Countdown To Kickoff: 19 Days (Tony Fields)

Written by: Alex Compton (@alexncompton)

#19

There are now 19 days remaining until the Indiana Hoosiers kick-off the 2016 season in Miami against the Florida International Golden Panthers. Join us each day for each part of our 100-day countdown to the opener! Next up, Tony Fields!

Tony Fields (Junior)

-Height: 5’11”
-Weight: 203 pounds
-Hometown: Tallahassee, Florida
-Position: Defensive Back

Coach Wilson is not afraid to play freshmen as he has shown by playing 60 freshman in five years. Defensive back Tony Fields stood out enough in 2014 to be one of those sixty. The junior out of Florida appeared in all 12 games as a true freshman, and then followed it up with a 13 game campaign last season. As a sophomore, Fields had 19 tackles, and his first career interception on the road against Wake Forest. He took that one to the house. 

This season, Fields projects as a backup at both safety positions. Jonathan Crawford is absolutely a starter, and Chase Dutra should start at the other spot if he stays healthy. Depth, especially this season, is always important at every position on defense. In Tom Allen’s defense that emphasizes flying around to the ball and giving maximum effort, it is absolutely crucial to have fresh bodies able to rotate in and out throughout the course of a game and season. Tony Fields is now one of the more experienced members of the secondary, and has also proven to be a reliable player. 

Look for Fields to be a rotation body again in year three. In past years, Fields could and would have started on an Indiana defense. In the last few seasons however, Coach Wilson has begun to recruit and develop defensive players with much more success. This has led to the 2016 secondary becoming an incredibly deep one, and guys like Tony Fields have to make their impact off the bench instead of in the starting lineup. This is the sign of a culture shift within the program, and is a huge key for the Hoosiers if they look to take that next step. The defense has to improve, and the depth in the secondary will have to come up big if that is to happen. 

Share any memories or expectations you have of Tony Fields as a player in the comments section (or on the message boards) and be sure to come back to Hoosier Huddle each day during our countdown!