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After Indiana's blowout win over Nebraska, morale and expectations are both at an all time, yet the Washington Huskies come into town poised to pull off an upset.

While Washington lost the vast majority of its national runner-up team from a year ago, the Huskies are still hungry for a signature win on their resume and a dub at Indiana would be exactly what they are looking for.

Given that, here are three keys to Indiana to avoid the upset and secure its eighth win of 2024 in as many games.

This is becoming the norm for Indiana but, once again, pounding the run is a key to winning, this time perhaps more than ever.

With a Heisman candidate, Kurtis Rourke, sidelined with a thumb injury, Tayven Jackson will start in his place, naturally increasing the importance of the run game.

That's not to say Jackson is inadequate, he's the opposite actually, as he came in and played a great half of football against Nebraska, but it still makes sense to have a run-first approach with a backup QB under center.

Especially against Washington, pounding the run will be key, as the Huskies currently rank first in the nation in pass yards allowed per game at 127.2 yards, while ranking fourth in yards allowed per pass at 5.1 yards.

This are extraordinary numbers, especially compared to Washington's rush defense, which currently rank 57th and 62nd in those categories on the rushing side, allowing 141.3 rushing yards per game and 4.2 yards per rush.

This means that IU can expose the weak link of the Huskies defense, while also not putting too much pressure on Jackson to be the hero.

Justice Ellison and Ty Son Lawton both had great games against Nebraska, with Ellison particularly impressive with over 100 yards and two touchdowns against a run defense that was ranked in the top ten before the game.

This should result in similar, or even more success against Washington, making this a very important key to beating the Huskies.

Will Rogers is the focal point of this Washington offense, and for good reason, as the Mississippi State transfer is extremely talented, making containing him a critical key for a Hoosier victory,

Rogers ranks as the fourth most accurate passer in the country at 72.2 percent, while also ranking at 23rd in the country with 260 yard passing per game and ranks 14th in passer efficiency.

This put Rogers in the upper echelon of quarterbacks in FBS, posing a unique challenge to the Hoosiers, as they have not faced any QB nearly as efficient as Rogers.

Rogers, though, does not like to get out of the pocket much and is not a rushing threat, meaning that if IU can keep him off balance and force him to make plays with his legs, the defense should be in good shape.

This is what we saw with the Hoosiers last week against Dylan Raiola, meaning that if the IU defense can replicate that performance, putting pressure on rogers similar to Raiola, expect to see Rogers have an off game.

In addition, the Washington rushing game isn't the strongest, with the Huskies not having a 100 yard rusher since the Rutgers game over three weeks ago, making limiting Roger's play the most important thing for the Hoosier defense.

While this key may seem contradictory to the first, I think they can both go hand-in-hand, as pounding the run doesn't necessarily mean that Tayven Jackson cant make plays with his arm, or legs either.

Running the ball frequently should also help Jackson make plays, as when Jackson pulls back the ball in a play action, the Washington defense may not see it coming, resulting in a chunk throw from Jackson.

While he only threw eight passes against Nebraska, Jackson went 7-for-8 and looked good doing so. He also threw two touchdowns, one being a marvelous throw to Elijah Sarratt where he put it exactly in Sarratt's basket where only he could catch it for a TD.

Jackson also had two rushes in the game, going for 21 yards and a 10.5 yard average, If he could keep up those scrambling numbers, don't be surprised if he makes some plays with his legs in addition to his arm.

Overall, even as a backup, Jackson is very talented and, while he may not posses the skills Rourke has, the coaching staff should still let hm do his thing, as the redshirt sophomore can certainly make plays and lead his Hoosiers to a victory and an 8-0 record.

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