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(10/06/08 3:54am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>MINNEAPOLIS – Converting on only one of 10 third downs and recording just a single score, the IU football team’s offense sputtered to a 16-7 defeat on the road at Minnesota.The loss shoots IU’s record below .500 at 2-3, and marks the team’s second straight Big Ten loss to open conference play at 0-2.Marcus Thigpen was the lone star for the Hoosiers as he recorded his second straight game with a touchdown of more than 77 yards after a 78-yard run and a 79-yard catch, both for scores, against Michigan State last weekend.Saturday’s touchdown came courtesy of a Ben Chappell loft, which found Thigpen wide open with just more than two minutes remaining in the second quarter.Thigpen finished the day with 88 receiving yards. Those receiving yards put the Detroit native over the 1,000-yard mark for his career, making him the first player in IU history to have more than 1,000 yards receiving, rushing and returning.With turnovers, numerous offensive penalties and dropped balls serving as flat tires, the Hoosiers struggled to get deep into Minnesota territory.In all, the offense would record 293 yards, was sacked four times and turned the ball over three times.“It seemed like we would sustain a drive but then we would end up killing ourselves with a penalty or a sack,” Thigpen said of IU’s offense. “It was tough with all of our three-and-outs and mental mistakes to keep something going.”On the other side of the ball, IU’s defense was bendable, letting up 274 yards through the air, but weren’t breakable. “I thought our defense played hard and played well against a good offensive team,” IU coach Bill Lynch said. “They gave us a chance, they just didn’t do enough on the offensive side.“We didn’t keep ourselves on the field, and as a result there was a huge disparity in the number of plays we had, and in the time of possession.”Despite being on the field for nearly two-thirds of the game, the Hoosiers kept the score within a touchdown up until Minnesota’s final field goal in the game’s closing minutes.“They had a pretty good defense,” Minnesota wide receiver Eric Decker said. “They played well. They put a lot of pressure on (Gopher quarterback Adam Weber) and he did a good job of getting out of the pocket and making plays downfield. We left a lot of yards on the field, but give Indiana’s defense credit.”Decker was the Gopher’s only real offensive threat. He set personal bests in receptions and receiving yards at 13 and 190, respectively.The Hoosiers return to action Saturday, as they welcome the Iowa Hawkeyes to Memorial Stadium.
(10/04/08 4:24pm)
Gophers 16, IU 7 -- Final
(10/04/08 3:25pm)
... in about a half hour or so. Stay tuned.
(10/03/08 3:03am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The last time the IU football team knocked off the Minnesota Golden Gophers in Minneapolis, the price of a gallon of gas was about $1.08.Now at .500 through four games, IU faces Minnesota, who “is a good football team and a much-improved football team from a year ago,” said IU coach Bill Lynch.IU pummeled Minnesota 40-20 at Memorial Stadium last season, but this weekend, the team plays in Minneapolis, a place where the Hoosiers haven’t won in 15 years.This time around, there could be some fresh faces taking the field for the Cream and Crimson.“We’re going to have a lot of guys up there playing meaningful minutes that weren’t there the last time,” Lynch said.One of those young players getting “meaningful minutes” that did not bear witness to IU’s 63-26 beating at the hands of the Gophers two years ago is freshman wideout Demarlo Belcher.“I’m excited,” said Belcher, who was 5 years old when the Hoosiers last won in Minneapolis. “This is an opportunity I have been waiting on, so I need to take advantage.”Belcher is currently fourth on the team with eight catches for 115 and is one of only three Hoosiers with a touchdown grab.The Fort Wayne native and the rest of the Hoosier offense will face a tough task Saturday when they battle a defense that currently leads the Big Ten in turnover margin at plus-nine.“They play with both four-down and three-down (defensive linemen), so that makes you work on different things,” Lynch said. “But I think overall, there’s some good athleticism in the back end of (their defense), where they run and they make plays and they create turnovers, and the turnovers that they created made a big difference in quite a few of the games. It always makes a difference but really got them going in those games.”An offensive threat IU hopes will crack the Gopher defense is the pairing of quarterbacks Kellen Lewis and Ben Chappell. IU unveiled the new offensive formation last week against Michigan State, where Lewis plays wide receiver, both in the slot and along the sidelines. “When they’re both out there, I think it certainly creates something for the defense, gives another way to get the ball in Kellen’s hands and we have a lot of confidence in Ben being the quarterback,” Lynch said. “So I think in that sense, it’s different.”Like the new offense, Lynch hopes the Hoosiers’ play in the Metrodome is different from years past.“I was there in 1993 when we won, and I was there in 2006 when we got hammered,” Lynch said. “So, I know both sides of it. I don’t know if there is anything to it.“It’s a loud environment, it’s indoors, it’s a tough place to play, but that’s part of playing in the Big Ten. But you have to overcome all of that and have (your players) prepared for this week, and we’ve got to go up and be focused on what we do and not be worried about that.”
