comes to mind is, "how does that team improve from a 9th place finish in the table with the majority of the roster remaining while potentially losing 4 of the more important pieces of it?" 

I really don't know.

But that's where we find ourselves as Indy fans. Stuck in a stadium that we already left once to go to Lucas Oil Stadium but boomeranged back into and then were told we would be in a fancy new Eleven Park stadium more than a year ago (that sucks to say after sitting in a tent in 2023 for the groundbreaking), all with the lowest player budget in USL Championship that is rivaled by at least one team in League One.

Indy Eleven vs Charleston Battery - 13.30

Summary

- Opponent: Charleston Battery
- Location: Patriots Point
- Attendance: 5,621
- Final Score: 1-0 L

- Starting XI: Charles-Cook, Rasheed, Barry, Herbert, Craig, O'Brien, J., Hafferty, Quinn (C), Kibunguchy, Mesanvi, Rendon

- Substitution: Kizza 77' (Mesanvi); Sing 81' (Hafferty); Lowden 87' (Rasheed); Henry-Scott 87' (Barry)

- Unused: Dick

- Scoring Summary:
CHS - Swan 78' (assist Blackstock)

- Bookings:

NONE

- Referee: Joshua Encarnación

- Adage goals: None.
- Points Lost from Winning Position (Year To Date): 14

Thoughts and Opinions

For the second year in a row, Indy's playoff fate came down to the final game of the season. Win and they live to play another day. Lose and they watch the playoffs as spectators like the rest of us. As I mentioned midweek after Louisville won their Wednesday game, the frustration of being an Indy Eleven fan is that even in a down year for Louisville (which included a 4-game losing streak), they still manage to find enough results and have results go their way that they still ended in 4th place with a guaranteed home game. Indy, conversely (at that point of the week) were 90-minutes away from being eliminated from the playoffs despite having a 6-point advantage ahead of Miami with 2 games in hand just 5 weeks ago. A spectacular run-of-form from Miami, a continued string of injuries for Indy, and 1 point from their final six games left Indy in desperation mode headed to Charleston. 

I knew that the injury bug has continued to take a massive bite out of the Indy roster, but when the starting lineup was announced and it included just 16 players, was without Mitrano and Lindley, included a 16-year old Academy player, and had Charles-Cook starting in goal ahead of Dick, my opinion of Indy getting the needed result dropped to about 6%. I watched because I'm a glutton for punishment and it's the last regular season game of the year. It took until the 78th-minute, but it also became the last game (full stop) of the year for Indy Eleven as the home team scored just the one goal , but it was enough to give Charleston the 1-nil win.

Despite what the Charleston announcers kept trying to tell everybody that Rendon was playing out of position up top, they were correct that Indy's lineup was largely defensive-based to start the game as they looked to keep the game close as long as possible and either 1) find a way to get a set-piece goal, 2) get the Route 1 ball to Rendon in a way to give him a shot, or 3) use the late attacking-player heavy substitutes to come in late to try and steal a result. Given what was available to McAuley, it wasn't the worst plan. Through the first half, the game play was working. Most of Charleston's 82% possession was in undangerous locations and Indy actually found more shots than the home side (9 to 7; 3 to 1 on target). Indy's 5-4-1 formation didn't leave much space for Charleston to find open passing lanes, which allowed the visiting side to go into the halftime locker room with a nil-nil score line and giving themselves a fighting chance in the second half.

Indy had chances. Rendon and Quinn both had at least a couple of opportunities that both would tell you they should have done better with, and Zamudio made enough great saves to help Charleston's case, but Indy did nearly everything they needed to do to give themselves a chance to extend their season. In the end, they just couldn't find the goal to extend the season and the year comes to its expected conclusion.

Indy was always going to have an uphill battle this season given their limited budget and the number and types of players they were going to be able to sign within that budget. When the presumed starting center back and right back (Hogan and White, respectively) were out of the mix before the season ever started, the hill became a bit steeper. As inexperience and injuries took more fuel out of the engine, and then the massive amount of miles on the experienced players' legs took more fuel, the sputtering that happened in the last quarter of the season seems obvious. 

