When the calendar turns to November in college football, chaos is soon to follow.
This has been the case for many years, but never more than this season. Last Saturday, the No. 2, 3 and 4 teams were upset on the same day for the first time since 1985.
Bedlam is the norm in college football, and against Michigan, IU needs to create that chaos to have any chance of winning. Four Hoosiers have to build on their strong play if IU is going to have any chance of pulling off the upset.
Junior quarterback Richard Lagow
In the junior college transfer’s first real road test at Ohio State, IU Coach Kevin Wilson limited what his quarterback was asked to do, and Lagow’s 182 yards passing were the lowest of the season. In the past three games, Lagow has looked significantly more comfortable and has completed nearly 64 percent of his passes to go along with his five touchdowns.
Michigan’s secondary is one of the best in the nation and is only allowing opposing quarterbacks to complete just under 44 percent of passes against it.
Lagow is going to have to play the best game of his season if IU is to have any chance of winning. He has potential, but he has to be allowed to be more aggressive in attacking Michigan downfield.
Junior running back Devine Redding
After struggling to get going in the middle of the season, Redding has rushed for 311 yards in the last three games. Nearing his second consecutive 1,000-yard campaign, he faces his toughest task of the season against the Wolverines nasty front seven. Currently, Michigan is only giving up an average of 3.1 yards per carry and has only allowed three rushing touchdowns all season.
This is what Wilson would call tough sledding, but IU needs to be committed to establishing the run and doing it successfully. Michigan is one of the best teams in the country in not allowing third down conversions, so Redding must get going on early downs so IU can avoid those situations.
Freshman defensive back Marcelino Ball
It might be hyperbole to call Ball IU’s version of Jabrill Peppers, but as the fulcrum of IU’s defense, Ball has the potential to have a huge influence on the game Saturday. In his first season he has 68 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss to go with one fumble recovery and two interceptions.
However, he struggled in coverage against Penn State and didn’t have the effect that he had earlier this season.
Against Michigan, Ball cannot make many mistakes and needs to continue his play if IU’s defense is going to have success.
Junior linebacker Tegray Scales
IU’s most disruptive defender in defensive coordinator Tom Allen’s revamped scheme has been by far Scales. The linebacker has already racked up 15 tackles for loss this season and has 94 total tackles this season. Scales and fellow junior linebacker Marcus Oliver have been the breakout stars for the Hoosiers this season.
Michigan has a dominant offense this season. The Wolverines are averaging 44.5 points per game. However, starting quarterback Wilton Speight is likely out Saturday with a broken collarbone, and his replacement John O’Korn isn’t as good.
That means Scales needs to be a disruptive force and make life difficult for Michigan’s running and passing attacks.
aphussey@indiana.edu
@thehussnetwork
