2022 Countdown to IUFB Kickoff: 76 Days Matthew Bedford

Written by: TJ Inman (@TJHoosierHuddle)

The 2022 Hoosier Huddle Countdown is well and truly underway. Each day, we will take a look at one (or two) players on the current roster and highlight the players role in the upcoming season. Expected starting right tackle Matthew Bedford is our profile piece today. The Hoosiers are hoping he can be the horse that helps pull the offensive line to respectability.

Name: Matthew Bedford

Hometown: Cordova, Tennessee (Cordova High School)

Position: Offensive Line

Year: Senior

Height/Weight: 6’6”/308 pounds

The struggles of the Indiana University offensive line are very well-trodden ground at this point. If the topic was the proverbial horse that was mentioned earlier in this piece, it would have been beaten to death months ago. That being written, it’s impossible to overstate just how important the development of the unit is to the 2022 season. One of the key figures is Matthew Bedford, a senior from Tennessee. Most would consider him the biggest bright spot from last season’s line as he moved around to three different positions and earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors from both the coaches and the media.

After starring at Cordova High School and heading to Bloomington, Bedford surprised and started in eight games as a freshman in 2019. He started in all seven games in 2020 and again started each game in 2021 as IU tinkered with lineups to try and find a combination that worked. No matter what the combination was, Bedford was included. His versatility is a strength as he has now started 27 games across four positions: eight each at right guard, right tackle and left tackle and three at left guard. Tom Allen believes it’s time for Bedford to lock into one spot and right tackle is the call. With the return of Luke Haggard, Allen believes he has solid leaders and veterans to lead the way.

“The leaders of that group are Bedford and Haggard. Luke has really stepped up in his leadership even though he’s a quiet guy. Bedford’s probably grown the most as a leader and growing the most in terms of just trying to elevate his play and his production and the way he practices,” Allen said to the media in April.

There are several factors at play including new personnel, younger players developing and a new offensive system under new offensive coordinator Walt Bell. A different system may place a different emphasis on certain types of blocking and the Hoosiers might move away from some of the zone blocking tendencies they mightily struggled with under Nick Sheridan’s play-calling. While the hope is that a change in scheme and the return of Bedford and Haggard leads to improved play for the line, the reality is that IU needs three people to step up on the interior. There are several candidates and the offense needs Matthew Bedford to be a standout performer to help the new starters on the inside progress. If Bedford struggles in 2022, the IU offense is going to have a very uphill climb back to a bowl game.

The countdown continues with a new profile each and every day so come back to hoosierhuddle.com daily!