The fact that Indy had anything that resembled a chance this late in the season is amazing. The fact that they were so close is frustrating. I'll have more in my season recap article in the near future, but tonight we just have to reflect on the fact that the season is officially finished.

Game Beckons Game Ball

I'm going to give this one to the entire defense, which basically means I'm giving it to the entire team based on the way that the game plan was enacted. The players showed grit and effort to give themselves a chance to get a result. With the exception of the one chance that resulted in the goal, Indy came into the game with a plan and enacted it as close to perfectly as they could. Indy's roster overperformed their budget and talent ability, but it wasn't enough to get them into the playoffs. Regardless, tonight's effort by the entire team should be applauded, or at least awarded the final GBGB of the year.

Indy Eleven vs Louisville City FC - 13.29

Summary

- Opponent: Louisville City FC
- Location: Lynn Family Stadium
- Attendance: 10,328
- Final Score: 4-1 L

- Starting XI: Dick, Mitrano, Kibunguchy, Herbert, Rasheed, O'Brien, J., Lindley, Quinn (C), Hafferty, Kizza, Rendon

- Substitution: Mesanvi 45' (Kizza); Barry 56' (Mitrano); Henry-Scott 67' (Lindley); Craig 82' (Quinn); Sing 82' (Rendon)

- Unused: Charles-Cook

- Scoring Summary:
LOU - Serrano 7' (assist Donovan)
LOU - Lambert 33' (assist Donovan) 
LOU - Serrano 43' (assist Donovan)
LOU - Serrrano 51' (assist Donovan)
IND - Rasheed 71' (assist Quinn)

- Bookings:

IND - Hafferty 53' (Yellow)
LOU - Huerman 55' (Yellow)
LOU - Totsch 74' (Yellow)

- Referee: Joe Surgan

- Adage goals: One.
- Points Lost from Winning Position (Year To Date): 14

Thoughts and Opinions

It's often said that when it comes to rivalries, you can throw the teams' records out the window because it doesn't matter how the teams are playing coming into the game. When it comes to the geographic rivalry of Indy Eleven versus Louisville City FC, in the Louisville-Indianapolis Proximity Association Football Contest (LIPAFC), results have mostly swung to the southern team, with Louisville holding a 13W-7D-6L advantage over Indy. When it comes to the games IN Louisville, it's even further skewed in Louisville's favor, with a 6-1 advantage. Yet, coming into the game, the two teams found themselves separated by just two positions on the table, with Louisville sitting in 7th place and Indy sitting just outside the playoff line in 9th. Depending on results in their remaining games, Louisville could claw their way to 4th despite an un-Louisville-like season, while Indy will either finish in 8th or 9th. Both of those were contingent on what happened tonight, as well as the result in Florida as Miami took on Charleston. With Indy's 4-1 loss to Louisville and Charleston's 2-1 win against Miami, Indy's playoff hopes are still, barely, alive. A road game next week in Charleston will determine if they get an extra game or whether their season ends with the regular-season.

Indy did themselves no favors by conceding in the 7th minute in an absolute garbage display of defending by Indy's back line. A poor pass out of the back was intercepted by Donovan, who immediately put a ball through the line to Serrano who had started his run the second the ball started towards Donovan. Rasheed couldn't get back in front of Serrano, Dick couldn't decide whether he came all the way out or stay in his goal and so did neither, and Serrano rounded both of them to get the scoring started. Before the clock could even reached double digits, Indy found themselves staring at an uphill fight. 

That battle became much steeper when Lambert doubled the home side's total in the 33rd minute. Lambert collected the ball in the center circle and attacked the Indy midfield and defense. Quinn stepped out to stop him, but Lambert took a touch to his right around Quinn and put a shot back the other direction away from the way that Dick was leaning. 

With the dying minutes of the half, Louisville added a third goal by Serrano on a clinical counterattack to give the home team a commanding 3-nil lead. Down by three, Indy went into the halftime locker room looking like a team that had no chance of getting a result out of this game, only to find out that Miami had scored their own first-half goal, pushing Indy into the "eliminated" category. A Charleston comeback in the second half looked to be Indy's only lifeline to the playoffs because Indy showed no signs of being able to turn this game around.

