@kkott Never know how a group is going to handle an environment like tomorrows will be, until they're in it. Cig's first IU team didn't handle it well. Cig's 2nd IU team did. Hope this one is more like last year's team, in that regard, than his first IU team.
Hoover's stats, and record, on the road against P4 opponents, before IU wasn't overly great.
Over 15 road P4 games at TCU...
Averaged 25/40 for 295 yards... 23TD/20INT (yuck)... Record of 7-8.
Now... as Cig famously pointed out, he has a better defense, and a better running game, helping him out at Indiana. And his first P4 road test at IU, he was 20/27 for 251 yards, with 4TD and no interceptions. Rutgers environment appeared to be pretty decent, early. But nothing like what Nebraska will present.
I agree with you overall though... if Hoover, and the offense can be efficient early on. Get some first downs, not turn it over, get the running game going... At a minimum, force Nebraska to have to put together long, sustained drives to score on us... we'll be fine. Turnovers, 3 and outs, poor special teams play giving Nebraska points and/or short field... and that's how IU loses. Its the only way Cig coached IU teams have lost.
@iunorth Not worried about Hoovers #s from TCU. Lots of his games they were giving up 35+ pts and he had to carry the team and throw the ball. Just like the interceptions, playing with a better team, with better D and balance offensively, will yield different results all around. The numbers for NB however, are so overwhelming, it does start to make you question if it's an anomaly or something more. But, more what I was getting at, is the fans know, and have experienced all that first hand. If we can gain control of the game, I think they'll be that much quicker to be silenced
I consider Hoover in Bloomington a different kind of animal than the Hoover at TCU.
@kkott Never know how a group is going to handle an environment like tomorrows will be, until they're in it. Cig's first IU team didn't handle it well. Cig's 2nd IU team did. Hope this one is more like last year's team, in that regard, than his first IU team.
On last night's coach show, he talked about how they've worked on silent count. Lessons learned from Ahia St. They worked on it in Spring and Fall Camp, plus the last weeks, including piped in noise. Then he talked about how, with the helmet being in play, they could make adjustments more easily if they thought they needed to change it up mid-drive.
Hope is not optimism, which expects things to turn out well, but something rooted in the conviction that there is good worth working for. - Seamus Heaney, Irish poet and likely Hoosier basketball fan.
POTFB
This game makes me nervous for a bunch of reasons. Nebraska is going to give us their A+ game. This is a big game for Hoover, we will see how he does in a hostile environment. The boys will be put through a ton of adversity, and I really want to see them dominate tomorrow.
Husker QB performance comes down to this, who is the best coordinator to develop a gameplan for his unit to execute. Haines is the best DC in CFB. Holgorsen is not the best OC in the CFB. Also believe IU has the advantage with ST's.
Holgerson was great. Until the 4th quarter after Haines had been containing Colandrea and forcing him to throw, he practically stopped calling QB runs.Holgorsen is not the best OC in the CFB
Even not letting Colandrea get big runs on us, his legs were by far the best weapon. Each time he did a standard drop back and start scanning the field in the mid-fourth, I was so happy! Should've had more designed runs for him. Could have picked up 4-5 with our DBs covering like they were and four rushers.