Hoosiers now have real shot at bowl
After upset of Iowa, IU needs two wins
By Steve Warden
The Journal Gazette
Don?t look now, but?aw, what the heck. Look now.
Look at the Big Ten standings this morning. Look at where Indiana, sits among its peers after its heart-thumping, heart-warming, can-you-believe-it 31-28 upset victory Saturday over 15th-ranked Iowa at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington.
No, no, the Hoosiers aren?t at the top of the standings. That?s pie in the sky. But they?re not at the bottom, either.
Now look at the record: 4-3. The same team was 2-3 two weeks ago and going nowhere. Now it?s 4-3 and going ? dare we say? ? aw, go ahead and say it ? a (shhh) bowl game?
For those Indiana fans who may not be familiar with the term ?bowl game,? it is an ?extra? football game played in December or January, usually in a warm climate, against a similarly talented team from another large conference. Mostly it?s a reward for the players for a season well done.
Two more wins, and Indiana becomes eligible to play in such a bowl game. And this is where the eyes get a little buggy looking at the Big Ten standings.
Two of IU?s remaining five opponents have worse records. Michigan State is a free-falling 3-4, and Minnesota is 2-5 and winless in the league after four weeks. The Hoosiers play Michigan State in two weeks, after they face No. 1-ranked Ohio State, and then IU travels to Minnesota Nov. 4. The regular season closes against Michigan and at Purdue.
Indiana hasn?t been to a bowl game since the 1993 Independence Bowl, where it lost to Virginia Tech 45-20.
?We finally got the chemistry down we?ve been waiting on,? IU receiver James Hardy of Fort Wayne Elmhurst said after his 104-yard, three-touchdown performance.
?Physically, it?s the same guys,? IU coach Terry Hoeppner said. ?But this is such an emotional game and a mental game, also. I think our last three weeks of preparation seemed to be whipped out in the Wisconsin game, but it?s how you repond.
?This team has really come together and if I could pinpoint anything, it?s the attitude that they have about themselves, No. 1, and about each other.?
Getting ready for Ohio State
If you thought that Ohio State (7-0) was going to sleepwalk through its preparations for Indiana, the Hoosiers made the Buckeyes at least sit up and take notice. Going into Ohio Stadium on Saturday is a tall task for any team, much less one that hasn?t won in Columbus since 1987. But Ohio State wasn?t the No. 1 team in the land then, either.
Hoeppner said he challenged his team to change its attitude after a 52-17 loss to Wisconsin, and it worked against Illinois. He challenged it again, and it worked against Iowa. ?It worked last week, so I tried it again this week, and it worked again this week, so I?ll probably use it again next week,? he said.
Hoosier hits
After three cracks at beating Iowa when he was with Miami (Ohio), Hoeppner at last beat the Hawkeyes. And he had someone to share the good news with. In the final seconds of Saturday?s game, Hoeppner was handed a cell phone. It was former Miami quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who said, ?We finally beat Iowa.? Said Hoeppner: ?Ben and I could never get it done ? Iowa came in as the least-penalized team in the Big Ten, but had seven penalties for 80 yards against IU, including a personal foul that ended a fourth-quarter Iowa drive ? Hardy would like to play Iowa every week. In his two career games against the Hawkeyes he has 20 receptions for 307 and four touchdowns. ?With Hardy, it starts with his (6-feet-7) size ? he?s not just a big guy, he?s a good football player. He has good ball skills and competes for the football. We are 0 for 2 with him, year to year,? Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said.
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Indiana at Ohio State
When: Noon,
Saturday
TV: ESPNU
Radio: 93.3 FM