Minutes into the second half, Louisville added a fourth goal to kill any idea of a comeback, with a Serrano hat trick. The ball deflected a few times leading up to the goal, but it would be difficult to say that it wasn't deserved. With no chance for Indy to find 5 goals in the remaining 44-minutes, Indy's dying playoff hopes laid with Charleston making a comeback in Miami. Fortunately for Indy, Charleston found goals in the 74th and 77th minutes to allow the Eastern Conference playoff race to go to the final week of the season. 

"Conflict arises when expectations exceed reality."

It's a statement that I've thought about a lot in the last year about this team. The expectation is that Indy is a playoff team. Charleston's comeback win against Miami keeps Indy in the conversation, despite the poor Indy performance tonight, but Indy is a mid- to low-table team, year after year. That's the reality. A reality that includes Indy needing to play above their level and getting help to make the playoffs in any given year. 

Indy has to go to Charleston and win the game. No other result matters. The math has become very simple. A win on the road for Indy has proven difficult all year, but they still have a chance. 

Game Beckons Game Ball

In a 4-1 drubbing, not many players played well enough to get the GBGB, but I want to give a special recognition to Aodhan Quinn for his late game assist, which gives him the USL Championship league record. Additionally, by my records, with his 82 minutes tonight, Quinn surpassed Ayoze for third all-time in Indy Eleven history for minutes played. As a result, Indy's top three spots now belong to three players who are on this current roster; Lindley, Blake, and Quinn.

Congrats Quinn on both accomplishments, but especially the USL Championship assist record!

Indy Eleven vs Tampa Bay Rowdies - 13.28

Summary

- Opponent: Tampa Bay Rowdies
- Location: Carroll Stadium
- Attendance: 9,627
- Final Score: 3-1 L

- Starting XI: Dick, Quinn, Herbert, Kibunguchy, Rasheed, Omar, Lindley, O'Brien, J., Hafferty, Kizza, Rendon

- Substitution: Mitrano 76' (Lindley); Mesanvi 81' (Kizza); Sing 81' (Omar)

- Unused: Charles-Cook, Barry, Craig, Henry-Scott

- Scoring Summary:
IND - Kizza 5' (assist Quinn)
TBR - Myers 73' (assist Cicerone)
TBR - Cruz 85' (assist Micaletto)
TBR - Micaletto 90'+2' (assist Henderlong)

- Bookings:

IND - Rendon 50' (Yellow)
TBR - Ostrem 67' (Yellow)
IND - Kibunguchy 73' (Yellow)
TBR - Myers 75' (Yellow)

- Referee: Trevor Wiseman

- Adage goals: Two
- Points Lost from Winning Position (Year To Date): 14

Thoughts and Opinions

Math is hard. Indy made the math harder by having two separate 3-game (at least) losing streaks throughout the season, the latest one against teams at or below their respective playoff lines. Miami FC made the math even harder by figuring out something and rattling off a 4-game win streak and unbeaten in 6, which took them from being a team that had a minimal chance of making the playoffs to one that could directly contribute to Indy missing the playoffs. With tonight's 3-1 loss to Tampa Bay, Indy lost a good opportunity because Miami lost to Loudoun tonight. Indy's math gets a little simpler though, but that isn't necessarily a good thing. They still need Charleston to beat Miami in Miami's last game of the season next week, so based on that result, Indy has to either win one of their final two games or win both. The math is relatively simple, the process of getting it accomplished is difficult.

In this game, Indy took an early lead with a 5th minute goal from Kizza on a pass from Quinn. Quinn didn't get official credit for the assist, but his pass, and Kizza's ability to out-hustle his defender, put him in on goal to get his shot beyond Tampa Bay goalkeeper Waite. 

Not surprisingly, Indy then defended for significant portions of a lot of the rest of the half, and, even less surprisingly, the teams walked to the halftime locker room with a 75/25 ratio of possession in favor of the visitors. Indy held a slight advantage in shots and shots on target, proving again that they can be effective with their significantly lower amount of possession. Indy's 60/40 duels success rate and 64/36 aerial duels success rate helped their cause, particularly in defending the 7 corner kicks that Tampa attempted was a big reason why Indy was able to keep Tampa Bay off the board.

That wouldn't remain the case. 