(10/02/08 3:35am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The term “increasingly Hoosier” creates different thoughts for different students.However, to the admissions department, “increasingly Hoosier” refers to the record number of in-state students in this year’s freshman class – some 4,679 in total.The increase of native Hoosiers coming to IU is part of a push by the University to get the best of Indiana’s students.“We have done well with out-of-state students electing to enroll,” said Roger Thompson, vice provost for enrollment management.Freshmen Ella Hartley and Jamie Becker said they are happy IU is going after Indiana’s best students as long as that effort doesn’t distract IU from seeking diversity.“I understand why they would want to keep it more in-state: There is kind of that state pride,” said Hartley, a Maryland native. “But at the same time, you need a certain amount of diversity.”Unlike Hartley, Becker is an in-state student and said with scholarships and in-state tuition, the decision to come to IU was an easy one.“I think if they want the crème de la crème, I think that’s good,” Becker said. “Because then you are getting the brightest in Indiana to come to the state school, and they are most likely to give back to Indiana. But if you get an ambitious New Yorker who comes to the Kelley School, then they are just going to go back to Wall Street and not give back as much.”The University has always enrolled more in-state students than the state has funded it for, but recently IU has had new marketing strategies with “very personalized and customized information” meant to attract in-state students, Thompson said.“It would be less than accurate to say we haven’t focused our efforts on in-state students,” Thompson said.The Adam W. Herbert Presidential scholarship program is one way IU is attracting the brightest young Hoosiers to its campuses in this year’s freshman class and encouraging them to stay in Indiana after graduation. The program named 70 students as recipients of the scholarship, the highest total since the program began.Thompson said the University’s admission and enrollment teams have been proactive in seeking in-state students.“We are always looking to get the best and brightest students from the state of Indiana,” he said. “I have always said we need to recruit in our own backyard effectively, and then move out from there. We are Indiana’s flagship institution.”
(10/02/08 2:34am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The score was not the only painful thing about IU’s loss to Michigan State. The list of Hoosiers wounded almost out distanced the number of mistakes. The Hoosiers (2-2) have little time to rest, as they head to Minneapolis – their first road trip of the year – this weekend to take on a rising Minnesota (4-1) team led by Eric Decker, one of the top pass-catchers in the nation.“They have an outstanding quarterback, a very good wideout in Decker, and the defense is very sound,” IU coach Bill Lynch said to the media Tuesday. “They have some new guys over there that are very athletic.”Decker, a 6-foot-2, 215-pound Cold Spring, Minn., native, is currently No. 14 and No. 6 in the nation in receiving yards per game and total receiving yards, respectively.“Decker is very, very good” Lynch said. “And they use him in a lot of different places. They move him around so you have to find him in the formation.”Finding Decker will be a steep task for the Hoosiers’ dinged-up secondary.“Safety-wise, I don’t know where we will be by the end of the week,” Lynch said. “Austin (Thomas) and Nick (Polk) are a lot further along than they were at this point last week. And they worked out (Monday) like the rest of the guys, so they weren’t just off to the side.”Lynch praised how Joe Kleinsmith and Brandon Mosley filled in for Thomas and Polk last weekend.“I thought they played a solid game Saturday ... that’s a tough game for safeties too,” he said. “They had to be involved in the run and the play-action pass.”In practice Tuesday, backup safety Jerimy Finch was not fully dressed out and was sporting a boot on his right leg.