A funny thing happened on the way out of Memorial Stadium in Bloomington last week. There was talk. There was unrecognizable talk. Words thrown around from folks that sounded like they have been regular callers on The Paul Finebaum Show. Welcome to the Big Time, for better or worse.
“That defense is going to have to shore up a bit. Won’t be that easy against Northwestern.”
“IU can’t be running the ball like that against someone with a defense.” Here we go.
And there were a few other comments. You get the idea. The ones who were blowing off with comments like these don’t get the real idea of winning a football game. They want the team to win like they were the ones drawing up the plays. Like this guy behind me at Tennessee ten years ago.
This is the new “Natural Order of Things” for Indiana Football fandom. And it is a strange thing to behold. My old natural order of things talk usually came up when the Hoosiers had two defensive backs run into each other and the opposing receiver catches a bomb 50 yards downfield and does the Ohio State Waltz into the end zone. I have many more examples. The 1989 Purdue game is the worst. Or Blake Ezor running 76 yards down the East sideline with no less than 8 Hoosiers with at least one hand on him is another. I need to stop there. That pain is still real.
Indiana doesn’t need fans that sound like they listen and call into The Paul Finebaum Show. These gridiron Hoosiers just got here. They have barely been around elite talk since lunch. Fans, give yourself a while longer to just sit there and enjoy it all. You can become like cranky old Alabama or LSU fans later.
Don’t start complaining about a 52-16 season opening victory, Hoosier fans. Those were the most points scored by an IU team in the opener against an FBS team since the 1969 Hoosiers beat Kentucky 58-30. 52-16 is REALLY GOOD. If you are complaining about the defense, you’ll either regret it one day or you’ll never learn. The Indiana offense did not give the Indiana defense much rest on what was probably the hottest day Memorial Stadium has ever felt. North Texas had the ball for over 37 minutes. Even with all this time, the Mean Green only scored one touchdown. That is a pretty good Indiana defense.
Welcome to the Big Time, Indiana fans. Try to act like you have imagined you have been there before.
So this week Indiana gets the mighty Howard. That’s all I have to say about that.
Last week we had 12 winners and 2 losers. I honestly thought Louisville would get Ole Miss. They almost did. I also picked Tulane.
This week’s picks:
Louisville beats Villanova… The Cards played well against Ole Miss. Lincoln Kienholz really showed great play at QB in the second half. The Cards will handle the Fighting Howie Longs.
Indiana beats Howard… Howard?
Oklahoma beats Michigan… It is great to see Michigan and Ohio State out on a limb with their non-conference schedule. That, and a game like this will only help your street cred and your players finding out where they really are. Oklahoma wins this one. Folks in Kalamazoo will be delighted.
Oregon beats Oklahoma State… If a team did show a reason for concern last week it might have been Oregon. They barely pulled away from Boise at home. I said in the preview. Losing both coordinators will put a toll on a team, regardless of how much talent is out there.
Penn State beats Temple… Classic PA matchup. Hope the Owls hang with the Nittany Lions for a while.
Washington State beats Kansas State… KState is a huge favorite. This is my upset of the day.
Alabama beats Kentucky… Kentucky played well against Youngstown State. They were supposed to. Bama beat East Carolina 48-10. No doubt that was not enough for some Tide faithful.
Illinois beats Duke… The Illini should win this one. That scoreboard they had put in this year should be worth 10 points alone in a game like this. Coach Bielema has Illinois on very solid ground.
Minnesota beats Mississippi State… Hats off to State for heading up to where the Mississippi River starts as a trickle. Hats off to Goldy for inviting them. QB Drake Lindsay looked like he belonged there last week. Additionally, Goldy returned two punts for six each. State won’t be a pushover.
Notre Dame beats Rice… Another tough game for ND. That schedule of theirs is a gauntlet…of something.
UCLA beats San Diego State… UCLA flexed for 461 yards of total offense last week. The Bruins D put Cal in 21 3rd down situations and Cal converted 11. The UCLA defense also forced 3 turnovers. 12 penalties by UCLA will need to be remedied moving forward.
Iowa beats Iowa State… The game is in Iowa City and that is a great place for a football game. These two will be like two mules fighting over a turnip.
Texas beats Ohio State… Arch will put up some numbers and the football world will gush about him again like they did before last season when Texas and Penn State were SUPPOSED to be two powerhouses. This is truly another ‘good-for-you’ in the scheduling department.
USC beats Louisiana Lafayette… A third less than Marquee matchup being played in successive weeks in The Coliseum. It kicks off at 11 ET. The darkness will help to mislead the empty seats.
The season goes too quickly. Enjoy it.