IU wins opener despite 'self-inflicted wounds'

Friday night before the season opener against Western Michigan, IU coach Terry Hoeppner and the football team saw the movie, "Invincible," the story of a 30-year-old bartender who surprisingly made the Philadelphia Eagles' roster.\nWith a convincing 39-20 victory over the Broncos, the Hoosiers might not have been "invincible," but IU turned in strong efforts on the offensive and defensive side of the ball to claim the victory.\n"A win is a win is a win, and we needed this win," Hoeppner said following the game. "The team needed it, the program needed it."\nWestern Michigan won the coin toss, deferred to IU and allowed the Hoosiers to march down the field on the game's first possession. After a 34-yard hookup with sophomore receiver James Hardy, junior quarterback Blake Powers connected with freshman receiver Andrew Means for a 10-yard touchdown reception, giving IU a lead it would hold for the remainder of the game.\nAfter a Western Michigan field goal, both teams went ice-cold for almost 11 minutes until sophomore cornerback Chris Phillips intercepted a pass by Bronco quarterback Ryan Cubit and returned it 66 yards for a touchdown, extending IU's lead to 14-3.\nLate in the quarter, senior safety Will Meyers notched the second IU interception of the day and returned it 37 yards to the Western Michigan 14-yard line. The turnover led to a two-yard touchdown run from junior fullback Josiah Sears, who punched through the Broncos defensive line for the score.\nSears is coming off the 2005 campaign that saw him gain 103 yards on 24 carries. The fullback said he realizes he might not see much more action this season but plans to take full advantage of any playing time he is given.\n"I'll get in on goal line and short yardage plays," Sears said. "You hope to play as much as you can, but it's a great feeling."\nFor the game, Sears led the IU running attack with 35 yards on eight carries.\nA late Western Michigan field goal cut the Hoosier lead to 20-6, but just minutes into the third quarter, junior cornerback Tracy Porter returned a punt 86 yards for the touchdown, extinguishing any hope of a Bronco comeback.\nWith less than three minutes left in the third quarter, Hoosier fans experienced a scare when Powers left the field with a leg injury. Following the game, Hoeppner said X-rays were negative and that Powers will be ready to practice Tuesday.\nWith Powers out for the remainder of the game, fifth-year senior Graeme McFarland filled in, completing four of seven passes for 60 yards, including a 30-yard touchdown completion to sophomore running back Marcus Thigpen.\n"I had a little bit of warning because Blake was cramping up," McFarland said. "Really all it's about for me this year is that I want to go to a bowl game before I'm done."\nWhile IU won convincingly against the Broncos, Hoepnner saw much room for improvement, especially concerning self-inflicted wounds, or what he called "S.I.W.s". The Hoosiers committed eight penalties for a total of 90 yards while also turning the ball over twice on an interception and fumble from Powers.\n"We have so much we can build on, both positive and negative," Hoeppner said. "You improve the most between game one and two. Well, we need to, that's very apparent, but I'm confident we can"