Second verse (half) same as the first. A lot of Tampa Bay possession, a lot of Indy defending, and a lot of Indy counterattacks. The main difference was that Indy took every opportunity that they could to slow down the game; a few seconds here, a few seconds there. No longer required to rotate players due to mid-week games, but still dealing with a ton of injuries, Indy tried to keep the guys on the field as long as possible by taking the time to allow them to not overexert themselves for the entirety of the full 45-minutes of the second half.

With a team like Indy, against a team like Tampa Bay, it's just not possible to think that Indy was going to be able to grind out a 1-nil win. Despite some extremely close-range opportunities from Rendon that Waite was able to save, eventually Indy was going to concede a goal. A cross from Cicerone who had acres of space around him put a perfect ball to the back post to an unmarked Myers to easily headed the ball into the goal to get the visitors onto the board and equalize the game. Watching the game, it seemed an impossible task for Indy to hold onto a lead for 85-minutes.

At that point, it was just a matter of whether Indy could maintain the point that their early goal provided them or whether the defense would once again concede to finish the game without getting any points to help their playoff cause. An 85th minute deflected goal by Myers from outside the box answered that question with a resounding thud. Tampa Bay added a third goal to make the scoreline more consistent with the way that game actually progressed.

After the game and after being told that Miami had also lost to not extend their lead in the table over Indy, Coach McAuley said "that actually makes me feel worse." Knowing Indy had a lead and a possibility of jumping back over Miami, the three conceded second-half goals stung a little bit more.

Indy still have a chance to sneak their way above the playoff line with just two away games remaining, but given the competition in the final two weeks of the season, it seems highly unlikely that Indy will extend their season into the postseason. Given the injuries that have plagued this team since the preseason, including the onslaught of them late in the season, and the lack of depth that has created with the roster, the fact that Indy is even in the conversation is a moral victory. Unfortunately, moral victories don't get you into the playoffs. 

Indy head to Louisville with a possibility of getting a trophy. Admittedly, it's a large, orange, and plastic road construction barrel, but at this point in the season with the playoff possibility dwindling, sometimes you have to take what you can. A win of the LIPAFC barrel could also push Indy into the playoffs if Charleston takes care of Miami the same night. There's a lot to play for in Louisville.

Don Thompson Photography

Indy Eleven vs Loudoun United - 13.27

Summary

- Opponent: Loudoun United FC
- Location: Segra Field
- Attendance: 2,479
- Final Score: 1-1 D

- Starting XI: Dick, Mitrano, Kibunguchy, Herbert, Rasheed, Lindley, O'Brien, J., Quinn, Hafferty, Mesanvi, Rendon

- Substitution: Omar 45' (Quinn); Henry-Scott 64' (O'Brien, J.); Kizza 77' (Rendon); Craig 77' (Lindley); Barry 90'+2' (Mesanvi)

- Unused: Charles-Cook, Sing

- Scoring Summary:
IND - Rendon 44' (assist O'Brien, J.)
LDN - Farr 90'+5' (assist Lomtadze)

- Bookings:

LDN - Davis 16' (Yellow)
IND - Rendon 39' (Yellow)
IND - Mesanvi 58' (Yellow)
IND - Omar 75' (Yellow)
LDN - Butts 84' (Yellow)
LDN - Santos 90'+1' (Yellow)

- Referee: Gerald Flores

- Adage goals: One!
- Points Lost from Winning Position (Year To Date): 12

Thoughts and Opinions

Back to back games are going to have minimal discussions from me. Instead of watching the game live, I went to the Johnny Blues Skies & the Dark Clouds concert at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Not my favorite venue for a concert, but I've been a fan of Sturgill/Johnny for a long time so it was time for me to actually see him in concert. With the concert starting right at 8 and the Indy Eleven game starting at 6, I figured I would roughly know the result from my notifications by the time the concert got underway. As Sturgill took to the stage, Indy was winning and I thought it was going to be a good night. Minutes into Sturgill's set, I get a notification that I assumed was the end-of-game notification, only to check it to see that Loudoun had scored a game-tying goal in the 90'+5' by former Indy Eleven goalkeeper Jordan Farr. Seems like I picked the right way to spend my evening.  

