Football is finally in the air! As we slowly countdown the days until kickoff the Big Ten Network is airing their annual season preview show, starting with the Indiana Hoosiers.  The show gives viewers an insider look at practice while also discussing the strengths, weaknesses, and the expectations for the 2013 Indiana Hoosiers.  We are here to decipher what is false hype, coach speak, and just plain old politics from what the actual expectations for Hoosier football are for the upcoming season.

The expectations for the Hoosiers are as high as they have ever been in the last decade for this team.  Big Ten Network analyst and former Hoosier head coach Gerry Dinardo claims that this team “could absolutely be the best Indiana team since they went to a bowl game in 2007.”  While that does not say very much about the 2013 squad analyst Howard Griffith added that the Hoosiers “have a chance to do some special things.”  Hold on a second, is this really happening? Someone is buying into the Hoosiers being good on the football field? As bizarre as this may sound, yes many people are pegging the Hoosiers as the surprise team in the Big Ten.  Current Hoosier head coach Kevin Wilson is not quite buying into the external expectations for his team saying, “I don’t know if we get a lot of credit, so we try and stroke the chip on our shoulder.” Although this may be seen as Wilson just playing dumb with the media, it is a smart maneuver for the Hoosiers.  He knows they were not good last year even though the team showed improvement, and he wants his team to play with the same “we don’t get any respect” edge that many successful underdogs implore.  Wilson is even less transparent about what defines success for this team, stating “we don’t talk about a game, or a number of wins, or a bowl game.  You can be a bowl team at 6-6 and lose that game and end (the season) with a losing record.” I don’t by into the thinking of this team can be deemed a success without going to a bowl game.  It is the third season under Wilson and it is time for this team to make tangible improvements, have something to put in the trophy case in Bloomington.