Matchup to Watch Versus Cincinnati: Michael Penix Jr vs Cincinnati Defense

Written by: Nate Comp (@NathanComp1)

Two weeks after visiting a top-20 team on the road to begin its season, Indiana will once again be tested this weekend when the top-10 ranked Cincinnati Bearcats make the trip over to Bloomington. The Hoosiers’ first opportunity against such a quality foe did not go as planned; Indiana left Iowa City with a 34-6 loss in a game that was never close. That result makes this weekend all the more important as Indiana hopes not to fall flat once again.

So what aspect of the game will Indiana fans be laser-focused on this weekend? It certainly will not be the defense. Charlton Warren’s bunch has picked up this season right where former defensive coordinator Kane Wommack left it. For as many concerns there are over this Indiana team and whether it will live up to its preseason expectations, few of them fall on the defense. Surprisingly enough, it likely also will not be on Indiana’s running game. Despite a lackluster rushing attack in 2020 and losing Sampson James to the transfer portal, the Indiana run game has shown life this season, especially in last week’s blowout victory over Idaho. USC transfer Stephen Carr rushed for 118 yards on 22 carries (5.4 ypc) and added a score, the first of his career as a Hoosier. Luke Haggard and Zach Carpernter both returned to the offensive line and saw time (Haggard started at left tackle), which allowed Indiana to display it is stronger in the trenches than it showed in the season opener.

With all this considered, there is only one matchup that remains a must watch this weekend: Indiana quarterback Michael Penix Jr. against the Bearcat defense. Simply put, Penix’s performance this weekend will determine whether or not Indiana is able to protect their home field and move to 2-1 on the season.

Entering the season with “best quarterback in the Big Ten” level hype, Michael Penix Jr has not yet lived up to this season’s expectations. Three interceptions against Iowa could have easily been more, and a level of discomfort we have not seen before with Penix has been present. With hopes to settle him down against Idaho, Penix completed 11 of 16 passes for just 68 yards. Two completions were for touchdowns, and the defense/special teams performance left Penix with short fields, but was that enough to declare Penix fixed? Likely not, but we will see. With a brutal stretch of games ahead and no more Idaho’s left on the schedule, it is time to perform.

“I feel like the more he plays, the better he's going to get and the more of those natural things, those instinctive things that he does and has built inside of him, those keep coming out more and more each week,” Tom Allen said of Penix. “That's what we expect to happen. Even as the competition increases and intensity increases, you have to play at a high, high level.”

A high level indeed, as this Cincinnati defense is no joke. Opponents scored more than 24 points just once last season and they have forced five turnovers thus far this season. They are allowing just 10.5 points per game, while scoring 45.5. The Bearcats are top-ten in the FBS in both passing yards allowed and third-down conversion rates.

“He's [Penix] got to go play and work through it,” Allen continued. “That's part of what we're going through right now. I think you're seeing growth.”