Written by Andrew Walker

The Indiana Hoosiers traveled to the place that Manning built in Indianapolis on Saturday, and ended up victorious. The Hoosiers defeated the Ball State Cardinals 34-24. With game one of the 2019 season under the belt, let’s take a look at five takeaways from Saturday’s contest.

Mike Penix has some things to work out

Let’s talk about the elephant in the room. Mike Penix made his season debut and first start of his career on Saturday. It started off with a few confidence building plays, checkdowns and throws inside of seven yards or so. The redshirt freshman was looking good early. His first and only passing TD on the day came on a deep shot to Nick Westbrook who took it 75 yards to the house. At this point, Penix had missed maybe one or two throws, so at this point it was easy to be excited. Two interceptions and some communication errors followed for the rest of the game. Penix did a good job of shaking off the rust in game one, now it’s about polishing.

Wide receivers need improvement.

Through the course of the game, receivers had multiple opportunities to make plays they should’ve made. It seemed like receivers were catching the easy balls well, but that’s about it. If the receiving corps was presented with even a remotely challenging playmaking opportunity, it fell through their fingers. That’s not to say they didn’t get their fair share of receptions. Westbrook topped the box score for receivers with three receptions for 103 yards and one TD. The receivers didn’t do poorly, there were just some opportunities that fell through the cracks.

Defense leaves a bit to be desired

Pass rush has been a huge point of emphasis for defensive coordinator Kane Wommack in fall camp this year. On Saturday, despite a three sacks and seven TFLs, the defense looked disappointing. Tackles were missed, blitzes didn’t work as much as they should’ve, and certain zone defenses were picked apart by Ball State QB Drew Plitt. On the bright side, Ball State only converted 7/16 third down conversions and Plitt was sacked three times.

Special teams looked great

Logan Justus had quite the start to his senior year on Saturday. Going 4/4 from 48, 30, 49 and 50 is a kicker’s dream. Justus wasn’t the only special teamer to put up big numbers either. Punter Haydon Whitehead punted just three times, averaging 51.3 yards per punt. One of those punts was even a booming 63 yarder. Special teams coach William Inge, Justus and Whitehead have all been confident about their ability to flip the field when put in those situations. Ball State only averaged just over 17 yards per kick return as well, proving that Indiana’s return coverage is trending in the right direction.

This is not the ceiling for Indiana Football

Regardless of early turnovers and some guys not playing to their potential, the Hoosiers still won by ten points to a Ball State team that isn’t just a slouch. First game for Kalen DeBoer, first game for Wommack, first start for Penix and a few other guys. This game was not indicative of Indiana’s long term outlook, even though Indiana won by ten. The Hoosiers have the makeup to be a team that should’ve won by 40. That’s not a knock on their performance in general, but more of a reminder of what’s to come. Penix showed flashes of beautiful QB play on Saturday, and we all know there’s more in the tank from him. The best thing to remember is not to confuse growing pains with bad football.

The Huddle

Five Takeaways From Indiana's 34-24 Win Over Ball State

Hoosier Huddle