“Jerimy is a little further behind than the other guys right now,” Lynch said. “But by Thursday afternoon, it could all change.”Other recovering players Tuesday included a good portion of the team’s wide receivers.Andrew Means appeared to be back in shape after leaving Saturday’s game with a swollen knee (bursitis).“I think he’ll be all right,” Lynch said. “When he gets hit on the knee, it swells up real fast ... If it blows up, it gets tight and you can’t bend it. And if you can’t bend it, you can’t play.”Means was in full pads and taking reps with the rest of the first-team offense on Tuesday. Lynch said the Hoosiers would be protecting the receiver’s knee from hits during the week.Others recovering in the receiving corps were Tandon Doss and Terrance Turner. Like Finch, Doss was in shells Tuesday – just helmet and shoulder pads – after sustaining a knee injury. On Tuesday, Lynch said he was not expecting Doss to play this weekend.Turner, who had a 97-yard touchdown reception called back on a penalty against the Spartans, was in full pads and taking reps Tuesday, but came up lame after a reception with what appeared to be a tweaked hamstring.Good news for the Hoosiers is quarterback – and wide receiver, after Saturday’s game – Kellen Lewis is healthy and ready to go in Minneapolis.“You know how ankles are; some guys bounce back real quick,” Lynch said. “And it didn’t swell up bad, and he was in Sunday and he said it was real good. And he was running on it (Monday). So we are lucky there.”
(09/29/08 3:58am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Marcus Thigpen was the Hoosiers’ revolver in their shootout against Michigan State on Saturday.Unfortunately for IU, the Spartans brought two guns to the duel and outshot the Hoosiers 42-29.With three scores, including a 79-yard reception and a 78-yard run, Thigpen arguably outshined State’s Javon Ringer.Thigpen ended the day with 207 total yards and three touchdowns, while Ringer carried the ball 44 times for 198 yards and a touchdown.But while Thigpen countered one facet of State’s attack, IU had no answer for its other big gain, quarterback Brian Hoyer.The Michigan State signal-caller calmly threw for 261 yards and two scores. And while quarterbacks Kellen Lewis and Ben Chappell split time and threw for more yards together than Hoyer, turnovers and penalties severely handicapped their efforts.“They are a very good offensive football team,” IU coach Bill Lynch said. “It’s very well designed, and you have to spend so much time with the run game that you are going to get exposed on the outside some.”Chappell made IU’s first two mistakes of the game. With Lewis on the sidelines after coming up limp on a play, Chappell threw an interception on IU’s side of the field. Compounding the gaffe, Chappell earned himself a personal foul after laying out the Spartan defender, Ross Weaver, after he was out of bounds.The penalty and a Ringer run set up a one-yard sneak by Hoyer and forced the Hoosiers to try to catch the Spartans for the remainder of the game.With 1:39 left in the third quarter and the Hoosiers down by five, the game’s final blow was dealt. But it wasn’t a Ringer run or Hoyer pass that did in IU.Standing in his own end zone, Chappell connected with sophomore wideout Terrance Turner for a 97-yard touchdown strike that gave the Hoosiers the lead. The play made both the Michigan State and Hoosier crowds stand up and cheer, one happy because of the touchdown, the other because there was a flag thrown 108 yards behind Turner’s touchdown celebration.The call was holding, and the penalty occurred in the end zone, resulting in a safety and an expanded lead IU would never breach.After a couple more Spartan field goals and numerous carries by Ringer, IU had lost its conference opener. Despite the blunders, Lynch said he was pleased with his team’s effort.“I was proud of the way they fought and played,” Lynch said. “The mistakes that we made, we can get those corrected.”
