The moment has finally arrived and the countdown is well underway to Oct. 24 and Indiana’s season opener against Penn State. A season ago, the Hoosiers and head coach Tom Allen achieved a winning season, going 8-5 and enter the 2020 season with not only high hopes, but also high expectations, regardless of how many total games they will play.
“We have a lot of good players. I am excited about it, and that is why I wanted to play this season. We could have the best team we have had here in a long time,” Allen told TheHoosier.com earlier this month.
With talent like Michael Penix back at quarterback and the likes of Stevie Scott, Whop Philyor, Peyton Hendershot and a defense that brings back eight of 11 starters, could this be a magical year for the Hoosiers?
Anything is possible, including these five bold predictions.
1. Michael Penix will lead Indiana to new heights
A season ago, Michael Penix earned the starting quarterback position as a freshman for the Hoosiers. As has been well-documented, injuries got the best of Penix and Peyton Ramsey took over and did pretty well considering. Ramsey threw for 2,454 yards and 13 touchdowns while showing not only a command of the offense but veteran leadership down the stretch. But that is gone now, and it truly is Penix’s team, and Allen has made it crystal clear that the expectations surrounding Penix are high.
And, they should be. He showed last year against Michigan State just how good he truly can be, torching the Spartans for 286 yards and three touchdowns through the air and another 119 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. For the season, he set the program’s single-season completion mark at 68.8 percent and was 110-of-160 for 1,394 yards, 10 touchdowns and four interceptions. Fans should not fret that Penix hasn’t worked exclusively with newly minted offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan or that he didn’t get a true spring practice season in. Nor, should they be worried about his durability anymore as Penix has taken steps to get stronger and learned how to make good decisions and be smart about staying healthy.
Look, if he were a true freshman coming into the season with this bizarre offseason, there would be plenty of reason to be concerned, but he’s not. He is familiar with Sheridan, he spent the offseason working out with Philyor and others and he’s added about 15 pounds of muscle. Now, that’s not to say he won’t struggle some in his first season at the helm. But, Penix is as good as advertised and it won’t be long before everyone outside of the locker room at Memorial Stadium sees it.
2. Indiana opens with a win over Penn State
Told you the predictions were bold, but just hang on for a second. A season ago, Indiana went on the road to Happy Valley and had the Nittany Lions on the ropes the entire game before falling 34-27. Indiana overcame fumbles, a bad fake punt and a dropped touchdown pass to almost score the upset. Despite all that, the Hoosiers still finished with more total yards, more first downs and were 7-of-13 on third downs against one of the premier defenses in the country.
Don’t forget all that was done without Whop Philyor, who was knocked out of the game on a helmet to helmet collision. Look, I get Penn State is the odds-on favorite to dethrone Ohio State. I get that Penn State enters with Sean Clifford back under center, and he averaged just under 255 yards per game last year. I get that Journey Brown is back and he rushed for 202 yards in the Cotton Bowl. And, I get that Penn State hasn’t lost to Indiana since 2013.
But, what I also know is this – Penn State will be breaking in a new offensive coordinator and assistant coaches who have not had a true offseason to work with their players. Furthermore, Penn State is coming to Indiana to open the season. If the game were later in the season and Penn State’s coordinator and assistant had a few weeks of games and practices under their belts, I’d feel differently, but this is the year Indiana gets it done. Put me down for Indiana to win 35-30.
3. Indiana will finish the season ranked
Last season was a magical one for the Hoosiers, as they were ranked for the first time since 1994. Sadly, it lasted less than a week. However, that was last year, and this year features plenty of opportunities to build a resume worthy of a ranking.
If Indiana were to knock off Penn State in the opener and run its record to 4-0 or 3-1 heading into the road contest at Ohio State, the Hoosiers will definitely be ranked and could be a team Ryan Day and the Buckeyes have to take very seriously in what promises to be a quiet Horseshoe. After that, there are winnable games on the docket against the likes of Maryland and Purdue with Wisconsin sandwiched inbetween. Should Indiana reel off six or seven wins, they will be ranked.
4. Hoosiers will win the Old Brass Spittoon and the Old Oaken Bucket
Yes, that means I am predicting the Hoosiers to beat both Michigan State and Purdue this season. Honestly, it should have happened last year. Indiana fans can point to the breakdowns against Tennessee in the Gator Bowl all day, but I will keep mentioning the fact the breakdown against Michigan State was inexcusable. To have a 24-21 lead in the game and then tie the game at 31-31 late only to fall on a Matt Coghlin field goal and see Michigan State score on a fumble recovery as time expired is inexcusable.
Penix showed what he can do last year, and that was coming off a week where he didn’t practice. Michigan State has a new coach, Rocky Lombardi back at quarterback and Elijah Collins, who is extremely tough. However, the Spartans bring back three starters on a defense that will have a new coordinator. As for Purdue, Allen got the monkey off the back last year by knocking off Purdue in epic fashion.
The Hoosiers showed characteristics of their coach – heart and grit – in the victory, which came without Stevie Scott in the backfield. Peyton Ramsey was hands down the biggest reason why the Bucket came back to Bloomington, as he threw for 337 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for two more scores. And, while he’s gone, one can expect Allen to not want to let go of the Bucket, especially with the game at home and with the game meaning so much in terms of seeding for the new championship weekend format.
Last year, Indiana beat Purdue for the first time since 2016. This season, Indiana will beat Michigan State for the first time since 2016.
5. Indiana wins a bowl game
Probably not that bold of a prediction for a team that should have won the Gator Bowl last year and the Pinstripe Bowl a few seasons before that, but when you haven’t done something since 1991, it becomes bold. Several very early projections have Indiana in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. Regardless of what bowl they play in, the Hoosiers will win.
Last year’s blown Gator Bowl against Tennessee, which featured a complete meltdown in coaching down the stretch, will be plenty of motivation for this team. Allen and Co. are taking steps to move this program forward and winning a bowl game will be a huge step.
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