Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Michael Penix Jr. (9) throws a pass in the third quarter, Nov. 21 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus. Credit: John Kuntz via TNS
Location: Bloomington, Indiana
2020 record: 6-2
Head Coach: Tom Allen
2021 record: 0-1
Record vs. OSU since 2010: 0-12
What’s Happened So Far
The No. 17 Hoosiers strutted into Kinnick Stadium looking to build off the momentum from their 6-2 season in 2020 — where they made the necessary leap to compete with the Big Ten — but left the Hawkeye State scratching their heads after a 34-6 dredging at the hands of No. 18 Iowa. Within the first three minutes of the game, Indiana was down two touchdowns following a 56-yard scamper from Iowa junior running back Tyler Goodson and a 30-yard pick six on quarterback Michael Penix Jr.’s second pass of the 2021 campaign. Penix threw two more interceptions before the end of the first half with another getting taken to the house to hammer home the final nail in the Hoosiers’ coffin.
Key Offensive Player
The Hoosiers’ offense goes as Penix goes. In Saturday’s mishap against Iowa, he turned the ball over three times to flip 17 points into the Hawkeyes’ favor. A season ago, he showed glimpses of play-making brilliance in his game-winning drive to beat then-No. 8 Penn State 36-35 in overtime. Then, in a rainy affair at Ohio Stadium last November, Penix’s Hoosiers looked dead in the water when the halftime score read 28-7. However, the southpaw from Tampa, Florida, turned it on in the second half as he chucked four of his five touchdown passes in the frame, carving up the then-No. 3 Buckeyes’ defense for 491 yards — the second-highest total in school history, trailing only Richard Lagow’s 496-yard performance in 2016.
Key Defensive Player
Indiana’s defense ranked second in the conference with 25 sacks a year ago, and they may have gotten even better in that area in 2021. In addition to retaining senior linebacker Micah McFadden — who will be back to his normal self after leading the Big Ten with six sacks a year ago — they added graduate transfer defensive lineman Ryder Anderson. The Katy, Texas, native has the potential to be a one-man wrecking crew on the defensive line standing 6-foot-6 and weighing in at 266 pounds. In 37 games at Ole Miss, he racked up 99 tackles — 15 of which were for a loss — 6.5 sacks, 17 quarterback hurries, a forced fumble and one recovery. He introduced himself to Bloomington, Indiana, nicely with seven tackles, two for loss, and a sack — all tied for team highs.
Weakness
The ground game has not been kind to the Hoosiers as they have failed to produce a 1,000-yard rusher since former running back Stevie Scott III’s 1,137-yard 2018 campaign. Scott graduated last year and head coach Tom Allen seems to be putting most of his faith into graduate transfer Stephen Carr to eclipse the millenia mark in 2021. Carr toted the rock a team-high 19 times against the Hawkeyes, but only gained 57 yards on the ground for a dismal three yards per carry. In his 35 games at USC, he spent most of his time backing up the feature backs, earning just six starts, but gaining 1,329 yards and 12 touchdowns on 264 rushes. Carr nor sophomore running back Tim Baldwin Jr. — who returns after averaging 6.4 yards per carry in 2020 — don’t have to lead the Big Ten in rushing.
