3/21/2021 football Edit

Expectations high for Hoosiers in 2021

Paul Gable • TheHoosier

Staff Writer

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With the first week of spring practice in the rearview mirror, Indiana head football coach Tom Allen and his Hoosiers continue to march towards the opener at Iowa on Sept. 4.

And, they do so knowing they cannot rest of the success of a season ago, which saw Indiana knock off Penn State, Michigan, Michigan State and Wisconsin on its way to a 6-2 season that ended with a disappointing loss to Ole Miss in the Outback Bowl.

That loss has served as plenty of motivation for Indiana, according to Allen.

"One thing I think people misunderstand from one season to the next is you just assume because we came close in the fourth quarter against Ohio State, you can’t fall into that trap. You have to recreate that culture, work harder. We have certain goals to chase. Do I expect us to compete for a Big Ten championship? Absolutely. That is what we are chasing after. To get there it is going to be a lot of hard work and a lot of things we haven’t done before in the offseason. Excited, but we have to keep building. I want this football team to be great and when you play in the Big Ten, greatness is defined by one thing and that is winning a Big Ten championship," Allen said.

His players have adhered to that message, as well.

Wide receiver and All-American Ty Fryfogle told the media recently that he and his teammates have plenty to prove.

“This football team, I feel like, we still left some stuff on the table,” Fryfogle said. “We got a lot more that we can accomplish. The future is bright for this team. We’re getting better each and every day. We just started spring ball. We’ve got 15 opportunities to get better and build off of what we did last season. I feel like we can accomplish anything we want to this season.”

Cam Jones echoed those thoughts, saying the 26-20 loss to the Ole Miss Rebels in the Outback Bowl has the Hoosiers fired up.

"The defense, offense and this team are all in. I remember my freshman year, coach Allen gave us a chip said all in and if you were all in, you put it in a bucket. We are all in. Last season didn’t end way we wanted," Jones said.

In case the team forgets, Allen is right there to remind them that while there has been success, there is still plenty left to be accomplished.

"We aren’t going to be better just because we are a year older. We have to work now. We haven’t done anything. We haven’t won the Big Ten East, haven’t won the Big Ten. Have we gotten better? Yes. Have we finished higher? Yes, but we haven’t won a bowl game. Lot of things we haven’t done and to me there's a lot of fire and passion in me to keep building this thing. We have to keep building this thing. Keep developing, keep recruiting, keep believing and that just doesn’t stop. Our one word for 2021 is chase. We are chasing greatness here at Indiana University," Allen said.