So that's it folks, game one is in the books. Not only is IU currently undefeated for the year, but the Hoosiers are currently tied for first place in the Big Ten. For now.
All jokes aside, the Hoosiers played their first game today under the lights at Memorial Stadium to throttle a Sycamore team that is now 1-22 since 2005. Junior quarterback Kellen Lewis threw for 285 yards and three touchdowns on 12-21 attempts. Fellow junior wide receiver James Hardy caught three of those passes for 153 yards. Oh yeah, he also brought down two of those touchdowns on two one-play drives.
After Lewis hooked up with junior running back Marcus Thigpen on a 22-yard dump in the flat to score the game's first touchdown, Lewis connected with Hardy on 58 and 79 yard passes that resulted in touchdowns. Though the Sycamores were able to put together a 7:26 minute touchdown drive to cut the score to 14-7, the Hoosiers never looked back. By the end of the game, IU coach Bill Lynch had put in his second team to get a look at some of his younger players.
One of those players, sophomore running back Bryan Payton, who started in place of injured sophomore Demetrius McCray, gained 68 yards in the second half and avergaed 5.1 yards per carry, while scoring his first collegiate touchdown. Freshman quarterback Ben Chappell had an interesting second half as he was sacked on the opening possession, fumbled a snap, and finished 1-1 throwing for 14 yards.
By game's end, IU had 516 total yards of offense while the Hoosier defense only allowed 176 yards of offense. After the defense settled down, the Hoosiers forced two fumbles (recovering one) and picked off two passes. However, the IU offense put the ball on the ground six times of their own, losing one as well.
But in the end, the Hoosiers are 1-0 and will carry a high-octane offense into Kalamazoo next weekend when they play at Western Michigan (the Broncos fell to West Virginia today 62-24). Look for the relationship between Lewis and Hardy to continue next week, as well as see how the defense fares against a team that has actually finished the season with a winning record in the past two years.
Game Notes
Two players were injured during the 55-7 victory over Indiana State. Those players were junior safety Joe Kleinsmith, who came up limping at the tail end of his return on an interception, and starting offensive lineman Rodger Saffold. When asked during his press conference to the extent of the injuries, Lynch was unable to speculate how bad each player was hurt...James Hardy was penalized for "excessive celebration" after his 58-yard score in the first quarter. Hardy knelt in the end zone and said he was pointing to the sky in reference of late head coach Terry Hoeppner. The team was penalized 15 yards and the Sycamores scored on the ensuing drive...The game started with a moment of silence for Hoeppner, as his family was escorted to midfield by IU President Michael McRobbie. A video celebrating Hoeppner's greatest moments at IU was shown to applause and chants of "Terry Hoeppner" amongst the student section.