(09/29/08 3:55am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Dynamism.Something the IU football team was able to achieve amidst its 42-29 loss at the hands of the Michigan State Spartans.Dynamism was reached when the call came to send in backup quarterback Ben Chappell and move starting quarterback Kellen Lewis to wideout.“It’s a blast,” Chappell said of the team’s new package. “We had been practicing it all at camp, and I had just been waiting for it. It’s fun, and hopefully we’ll continue to use it.”With Lewis’ ability to run, throw and catch, the Spartan defense was at a loss as to what to do.“I loved it, because it confused the defense,” Lewis said. “A lot of times when you see a quarterback line up at wide receiver, you think something is up, but we are just running our offense.”IU employed the strategy toward the end of the first quarter, and instantly, the chains started moving on a drive that would be punctuated with a touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Ray Fisher.“Just getting the ball into No. 15’s hands is special, so that’s what we try and do,” Chappell said of having Lewis as a target.On the drive, Lewis would make two receptions for 17 yards, complete two passes – including the touchdown strike to Fisher – and run the ball twice for 13 yards.Getting Chappell into the game early was also advantageous, as Lewis would miss most of the second quarter and parts of the third quarter with an ankle injury suffered on a run.Chappell came in with game experience already, and the offense hardly skipped a beat.Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio said in his post-game press conference he knew IU would do something different with its offense than what he had seen on tape.“We felt like they would do something to get the ball in Lewis’ hands,” he said. “Somehow, some way, they were going to get the ball in his hands. “I thought their quarterback, Ben Chappell, came in there and did an outstanding job when Lewis went out for a while and didn’t know if he’d be able to return. He did an outstanding job and really moved their football team.”
(09/27/08 4:08pm)
MSU 39, IU 29 (Beginning of 4th) -- After a Spartan interception, Brett Swensen booted a another 45-yarder to make it a two score game.
(09/23/08 5:38pm)
ESPN's Adam Rittenburg reported that senior cornerback Chris Phillips tore his ACL in the Ball State game.
(09/22/08 4:00am)
Update: According to a Ball State press release, Dante Love's injury was so severe in nature that his football career is expected to be over.However, the release states after a rehabilitation period, Love should be able to live a normal and healthy life.
(09/21/08 12:23am)
UPDATE (1:50 p.m.): Ball State wide receiver Dante Love underwent an approximately five hour long surgery in Indianapolis Saturday night into Sunday morning, according to a press release."Dante Love suffered a cervical spinal chord injury fracture which required surgery to stabalize the fracture," said Ball State team physician and orthopedic surgeon Jay Matchett in the statement. "He is currently moving all four extremities."
(09/17/08 4:31pm)
UPDATE: 1:52 p.m. -- This is Zach here, and I would like to go on record as saying that I never "took shots" commenting the video below. I did patent the line above, but at no time did I attempt to go Bob Carpenter on this moment in Hoosier baseball history. Carry on.
(09/15/08 6:28pm)
INDIANA-MICHIGAN STATE TO KICK AT NOON
(09/15/08 3:48pm)
No. 1: Zach and I sat down with IU coach Tracy Smith on Friday, and had a very nice interview. A good portion of said interview is now available here. The Podcast's edition is dated Sept. 15.
(09/15/08 12:27am)
I ran into Andrew Means when doing interviews with the football team. And me being an IU baseball nerd, couldn't resist getting in some non-pigskin related questions.