By the way, how Indy is it of Indy to lose absolutely vital points in the second half stoppage time to a former player?

I chose to not watch a replay of the game, but here are some quick random thoughts.

Indy has 7 league draws on the season. In 5 of those, they've had the lead and lost it late. If you count the draw against Fort Wayne FC in the Prinx Tires USL Cup, it's 6 games in 9 where they've had a win squandered by late goals by the opponents. Which is how a team finds itself now sitting outside of a playoff position with just three daunting games remaining. Despite Indy's game in hand on Miami, I do not trust Indy's run-of-form (or injury-ridden lineup) to improve enough to overtake Miami, who looked like an absolute long-shot to make the playoffs just two weeks ago. Blake missed the game, Quinn was pulled at halftime (and was doubtful going into it), Craig has been nursing an injury, O'Brien has been nursing an injury, Coach indicated Lindley is at 75% with his calf injury, Rendon and Sing missed the Miami and Rhode Island games with injuries. Indy's midfield and spine have all the appearances of a network television medical drama. Not an excuse, but it is a reality in the final push in the closing weeks of the regular season. A reality that will likely keep Indy out of the playoffs.

When I looked at the stats, I've stopped caring about the possession stat for this team, but the 30 to 8 shot difference immediately caught my attention. Having not watched the game, I wondered if many of those 30 shots for Loudoun were coming late in the second half as Loudoun was trying to get an equalizer or after Indy had pulled a bunch of their injured starters. Looking at the Shots Chalkboard on the Match Center, that was not the case. Those 30 shots were spread out over the entire game, many of them coming in the first half. Continuing to look at the chart, though, Indy didn't have a single shot in the 2nd half, and neither team registered a shot between the 70th and 90'+2' mark. Loudoun's last gasp effort that resulted in Farr's 90'+5' game-tying header seems to be the lone solid effort on goal by either team. Watching the header in the highlight video, Farr outjumped everybody, and Dick made a terrible effort at the punch. Three points dropped to shared points. Points that weren't enough to keep Loudoun from officially being eliminated from the playoffs, but are likely enough to keep Indy mathematically in range of the playoffs for a little bit longer even if not realistically in range.

At this point in the season, with Indy's laundry list of injuries, their upcoming opponents, and their current run-of-form, I see no way Indy make the playoffs. I just don't. The loss to Miami was a major hit to it, but last night's loss to Loudoun coupled with Miami's win over Tampa Bay has likely put the postseason out of reach for Indy. Indy has to get wins and their next opponents are at home against a Tampa Bay team that will be pissed off that they lost to Miami for the first time in forever, and away to Louisville and Charleston. Indy's away results have been atrocious with a 1W-5D-9L record. 

It's all too much. Indy's post-season death rattle has commenced. 

Indy Eleven vs Rhode Island - 13.26

Summary

- Opponent: Rhode Island FC
- Location: Centreville Bank Stadium
- Attendance: 6,463
- Final Score: 1-0 L

- Starting XI: Dick, Mitrano, Craig, Rasheed, Kibunguchy, O'Brien, J., Quinn (C), Blake, Hafferty, Henry-Scott, Mesanvi

- Substitution: Kizza 71' (O'Brien, J.); Barry 72' (Blake); Lindley 81' (Quinn)

- Unused: Charles-Cook, Herbert, Lowden, Sing

- Scoring Summary:
RI - Kornzeniowski 23' (assist Foyo)

- Bookings:

RI - Yao 39' (Yellow)
IND - Mitrano 64' (Yellow)
RI - Bacharach 77' (Yellow)
IND - Quinn 77' (Yellow)
RI - Smith 81' (Yellow) - Manager
RI - Afonso 83' (Yellow)
IND - McAuley 85' (Yellow) - Manager

- Referee: Corbyn May

- Adage goals: None
- Points Lost from Winning Position (Year To Date): 10

Thoughts and Opinions

For whatever reason, I couldn't get the game to work for the first half. So no detailed recap of the game because I'm pissed off about technology (yes, I know I'm on technology writing about being upset with technology... "don't bother me with trifles").

The important takeaway is that Rhode Island is on 35 points, Indy is on 33 points, and Miami is on 33 points after winning tonight against Sporting JAX. That's how the table sits with RI having a match in hand on Indy, and Indy having a match in hand on Miami. 

