So, when we went to write the IU will win if, IU will lose if article for Friday's paper, I really wanted to put Western Michigan wide receiver Jamarko Simmons as the 'player to watch.' Unfortunately, we couldn't do that because we had to focus on an IU athlete. I understand. If it was Chad Henne, Jim Lauranitis, or some other ridiculous Big Ten opponent, then we could put them as the 'player to watch.' So since I couldn't really talk about Simmons in Friday's IDS, I'm going to do it right here.
Let's just say that come Saturday night, IU senior cornerback Tracy Porter will have his hands full. IU coach Bill Lynch described Simmons as big, physical, and a guy who can really run. Essentially, the guy is a playmaker. Against West Virginia last week, the No. 3 team in the country, he grabbed 14 passes for 144 yards and 2 touchdowns. Think James Hardy's statistics, only it took him a little longer to get there. Initially a running back, Simmons only began to play wideout last year and made an immediate impact, taking in 61 receptions for 668 yards on the year. Oh yeah, he also grabbed 13 balls for 172 yards in 27-24 loss to Cincinnati in the International Bowl last year.
Aside from Simmons, Saturday night will be the first in a string of important games for the Hoosiers. Let's just say that this is the beginning of the games that they need to win. IU already took out Indiana State, now they need to take care of business against weaker teams in their schedule such as Western Michigan, Akron, Illinois, and later in the year Ball State. It's very possible the Hoosiers start the season 5-0, but Kalamazoo is where they will have to silence all of their critics, i.e., Sports Illustrated, who picked IU to finish dead last in the Big Ten.
Also, look to see what type of offense the Hoosiers bring to Western Michigan. Will they try to establish the running game, go deep through the air, or rely on short passes and sophomore quarterback Kellen Lewis' ability to scramble out of the pocket? Last weekend, going deep was an aberration, it wasn't supposed to happen. Let's see if they can stick to Lynch's gameplan this time and still come out smiling with a 2-0 record.
Finally, the Western Michigan atmosphere should be interesting. MAC schools love to play Big Ten opponents, and especially being located in the Midwest, helps bring in a higher attendance to the game. Lynch described Kalamazoo as a "hornet's nest" in his press conference on Tuesday and knows his opponents very well having coached there.
All I know is that I'm getting to the game almost 3 hours early to beat traffic, just to be safe.
