Hoeppner keeps piling up recruits before Feb. 2 deadline

New IU football coach Terry Hoeppner might have Indiana roots, but his Ohio background is paying big dividends for the Hoosiers as they gained another commitment from the Buckeye state -- defensive back Dan Kinsey from Wellsville, Ohio.\nKinsey, 6 feet 3 inches and 195 pounds, starred for Beaver Local High School in Lisbon, Ohio, earning first team all-state honors in Ohio's Division III. As a senior, Kinsey led the Beavers to a perfect regular season and a berth in the Division III state playoffs and top 10 ranking throughout the season.\nSchools throughout the Midwest and the South sought Kinsey, including Ohio State University, University of Tennessee, Penn State University, Miami University of Ohio, Kent State University and the University of Cincinnati.\nDespite that lack of success for the Hoosier program in recent years, the excitement of the new coaching staff intrigued Kinsey, he said.\n"First off all (a reason I committed) was the coaching staff," he said. "It was everything (about IU), you couldn't ask for a better place."\nAfter arriving in Bloomington Friday afternoon, Kinsey took a tour of the campus getting to meet with members of the new coaching staff as well as meeting IU President Adam Herbert and attending the indoor track and field event and the men's basketball game.\nAlong with playing football, Kinsey participates in track as a decathlete. His talents didn't go unnoticed on the track as he was recruited by the University of South Carolina, Purdue University and Syracuse University to participate in track and field exclusively.\nAt IU, Kinsey plans to participate in both football and track, and was a reason for his decision to commit to the Hoosiers Thursday, he said.\nWhile on his visit to Bloomington, Kinsey got the opportunity to meet another recruit from Ohio -- wide receiver Chris Banks. Kinsey and Banks, a star at Alliance High School, actually met before as Banks' team defeated Kinsey's 19-16 in the playoffs.\nThe two aren't the only players from the Buckeye state to decide to play for Hoeppner next year.\nAccording to the Web site www.rivals.com, IU has six players committed from the Buckeye state with national signing day Feb. 2. There are 17 players that have currently committed to Hoeppner.\nKinsey expects to continue playing at defensive back at IU, but could possibly be moved to linebacker or wide receiver. \n"I am a real big hitter and I like stopping the run," Kinsey said. "I can drop back and stop the pass and I can do kick returning as well."\nThough Kinsey committed to Hoeppner before the visit, he wanted to take a trip to IU to be sure of his decision. Once he experienced a trip to IU, he knew it was the place for him, he said.\n"I know coach Hoeppner is going to turn the program around, and I feel he really will," Kinsey said. "(Being able to do both track and football) was really important. Wherever I went I wanted to do both and coach Hoeppner is really supportive of that — it was the perfect place for me."\n-- Contact Staff Writer Dan Click at daaclick@indiana.edu.