Game one is in the books and the Hoosiers will have another opportunity against a non-conference foe this weekend as the 2025 season is officially under way. This week, the Hoosiers will welcome the Kennesaw State Owls to Bloomington for the two program’s first ever matchup between one another. The Owls are in their second season at the FBS level.
Last week, the Hoosiers saw the run game power much of their offensive attack, compiling over 300 yards on the ground against Old Dominion. On the other hand, Kennesaw State enters the game having narrowly lost on the road at Power Four foe Wake Forest, and the Owls saw a lot of success in their ability to stop the run. Though many eyes will be tuned in to see Dexter Williams’ return to Indiana, my matchup to watch this week is the Indiana run game against the Kennesaw State rush defense.
Though Wake Forest is not expected to be a strong team in this year’s ACC, I’m sure they went into the game against Kennesaw State thinking they would have their way at the line of scrimmage. Instead, the Owls limited Wake Forest to just 2.8 yards per carry on 47 rushing attempts. They limited explosive plays as well, only allowing three rushes of more than 10 yards. Linebacker Baron Hopson led the Owls with 11 tackles, including a half tackle for loss.
“[On] defense, guys run around good,” said Curt Cignetti about the Owls during his opening statement of his Monday press conference. “I’m impressed. I mean, they’re fundamental. They’re well coached. They’re in the right place. They run around good. They tackle. They’re tough. So, the guy’s done a nice job there.”
For Indiana, going up against this rush defense will be the three-headed attack we saw last week of Kaelon Black, Roman Hemby, and Lee Beebe Jr. All three of these tailbacks ran for at least 4.8 yards per carry, totaling 276 yards on 51 carries between the trio. Only Black was able to find the endzone, however, as Indiana struggled in redzone and goal-to-go situations.
“At the running back position, they rotated and played a couple of guys, but all those guys did a heck of a job breaking tackles,” said Owls head coach Jerry Mack. “They really imposed their will up front on ODU; rushed for over 300 yards. Just from a standpoint of all phases of offensive football, they have a chance to beat you running the ball, they can beat you through the air, so you really have to be oiled up in all your coverages, techniques, and schemes.”
The Hoosiers kick off against the Owls Saturday on Merchants Bank Field at Memorial Stadium at 12:00 EST.