Indiana head coach Tom Allen talked to the media from inside Memorial Stadium on Wednesday, the first day of the NLI signing period, to react to his program's 2020 class and to discuss the state fo the program as it enters spring ball.
Coy Cronk, Peyton Ramsey transfers
Allen was asked about the departures of tackle Coy Cronk and quarterback Peyton Ramsey, as they’ve both entered their names into the transfer portal, and it was clear that Allen wasn’t getting into details about either situation. He kept his answer short.
“Those guys did it the right way,” Allen said. “Talked to me face-to-face. And just appreciate Coy and Peyton for all their hard work and what they gave to this program and wish them nothing but the best moving forward.”
Allen comfortable with QB numbers, Mike Penix progressing
With quarterback injuries gutting many of the Big Ten quarterback rooms in 2019, it could sometimes feel as if teams could never have enough quarterbacks on the roster. Pair that with the ever-changing landscape for quarterback transfers as the transfer portal expands, considering the number of scholarship quarterbacks on hand is a process nearly every team goes through in the offseason.
Allen said he’s comfortable with the current situation set up for the 2020 season – Mike Penix starting with Jack Tuttle, Dexter Williams and walk-ons backing him up. He also noted that Williams, a mid-year freshman, is catching the eye of the training staff and has already begun working on passes with the receivers.
What has Allen more encouraged is the approach Penix has taken to the offseason. He’s been cleared for practice, and when Allen asked the strength staff for a top-five performers list after returning from the recruiting trail, the staff mentioned Penix on that list.
“He'll be in those practices, and getting a lot of reps and going full bore with the team and doing everything, no limitations,” Allen said.
That does differ from Penix’s spring last year, as he was recovering from his ACL injury. The redshirt freshman quarterback was not able to participate “full-bore” and could only perform in seven-on-seven settings.
He also said Penix is getting closer to 220 pounds. He measured in at 202 pounds in 2019. Allen said there is a plan put in place for him to be as physically prepared as possible by the summer.
Actives, inactives for spring
With Penix’s clearances being the biggest note in injury news Wednesday, Allen also listed some players who are expected to be inactive or limited during spring ball.
– Peyton Hendershot will be inactive in the spring.
– Stevie Scott “should be fine.”
– Thomas Allen and Josh Snguinetti are both expected to be limited as they continue to recover from their season-ending injuries.
– Jeramy Passmore is on the back-end of recovering from some injuries and will be limited, but Allen is encouraged by his progress.
– CJ Person is recovering from some minor injuries suffered during the season and will be limited as well.
Florida, other areas Tom Allen would like to hit in recruiting
When quickly making a pass through the 2020 signees list, what jumps out first is that no signee hails from Florida, which is an area that Indiana has found some of its best talent in recent classes. Allen said in Jacksonville that he and the staff have such strong connections to Florida that they approach Florida with an in-state recruiting strategy, assigning specific coaches to certain areas of the state.
But Allen, obviously, wasn’t content with the way that played out in the 2020 class and said it can be a cyclical thing but that it won’t affect the way they approach the state moving forward.
He also stressed a need to hit the state of Indiana first. That makes sense considering the strength of Indiana’s 2021 class and after the Hoosiers already landed a commitment from 2021 No. 7 in-state prospect Rodney McGraw. Then, he wants to branch out to the South.
“I want to get the best players out of Indiana to come to IU and be part of this and branch out from there,” Allen said. “We have a specific goal that we have for this program. And if you go through and look and see how our team has been shaped and the guys that are making plays and doing great things, a lot of those guys have come from the South.”
One of those areas in the South that he wants to hit is Nashville.
“Nashville, we've targeted it as an area that we feel like we probably haven't got as much out of as we would like to,” Allen said. “So moving forward, kind of target that more a little bit, moving into the next class and beyond. And continue to hit the parts of Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and Florida. Those are the ones that we have focused on and kind of spot recruit the Mississippi, Alabama areas, and then really aggressive in Georgia and Florida. So that won't change.”
These claims have played out in the net Indiana cast in 2021, 2022 and 2023 offers made in recent weeks. Most of those offers hit areas of Georgia and Tennessee, and an overwhelming number of those offers hit Florida areas.
New safeties coach Jason Jones also said he has strong connections to Nashville and will be recruiting that area often.
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