Spring football practices are officially over, but many questions still remain for the Hoosiers and IU coach Bill Lynch.
Q: What will happen with Kellen Lewis?
A: The team and the athletic department has been very tight lipped since making the anouncement that he would be suspended indefinitely. However, Lewis is still a member of the team, and the fact that they went the whole spring running the same spread offense with options for the quarterback to run tells me that they expect Lewis to take back his spot at the starting quarterback position before the regular season begins. Judging by the outcome of the Cream Vs. Crimson scrimmage, the season may depend on Lewis coming back.
Q: Who are going to be the starting cornerbacks?
A: It seems all but certain that Christopher Phillips will be one of the starters; but the second corner position is still up for grabs. Lynch said that cornerback is a lot like quarterback, in that backups don't get a lot of playing time in his defensive scheme. Once a starter is named, he will get the majority of the playing time. Richard Council, Bruce Hampton, Adrian Burks and Donnell Jones all have a shot at being named starter. Council and Jones had interceptions in the scrimmage game, but Hampton has the most experience with the team. Adrian Burks impressed Lynch during practices at the Insight Bowl.
I honestly have no clue who will be named the second starter opposite Phillips. If it were to be judged solely by the scrimmage than Council would win the job, but expect this battle to wage on into the fall practices.
Q: What will the wide receiving corps look like?
A: Ray Fisher will be the slot receiver, but after that the positions are up in the air. Andrew Means is expected to be back next year and if he is he'll be one of the starters as well. But there is the off-chance that Means will go to the MLB draft. From everything i've heard Means is talented enough to be drafted by baseball, but from what little interaction i've had with him I get the feeling his passion is football, even if he's the more skilled baseball player. I would be surprised if he's not playing at the Rock next year.
After that, the other spots will be fought over by experienced players like Terrance Turner, Matt Ernest and Brandon Walker-Roby. But incoming freshman Tandon Doss, Tyler Adetona, Charles Love and Marquelo Suel all could steal a position from one of the older players on the team. Lynch appears to give the benefit of the doubt to his more experienced players, and I would expect that to be the case with wide receivrs. The incoming freshmen would have to really wow the staff to take one of the starting spots away from Turner or Walker-Roby.
Q: What will the punting game look like?
A: The punting was awful on Saturday. Both Chris Hagerup and Kyle Lambeck had plenty of punts, and there was only one by Hagerup that I thought was impressive. Even Lynch, who usually doesn't have a bad thing to say about anybody, admitted the punters needed to improve.
"Those guys got to work at it," Lynch said. "There's some talent there. That position, as much as any can get better over the summer."
Lynch said he hopes Austin Starr can help mentor the punters, because Starr himself was someone who made vast improvements over the summer last year.
Q: What's the ceiling for this team?
A: Five of their first six games are at home. The Hoosiers only play four road games all year. They have games against Western Kentucky, Murray State, Ball State and Central Michigan, as well as Northwestern at home. That being said, their last three games are home vs. Wisconsin, then road games at Penn State and Purdue. If the Hoosiers are going to go bowling for the second year and a row it's safe to say they have to get off to a hot start.
A lot of questions surround this team, but to me none are bigger than what will happen with Kellen Lewis. Despite having a case of the fumbles, Lewis was the most important player on the team last year, and will be this year as well. He was one of the most productive quarterbacks in the Big Ten, and would be in his third year as a starter if he comes back in the fall.
With Lewis as the starter, the Hoosiers definitely have a chance to keep building on last years success. If he remains suspended, last years season may be an abberation for the program.
Those are my questions, do you have any?
