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For the second consecutive offseason, Indiana has hired a new defensive coordinator. This time Indiana is coming off of a 2-10 season in which it failed to win a single Big Ten game.

After Charlton Warren left for North Carolina, the Hoosiers moved quickly to bring on board Chad Wilt to fill the open spot.

Wilt has spent nearly 30 years on defensive staff across all of college football and brings a very similar mindset of Allen's to Indiana.

"To be here with Coach Allen and our relationship and how we match and align our character, the values, the belief system that Coach has for his program is something that I'm humbled to be a part of," Wilt said during his introductory press conference on Sunday.

While Indiana's offense struggled in big ways in 2021, the defense wasn't much better. That unit gave up a league-worst 33.1 points per game -- up from 20.3 in 2020. A big reason for that was lack of turnovers.

Last year Indiana led the Big Ten and was one of the top teams in the country with 17 interceptions in eight games. This year, IU slipped to last in the conference with just five interceptions. Indiana also gave up 384.1 yards per game -- 10th in the Big Ten in 2021.

Wilt was part of a Minnesota defensive unit that gave up just 278.8 yards per game -- second in the Big Ten.

Coming to Indiana, Wilt will help run the defense, but will also be in charge of the linebackers. Wilt has never been a defensive coordinator but his knowledge and success running the defensive line has given Allen a great deal of confidence in his ability to improve this defense. And that starts with getting takeaways.

“When you talk about the takeaways, the tackling, the effort, that defensive DNA, that's not going to change,” Wilt said.

However, that DNA of Indiana will go back to its routes -- Tom Allen. The seventh-year head coach announced on Sunday that he will be resuming the defensive play-calling duties, something he gave up a few years ago.

“(Chad Wilt) will be our defensive coordinator, but I will be calling the defense,” Allen said. “It's something that we're going to be doing a little bit different.

“It's something I've been thinking about for a little bit and just as these things transpire, just felt like it's what -- it was time. There's just a certain product I want on the field for that side of the football. And the system hasn't changed."

For Wilt, it's about adding to that system and bringing with him the success he's had at multiple stops in the past.

"As you look at how we're going to be structured and how we're built, this is the Indiana way, right? The Indiana system," Wilt said. "The things that we're going to value, as you said, you know, of being aggressive and really wanting our kids to feel comfortable and confident in the system, to know their system, to feel comfortable and confident in their fundamentals and their technique, all, right. Because when you can put those two things together, you know what to do and how to do it, build that through spring ball, preseason camp, then as you get into the season, it's going to allow them to really learn and study and know their opponent.

"If you can build them to the point where they know their opponent -- I used to work with somebody who used to say 'think players first, plays second'. And making sure our guys, again, understand their system, have a confidence and belief in that, have a confidence and belief in their fundamentals and technique. Then to be able to match that, how do we go attack an opponent. And then finally, the great defenses, they do those three things, and then they play with phenomenal effort passion. They play with passion. They play with physicality. I don't think that's going to really be a whole lot different."

Wilt knows how important the defensive line production is to being a good defense. That importance also tracks with the linebackers -- a group he will coach for the first time.

"We want to attack. We want to pin our ears back. We want to again create our havoc. That's your TFLs, your sacks, your pass breakups, your interceptions, your forced fumbles," Wilt said. "Then within that, now that allows you to get people off schedule, get them into the second and longs, get them into the third and longs, which you're going to be a way better defense on third and 8 than you are on third and 2, just statistically, no doubt about it. And you see that in the structure of the defense.”

Indiana will be returning a lot of its talent from a season ago. There will also be some holes to fill like every year.

With the secondary already built and experienced, it will come down to that front seven to step up and improve in order to reach the goals and expectations that Allen and Wilt have for the defense.

"... when you look at the front seven and run fits and understanding those things," Wilt said. "I've never considered myself a guy -- you know, when we got to pass skeleton film, I was taking off to go watch 1 on 1s. No. I was sitting in there, preparing, watching, studying, learning to become the best coach that I could be, not just defensive line coach, become the best coach I could be.

"One of the things that you see from the defense perspective is a group that they play hard. They play with a passion. I still want to challenge that group to continue to grow in that and take that next step.

"But you also see a group that doesn't play scared. Right? Talked earlier about, you know, the take-aways and creating havoc. Talk about creating havoc. And you see that within even the play calling structure.

But as Chad Wilt takes the field for the first time with this defense, he knows what needs to happen in order to get the most out of this unit... and that's something that goes deeper than the play calling or the schemes.

"... you've got to understand who that young man is. Everybody is different. You can't coach every young man the exact same," Wilt said. "You have to find, as Coach alluded to and talked about those relationships, taking the time to get to know them and what is going to motivate them, what is going to push them, what is going to challenge them."

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