For the second time in as many years, the Indiana Hoosiers are headed to a bowl under head coach Tom Allen.
However, it will not be a prominent New Year's Six Bowl, as the Hoosiers were relegated to the Outback Bowl, where they will take on the Southeastern Conference's Mississippi Rebels, on Jan. 2 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla. It will mark the first time the Hoosiers and Rebels have played each other. In an interesting twist, it will be a homecoming of sorts for Allen, who served as linebackers coach and special teams coordinator from 2012 to 2014.
The Bowl marks the second Florida bowl game for the Hoosiers, who fell 23-22 last year against Tennessee in the Gator Bowl. For Allen, this is his third bowl game with the Hoosiers, as he replaced Kevin Wilson prior to Indiana's trip in Foster Farms Bowl.
Indiana's last bowl win came in 1991, as then-coach Bill Mallory led the Hoosiers past Baylor in the Copper Bowl. Since then, the Hoosiers have dropped five bowl games.
The Mississippi Rebels are coached by first-year coach Lane Kiffin, who had previous stops at Southern California, Tennessee and Florida Atlantic.
The Rebels finished their season 4-5 overall and 4-5 in the SEC after falling 53-48 Saturday against LSU in a game that featured six turnovers by Mississippi.
In the game, Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corrall was 15-of-27 for 251 yards and three touchdowns, while adding 158 yards on 17 carries, but a fumble late in the fourth quarter did the Rebels in.
Mississippi wide receiver Braylon Sanders paced the Rebels with four receptions for 70 yards and two trips to the end zone. Freshman running back Henry Parrish picked up 82 yards on 16 carries and two touchdowns. Defensively, Ole Miss was guided by Lakia Henry and his 12 stops.
The Rebels gave up a total of 593 total yards of offense against LSU, including 435 from quarterback Max Johnson.
As for the Hoosiers, Allen guided Indiana to a 6-1 record in a shortened season, which was a historical one for Indiana.
During the 2020 season, the Hoosiers defeated Penn State, Michigan and Michigan State for the first time in program history, won at Wisconsin for the first time in 19 years and was one of two teams to earn three wins over Top 25 programs this season.
However, Indiana has not played since winning 14-6 at Wisconsin on Dec. 5 as Covid-19 positive tests forced the Hoosiers to shut down operations and cancel the Old Oaken Bucket game against Purdue twice.
On the season, Indiana lost six players due to season-ending injuries, including starting quarterback Michael Penix, who tore his ACL against Maryland.
Indiana's defense has led the way this season, as the Hoosiers had the fourth best defense in the Big Ten, giving up an average of 19.4 points per game.
Linebacker Micah McFadden leads the unit, and he has amassed 52 total tackles and five sacks on the season on his way to being named to the First Team All-Big Ten defensive group. Cornerback Tiawan Mullen was a first-team selection by the media, along with safety Jamar Johnson and defensive tackle Jerome Johnson.
The Hoosiers led the Big Ten Conference in interceptions (17), sacks (23), and red-zone defense (57.9-percent conversion rate). Both the interception total and the red-zone defensive rate are the best in America.
Offensively, Indiana was third in the Big Ten in offense, averaging 30.1 points per game.
Running back Stevie Scott III is 10th in the Big Ten rushing category, amassing 462 yards and eight touchdowns on the season. He is averaging 66 yards per game.
Wide receiver Ty Fryfogle has been the primary target for Indiana quarterbacks, as he has reeled in 34 catches for 687 yards and seven touchdowns. He is averaging just under 100 yards a game. Fellow wide receiver Whop Philyor caught 36 passes for 414 yards and three touchdowns.
Quarterback Jack Tuttle is 18-of-27 on the season for 161 yards and two touchdowns. At the time of his injury, Penix was leading the Big Ten Conference in passing, throwing for 1,645 yards and 14 touchdowns on 124-of-220 passing.
Tom Allen gave his reaction to the announcement:
“It is a tremendous honor to play in the 35th Outback Bowl against a great opponent in Ole Miss,” Indiana head coach Tom Allen said. “Our players, coaching staff, medical staff and everyone associated with our team worked hard to navigate through this difficult season, and I am so happy everyone is getting rewarded for their efforts. Making our second-straight January bowl game shows where we are at as a program, and we are not done yet. We look forward to one more opportunity to represent Hoosier Nation! LEO.”
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