Indy return to action this weekend against Loudoun. If they don't get a win, the Tampa Bay, Louisville, Charleston finish looks even more daunting with an out-of-form Indy and a currently in-form Miami. Didn't think 11 days ago Indy would find themselves in this situation when they were 9 points clear of Miami. What a difference a week and a half makes. Indy 0W-3L in that timeframe, while Miami is 3W-0L.

Indy Eleven to League One?

A couple weeks ago, Athletic Club Boise was announced as making the jump from USL League One up to the Championship for the 2027 season. With the announcement, Kartik Krishnaiyer from Beyond the 90', asked a very simple question, with a less than simple answer. "Why is a team paying an expansion fee to jump divisions when an open sporting ladder is supposedly right around the corner?"

Looking around the world, at teams that hover in the middle of their division for extended periods, I have to wonder if that plays into their thinking and Kartik's article suggests as much. Going down divisions can be simple. Getting back up can be much more of a challenge. By putting themselves into the Championship early, they get to see the level of competition before the promotion/relegation arrangement gets started. So when pro/rel makes its way to the USL pyramid, they're ready to compete, at a minimum, at the Championship level and not have to work their way up from League One. It does have other ramifications which Kartik discusses in detail, but where you start in the pyramid can go a long way to where you stay in the pyramid depending on how you spend.

Which gets me to the actual point of this article, which you've likely already guessed was going to be more Indy Eleven-centric based on the title. 

Indy Eleven have been a USL Championship team since 2018. For nine seasons, the Indy Eleven have been considered by many to be one of the premier organizations in the league, despite its less than consistent results and playoff appearances. Of the eight previous seasons in the league, Indy has made the playoffs half of the time, but have been bounced from the playoffs in the first round in three of the four seasons (2018 - Louisville 4-1; 2023 - Charleston 5-0; 2024 - Rhode Island 2-3), with the lone exception being the 2019 season where the team made the Eastern Conference Final. Indy's ability to make this year's playoffs could push them just above or just below .500 in their ability to play games beyond the league season.

And yet, this year's team feels like it's not fully prepared to be in the USL-C, despite its tenure and its current spot in the table. They currently sit in 7th place in the Eastern Conference, but with a roster and some results that give off League One vibes. In fact, this season, thanks to the U.S. Open Cup and the Prinx Tires USL Cup, Indy have played a League One team four times this year; Union Omaha twice, Fort Wayne, and Forward Madison. In those games, Indy lost to Union Omaha twice, drew Fort Wayne after conceding in 2nd half stoppage time, and beat Forward Madison for a 1W-1D-2L record. All three teams are currently in a playoff position, so maybe Indy is a fringe USL-C playoff team, but a solid League One playoff team? Indy's struggles this past weekend with Miami as some key components of the "first team" level players have continued to be beaten by the injury bug highlighted Indy's lack of elite depth at all positions.

As I've stated a few times this year, I've been told that Indy has the lowest salary in the league. "Per club policy, terms of the deal will not be disclosed" is Indy's standard language when it comes to player contracts, but the rumor is that Indy's total team salary is $1.2M (whereas I've heard that Loudoun is at $1.8M and Tampa is at $2.2M). There are a couple of things that interest me about that value:

1. I have to assume that the midfield veteran triumvirate of Blake, Lindley, and Quinn, and Dick might all be making at least $100k each based on their league value (transfermarkt has them all higher than that number). Which means that the rest of the team is working at the league minimum. Rendon's transfermarkt value is also high, so I'm not sure how that's possible without the entirety of the rest of the team working second jobs (or housing benefits on top of the salary?), so the vets might be making less than my assumption.
2. That value rings a bell for me, because Peter Wilt conveyed to me that Indy's inaugural season in 2014 was (drumroll...) $1.2M. I'm positive that the amount has increased in the 13 seasons, but if the rumors are correct, the number has again dropped back down to inaugural season levels. Based only on inflation numbers, Indy's $1.2M salary in 2014 would need to be at $1.8M today to get the same spending value. Yet we all know that USL-C now is a much better, and more expensive, league than NASL then, so Indy's current 7th place in the table is really kind of impressive. Currently punching above their weight based on salary, but Indy should probably be spending closer to $2M to have an overall roster that can legitimately compete with the top teams in the League. Easy to say when it's not my money. 

