A happy hangover

Remember that feeling you get after Little 500 week? Seven days of drinking like a fish, and you've convinced yourself that seven Budweisers and three Jager bombs are a part of a balanced breakfast. Eventually, after a barrage of bars and consumption of kegs, you wake up Sunday morning to the feeling that Gary Coleman is tap dancing in your head. \nNow compare that with football. After a jubilant 3-0 start and a newly fashioned fan-friendly bandwagon that stretches an entire football field, IU will travel to Madison, Wis., in an attempt to remain undefeated.\nSo far, the Hoosiers have duped the doubters. But can they become contenders and earn the respect of football fans everywhere by gaining ground in what has shockingly become a wide-open Big Ten race? \nIf the road to success is paved with obstacles, then, my fellow readers, the Hoosiers' 2005 football schedule is full of them. \nThis weekend's game against Wisconsin might be the toughest contest this month for the Hoosiers.\nOf course, you might ask -- what about Oct. 15 when IU travels to Iowa, or Oct. 29 when the Hoosiers head to Michigan State? \nOK. What about momentum?\nIf Wisconsin was a snowflake and its season schedule was a sloping hill, the Badgers are an Acme-sized snow boulder coming straight toward IU and gaining speed. \nThe Badgers are off to a 4-0 start after defeating Michigan last week, 23-20, earning a No. 17 national ranking. Head coach Barry Alvarez beat Michigan for only the second time since 1994 and head coach Lloyd Carr for the first time.\nYou can't buy that kind of a high for your football team. Well, maybe Ricky Williams can, but, seriously, no one else. \nDating back to last year, the Badgers have a nine-game winning streak at Camp Randall Stadium. They have a running game that is No. 14 in the nation, averaging 239.3 yards a game. They have beat their last four opponents by a combined score of 158-67. But that isn't the bad news about facing the Badgers. Junior running back Brian Calhoun, a threat on the ground and in the air, is the bad news.\nSo far this year, Calhoun is ranked No. 3 in the nation in rushing, No. 4 in all-purpose yards and No. 5 in scoring. The man is a tour de force whenever he steps onto the football field. If the Hoosiers have a chance at four straight wins this season, they must stop Calhoun. \nBut hey -- defeat is not bitter if you don't swallow it. \nIn recent years, IU has had success against Alvarez's ranked squads. The Hoosiers scored 19 unanswered points in the second half to edge the No. 23 Badgers, 32-29 in 2002. IU accumulated 631 yards of total offense in a blowout at Madison, 63-32, in 2001. \nSophomore quarterback Blake Powers, who has averaged 239 yards per game and thrown 11 touchdowns, must be masterful against the Badgers. Wisconsin has allowed only 262 rushing yards all season, and the play of wide receivers James Hardy and Jahkeen Gilmore will be equally important in igniting the offense. \nNow that the Kentucky game is over, now that student seizures of celebration have subsided and nine conference games remain, it is time to see how good Hep's Hoosiers really are. \nAll of Bloomington is feeling the effects of a happy hangover, for Hoosier football is at a 3-0 start. But now it is time for the team to work. It needs to grab a bucket of water, a ton of Tylenol and get healthy. Because come Saturday morning, Coach Hep and the Hoosiers have a big test.