Game Day Primer: Indiana Hoosiers vs. Idaho Vandals
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Week Two Primer – Idaho Vandals
Written by: TJ Inman (@TJHoosierHuddle)
What: Indiana Hoosiers (1-0) vs. Idaho Vandals (0-1)
When: Saturday, September 10 at 8:00 on BTN
Where: Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, IN
How to Watch: The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network and can be heard on the IU Radio Network.
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Series History: These two schools do not have a long history together. In fact, the only meeting between the two was last season as the Hoosiers rolled to a 56-14 win that was the high-water mark in an otherwise bitterly disappointing campaign. A lot has changed, for both teams, since that last meeting. Idaho has a new head coach that has injected a sense of energy and optimism into the Vandals program and IU largely turned over the roster that struggled a season ago. In short, the “history” between these two is near non-existent and entirely irrelevant.
What’s at Stake: For the second straight season, the Indiana Hoosiers will host the Idaho Vandals in week number two. This time, the Hoosiers will enter at 1-0 instead of coming off of a beatdown at Iowa. IU has some momentum after a successful season opener against Illinois and the schedule presents them with an opportunity to get to 3-0 at home before traveling to Cincinnati but they must take care of business against a much improved Idaho squad. Given the challenges ahead, IU cannot afford to take the Vandals lightly.
A FEW THINGS TO LOOK FOR
1. Will the Hoosiers Be Able to Run the Ball?
The Illinois Fighting Illini mostly stacked the box and made Indiana entirely one-dimensional. That plan largely worked until the last drive of the game. IU’s offensive line was a major concern entering the season and while the pass blocking looked improved in the opener, the run blocking remains a huge question mark. Indiana now needs to replace starting right tackle Matthew Bedford and try to find a way to generate a balanced attack. If that is going to come in 2022, it needs to get started against Idaho as Washington State was able to generate 5.7 yards per carry and 215 yards on the ground in their week one contest. IU gained a miserable 1.23 yards per carry as both Shaun Shivers and Josh Henderson struggled to find any space to operate. Will Jaylin Lucas get some action? Can the Hoosiers find some schemes that help create a functional running attack?
2. Bring the Pressure
The “Tom Allen Defense” IU fans remembered fondly was mostly back in the season opener on Friday night. Allen took over play-calling duties after the disappointing 2021 season and brought in Chad Wilt as a co-defensive coordinator and the change was immediately evident. The Hoosiers were back to forcing turnovers, bringing pressure and playing with the heart and intensity Tom Allen demands. Saturday night against Idaho could present another opportunity to put a lot of pressure on the opposing quarterback. Idaho’s Gevani McCoy was 21 of 32 for 212 yards but he threw two interceptions and was sacked seven times by the Washington State Cougars in the Vandals season opener. McCoy will likely be faced with a heavy dose of blitzes from players like Cam Jones and the Idaho offensive line will need to hold up better than it did against the Cougars.
3. Explosive Plays
IU fans hardly remembered what explosive plays on offense looked like as the 2021 season was completely bereft of them. Things were quite different on Friday night against Illinois. The Hoosiers had four pass plays of longer than 20 yards including a 52-yard touchdown strike from Connor Bazelak to DJ Matthews. New offensive coordinator felt that was encouraging but knew there was a chance for so much more: “I say we left three or four giant chunk plays on the field, kind of what we call game-altering plays. There’s probably four hundred-some yards that we left on the field overall,” Bell told the media on Tuesday. The increased speed and shiftiness of the wide receivers at IU from a season ago was noticeable and Bell put the Hoosiers in a position to succeed. Will the offense be able to repeat the big-play success they had in week one? If that can become a trend and partner with Tom Allen’s defense, the Hoosiers will become a dangerous team once again.