So the question that comes to my mind is "why"? Why is Indy spending so much less now than they were likely spending just a few seasons ago? Why hasn't there been any kind of stadium update from the team in over two years? Why did Indy lose very good parts of their front office staff last year en masse? 

Why does it feel like Indy is operating at a League One level?

It doesn't seem like Ersal's personality to willingly drop down a level to League One, but he's also not seemingly making many outward steps to stay within USL-C or prepare for a potential step up to the future USL Premier, which will require Division 1 standards. Detroit and Pittsburgh have plans in place to get their stadiums to Premier level, Louisville City's stadium already meets the capacity requirement, and North Carolina is on hiatus this year to prep for Premier. So teams are already preparing for the Premier league launch two years from now in 2028. However, Indy's Eleven Park seems fitting that it was intended to be located on a former cemetery because all outward indications are that the project is dead, with no announced plans in two years. After the groundbreaking in 2023, the demolition of the Diamond Chain buildings took place, but everything ground to a halt in 2024. Carroll Stadium, as currently arranged, can seat 10,000 to 12,000 depending on the utilization of the grandstands and the layout of "temporary" stands. Carroll could probably be further expanded with temporary stands to get to 15,000 (the Division 1 requirement), but that would continue to feel like lipstick on a pig. 

So if Ersal and Indy Eleven seemingly aren't preparing for USL Premier, and have continued to decrease salaries within USL-C to the point where Coach McAuley and the current roster are overachieving based on their respective league-wide salary, is Ersal planning to be in League One without making the mirror action of Boise? The team hasn't actively announced a plan to go to League One, but is that the plan? Obviously, nobody in the club has said anything even close to this to me. This is just a "what if?" exercise for me. An exercise that I can't immediately decide isn't a possibility.

The recent round of MLS to Indy discussion actually helps Ersal in this regard. It gives him an excuse if/when the club drops levels or, potentially, fails altogether and shutters. Ersal can claim (maybe rightfully) that Mayor Hogsett's 2024 actions made it difficult to attract the highest level players and, just as importantly, significant level sponsors when nobody knows if the team will be around. While some cities can support multiple professional soccer teams, it's doubtful that Indianapolis is one of them. So Ersal has an "out" when he decides to stop losing money on this venture and closes shop. "The Mayor began the downward spiral" might not be 100% accurate, but there is a definite point in the history of Indy Eleven, from April 2024 when the mayor announced his plans to pull the funding of Eleven Park from Ersal and work towards an MLS team, that things haven't seemed "right" with the club. 

"Conflict arises when expectations exceed reality." When I wrote that last August, my closing statement of the article was:

The expectation is that Indy will be competing for Championships in a world class facility. The reality is that Indy has been a club with middling results and above average announced attendance, but is struggling to come to grips with the fact that all outward signs point to Indy playing forever in Carroll Stadium or failing and ceasing to be.

In the subsequent 13 months, I have now begun to wonder if there isn't another caveat on the table, which is a drop in leagues to League One. This would allow Ersal to continue to have a professional soccer team on his resume, but at a much lower financial burden. A financial burden he's probably closer to spending anyway based on this year's salary. Every so often though, the team could overperform and get promoted back up to the Championship, but in either case, Carroll Stadium is still an "acceptable" stadium. 

Unless, of course, my other idea for financial stability that includes moving the team to Grand Park comes to fruition. Though, actually both ideas could come into play since the Grand Park Master Plan includes a 10,000 seat stadium, which would work for either a Championship or League One level team.

I know many fans hated my idea of a Grand Park-based Indy Eleven, but what would be your thoughts of a League One-based Indy? Are the remaining fans really "XI 'til I die" no matter the league or level, or would that be the final straw? Would an Indy Eleven team that bounced between the Championship and League One because that's the salary level that Ersal was willing to spend be acceptable?

My guess is that Ersal has always had First Division aspirations, but at some point, time and money and a rug-pulling mayor may have become too much for him to handle. Time may tell us whether a League One Indy Eleven is the goal or just the result.