2014 Week 1 Preview: Indiana State
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Indiana State looks to throw a wrench in the Hoosiers' season opener in 2014
Written By Sammy Jacobs
We are finally under 90 days until the kick off of the Hoosier football season and we are bringing back the weekly preview for every game on the Indiana schedule. Here we go for week one and Indiana State.
Week 1: Indiana State Sycamores
Time & Date: TBD, Saturday, Aug. 30th
Venue: Memorial Stadium (Bloomington, IN)
TV: TBD
Sycamores at a Glance:
Head Coach: Mike Sanford (Second Year)
Last Season: 1-11 (0-8)
2013 Match-up
Sycamore Returning Leaders:
Passing: Mike Perish (57.2%, 1586 Yds, 14 TD, 10 INT)
Rushing: Buck Logan (609Yds, 4.9 Avg, 1 TD)
Receiving: Kyani Harris (265 Yds, 20.3 Avg, 3 TD)
Preseason Magazine Predictions:
Sporting News: 10th in the Missouri Valley Conference
Why the Sycamores could win:
Indiana State had a disastrous first year under coach Mike Sanford going winless in conference, so giving them a shot to win this game will have to do more with what the Hoosiers might not do than what the Sycamores can do. The Hoosiers will be breaking in a new defensive scheme and a new offensive coordinator. If Indiana cannot get a handle early on this team and let the Sycamores hang around, the boys from Terre Haute may have a shot. Indiana State also adds two transfers from Cincinnati in quarterback Patrick Coyne and running back Deionte Buckley. These two could add much needed fire power to an offense that lost its top three weapons.
Why They Won’t Pull it Off:
Indiana State loses their stud running back Shakir Bell and two top receivers to graduation, mix in the fact that the Hoosiers scored a Memorial Stadium record 73 points in this match-up last season. The Hoosiers have a brand new defense that can’t be worse than they have been the last three years. In addition the defense does return 10 of 11 starters from 2013. The Hoosiers return star receiver Shane Wynn as well as both quarterbacks, and two very good running backs in Tevin Coleman and D’Angelo Roberts. Indiana should be able to score at will.
Final Analysis:
Can the Hoosiers duplicate their offensive performance from 2013 in this game? Probably not, but look for Indiana to start the season off with a bang. Brian Knorr brings the new 3-4 defense to Bloomington, which should help improve a defense that gave up 21 points last year in the 73-35 victory. The Hoosiers don’t have to deal with Shakir Bell anymore who gave them fits the last two seasons in Bloomington. Indiana will also be getting a look at some new offensive weapons and hopefully will have their quarterback situation ironed out before kick off. Kevin Wilson’s squad should start the season on a high note with another large margin of victory as the Hoosiers just have more firepower than the Sycamores can handle.