IU football team’s desire will quiet critics

IU is a big-time athletics school. This point is clear because of the construction on the North End Zone project that began recently, the board of trustees consideration of the construction of a new basketball arena (to be built once the approximately $130 million can be brought in to construct it) and a huge fan base that demands winning. But the size of IU athletics and its influence on the national market are not as high as those of Ohio State and Michigan. Those schools’ reputations? Great athletics programs that are home to one thing currently absent in Bloomington – a powerhouse football team.\nThe top six magazines for predicting major football conferences pointed out the absence last week, as five picked IU to finish ninth or worse in the Big Ten this season, including two last-place predictions from CBSsportsline.com and Lindy’s Sports Annuals. Evidently, Kellen Lewis and a few explosive offensive weapons won’t be enough to shut down some of the more prolific teams in the conference, even with Michigan and Ohio State off IU’s schedule. The biggest difficulty they predict is the lack of defense. Considering last season’s statistics, it’s difficult to blame the magazines for not jumping on the Hoosier bandwagon. \nIU finished last in scoring defense (the only team to give up more than 50 touchdowns), 10th in rushing defense (one of two teams to give up more than 2000 yards on the ground) and ninth in total defense, ahead of only Minnesota and Purdue. Not exactly impressive statistics.\nBut these top magazines leave out a large factor that comes into play across athletic competition at every level: heart and soul. Last year, players and fans had a delightfully teasing taste, one so sweet that they will fight tooth-and-nail to ease their hunger for it. \nFor much of the 2006 season, IU was still in the running for bowl eligibility. And with such a goal being the object of the team’s salivation, neither CBSsportsline.com nor Lindy’s can discourage it. The 5-7 record that IU posted was just one win away from bowl eligibility. A one-win improvement is all that is necessary. With no Wolverines or Buckeyes to trip up the Hoosiers, the possibility of making that jump must be one that is distinct and within the grasp of a program starving for national attention. The fire is lit underneath the team, and perhaps this season will be the one when the team dines at the table of success.\nWith the tragic passing of head coach Terry Hoeppner this summer, the “Rock” of the program might appear to be gone. But the players will bring desire to the field and, hopefully, achieve their goals. \nIt might be a bit naive to stand in the face of some of the greatest sports assessment experts in the nation and say, “Wonderful predictions, but you’re wrong, I’m afraid.” As a Hoosier sports fan, however, I must believe that the Crimson and Cream will pull through their hardships and improve in the face of all doubt and quiet their critics. \nIt’s easy to be down on a team that has for so long been absent from the postseason. But at these crossroads, it is only proper for the fans to stand up with their heads held high in spite of these poor predictions, believing that the embattled Hoosiers will play a game not yet on their schedule.