(09/10/08 4:21am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The first and second teams, including quarterbacks Kellen Lewis and Ben Chappell, respectively, continued taking equal snaps in the Hoosiers’ practice on Tuesday. The only thing different from past weeks’ practices was that the players were in shells – shoulder pads, helmets and shorts.IU coach Bill Lynch said he didn’t want to ramp up the hitting in practice until later in the week before giving his team time off this weekend. The Hoosiers do not play again until Sept. 20 against Ball State. Means, Fisher take very few repsWide receivers Andrew Means and Ray Fisher both sat out the majority of Tuesday’s practice.Both are dinged up, but nothing severe enough to threaten their status for Ball State.“Means and Fisher are not (seriously injured),” Lynch said after Tuesday’s practice. “We just decided we were going to give them a chance to rest up a little bit.”No decision on Willis, others redshirtingOne of their most touted recruits in recent memory, freshman running back Darius Willis, has yet to take a snap in-game. Lynch said no final decision has been made on whether the Indianapolis native will redshirt.“With Darius, what we basically have told him, we have to keep him going, but there is a possibility we would redshirt him,” Lynch said.Lynch said he would not send Willis out on to the field during a game, disqualifying him from a possible redshirt, unless Willis would get solid playing time. Four different Hoosier running backs scored during last week’s 45-3 win over Murray State, though Willis saw no playing time.“What you wouldn’t want to do with a guy like (Willis) is play him just a little bit,” Lynch said. “That wouldn’t be fair to him. But, the thing about Darius is he is such a great kid and such a great team guy that he’ll do whatever is best for him and whatever is best for the team.” Lynch added that he would not make his final decision on any redshirts until the beginning of Big Ten play.Doss, Belcher make great grabsTwo players Lynch certainly won’t redshirt are freshman wideouts Tandon Doss and Demarlo Belcher.Both Doss and Belcher made great grabs in seven-on-sevens toward the end of practice.“What I did was I brought them in at the end of camp, and I talked to each freshman,” Lynch said. “I told them this is what it looks like. And at that point we had a real good idea that Doss and Belcher were going to play.”Doss, in tandem with Chappell, successfully play-faked the Hoosier corner lined up opposite Doss in practice Tuesday, yielding a long gain down the sideline.Belcher’s grab came across the middle, and as the 6-foot-5 wide receiver came down with the ball, he was met with forceful shoulder checks from defenders.The hits jarred the ball loose from Belcher’s grasp before he reached out and made a one-handed squeeze and continued running on to the end zone.
(09/10/08 4:05am)
Following publishing an article on Tuesday's practice, I decided I would share with y'all what IU coach Bill Lynch said to the media after the players hit the showers.
(09/08/08 4:29am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>IU has been dominant to start its season. No one following the Hoosiers could possibly argue against that statement.To open their season, the Cream and Crimson rolled over Western Kentucky and Murray State. IU has put together 926 yards of offense, scoring 76 points in its eight quarters of play in 2008 thus far – its two visitors’ combined for 431 yards and 16 points.But the Hilltoppers and Racers are part of the reason the Hoosiers’ overall schedule this season was ranked as one of the easiest in the Football Bowl Subdivision, according to various publications.Much of the debate is based on the Hoosiers having eight games in the confines of Memorial Stadium and a noticeably light non-conference schedule without an opponent from a power conference. Once the Hoosiers reach conference play, the difficulty obviously rises. But for the second year in a row, IU won’t face perennial powerhouses Michigan or Ohio State.IU coach Bill Lynch wasn’t in the mood to answer questions about his schedule after his team pounded Murray State 45-3 on Saturday night. The Racers are members of the Football Championship Subdivision.“We’re 2-0,” he said. “I mean, I don’t know – I’m not going to apologize for our schedule.”Quarterback Kellen Lewis admitted Murray State and Western Kentucky might not have been the most difficult opponents, but added the games were still valuable.“At least, even if they’re not Big Ten caliber or Big Ten size, (the games are worthwhile) just making sure we got our guys going to where they are supposed to go,” he said. “Making sure the receiver is making the right read, I’m making the right read and we are making the right checks. So if you want to say those are tune-up games for Big Ten teams, it’s always good to look back on film to make sure your guys are going to the right place.”Saturday’s game was all too easy for Lewis, who appeared to be working on his passing game as if it were practice and not forcing any rushes. The junior had one run for a loss of two yards and was 15-for-21 for 170 yards before being taken out midway through the third quarter.Despite Lewis’ efficiency – and the fact that nine different receivers caught a pass against the Racers – it was the running game which was featured against the lesser Murray State. Five different running backs teamed together for 44 carries, with four backs scoring.Leading the attack was senior Marcus Thigpen who was pulled after carrying the ball seven times for 100 yards and two scores.Thigpen downplayed the ease with which the Hoosiers have won their last two games, saying the games might not have been as easy in years past.“We have proven that we can win,” he said. “In the last few years, we would lose to a team like Murray State.”
(09/06/08 11:13pm)
I had an extremely abbreviated interviews with two new Hoosiers, Blake Monar and Alex Dickerson.
