For the first time in a quarter of a century, the Fighting Hoosiers of Indiana University are national ranked in the two major college football polls. The AP poll ranks them 24th and the Coaches poll ranks them 25th. This is the first time since September 20th, 1994 that the team has been nationally ranked. They were ranked 25th on that occasion. Head Coach Tom Allen has guided the team to a 7-2 record and they are ranked third in the Big Ten Eastern Conference. The Hoosier have already qualified for post-season bowl consideration but this means that the team could be invited to a higher profile major bowl. Currently the Hoosiers have three games left on their regular season schedule, all of them conference games and they are tough, challenging opponents. Their next opponent is 9th ranked Penn State at Beaver Stadium. The Nittany Lions have only a loss to Minnesota on their 2019 record so this will be a really tough game.
After that the Big Red meets the #14 ranked Michigan Wolverines at home in Memorial Stadium. The Wolverines always give the Hoosiers a hard time. Finally, it’s Purdue and the Old Oaken Bucket game at West Lafayette. When the Boilermakers and Hoosiers get together you can throw out both team’s won and lost records because it’s going to be a dog fight.
So congratulations to Coach Tom Allen and his IU Hoosier football team on an exciting and successful season. May you have continued success the rest of the year.
Time to Push the Panic Button
The Colts lost to one of the league’s worst teams last Sunday. The Miami Dolphins, who were charging for the number one pick in the 2020 draft for much of the season, had their way with the Colts both offensively and defensively. Without Jacoby Brissett and TY Hilton there just isn’t any kind of passing game. Zake Pascal and Chester Rogers are journeymen at best and the receiving corps is currently a disaster. The offense, which was supposedly the team’s strength has been ineffective to say the least and the running game has stalled.
Defensively, beyond Justin Houston, there is no pass rush. The secondary has been plagued by injuries and sloppy play. The play of rookie safety Khari Willis has been the only bright spot. The return of linebacker Darius Leonard has been a godsend. No. 53 was out for three games with a concussion, but was back and playing up to his Pro Bowl form. Leonard grabbed an interception and had a sack along with leading the team in tackles. At this moment he is the team’s MVP!
Okay now we get to the team’s festering wound— THE KICKING GAME. We can no longer make excuses for Adam Vinatieri. Age has caught up with him and he is no longer effective or dependable. Three of the team’s four losses can be traced to missed extra points and field goals. Adam has now missed six extra points. He could set an NFL record. The big problem now is who does the team replace him with? Dependable kickers are at a premium in the NFL at this time. At least ten other teams are looking for accurate strong-legged kickers so the Horseshoe is between a rock and a hard place.
If the Colts are going to challenge for a playoff spot they are going to have to find a solution to the kicking problem and start playing with a renewed sense of purpose Otherwise it’s going to be a write-off season.
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