TheHoosier.com's staff provides their predictions, in roundtable format, ahead of Indiana's week two matchup versus Western Illinois.
JIM COYLE
Week 1 was not perfect for the Hoosiers, but it was a win that was never in question. That is not something that Indiana fans have gotten to see much of lately, even vs lower tier teams, but something they should expect to see again this week vs Western Illinois because they are just not a good football team. Last Saturday Curt Cignetti new look offense appeared smooth and collected to start the game vs FIU, but several pesky penalties got in the way of Curt Cignetti getting the "dominant" win that he would have prefered. The running game was pretty damn good. As a matter of fact it is the best Indiana has looked in quite some time. To put it in perspective, for the "running team" IU was supposed to be last season, the Hoosiers top 3 individual rushing games for all of the 2023 season came to a grand total of 237 yards, while averaging 1.1 TD/ game. In Curt Cignetti's debut game vs FIU the Hoosiers had three running backs (Green 82, Lawton 74, Ellison 68) total 224 yards on the ground along with 3 rushing TD's! That's a difference my friends. The passing game was solid, but so-so after getting stymied by too many penalties that should be cleaned up this week.
Defensively there is always room for improvement, but holding a team to 185 yards that included one 75 yard drive is pretty impressive. There are things to be cleaned up, but I am not sure that Western Illinois has the mustard to mount more of an attack than FIU did to stress either side of the ball for Indiana. This should be a blowout not seen in Bloomington in a very long time. In the last two seasons Indiana has won a total of 7 games, and 6 of those 7 were by an average of 6 points, the other was a 41-7 W over ISU in 2022.
Prediction Indiana wins 49-0
ZACH BROWNING
In week two, Indiana welcomes one of the worst team in all of Division I over the last handful of years. Western Illinois has gone 'defeated' in each of the last two seasons, and has won just four of its last 51 contests. The Hoosiers should have no problem dispatching the Leathernecks, however the scoreline won't be the measuring stick for success in this game. The cream and crimson should dominate in every facet of the game on Friday night. This should also present itself as a prime opportunity to see what Indiana may have as far as depth is concerned on both sides of the ball. I wouldn't expect the starters to play more than three quarters, if that, in this contest. A clean, mistake-free performance should set the Hoosiers up well to begin conference play the following weekend at the Rose Bowl.
Prediction: Indiana wins 48-6
JOSH POS
There is a sizable gap between Indiana and Western Illinois. This one is going to be ugly and it's going to get like that quite fast on Friday night. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see the depth guys enter the game at some point early on in the game, perhaps even as early as the second quarter. This week was supposed to feature a matchup with Louisville, however IU backed out of the contest, opting for an FCS opponent in Western Illinois. I don't think this one will be close and it probably shouldn't be close.
Prediction: Indiana wins 63-0
COLIN MCMAHON
As everyone has already said, the Hoosiers should win this one and win it decisively. Look for the pass game to have a bounce back game in the first half, but for the second stringers to take over after that. Tyler Cherry could possibly get some snaps at QB, song with other true freshman and even some walk ons. All in all, when it comes to a score prediction it’s a matter of guessing if Western Illinois will score and my guess is yes, as I believe the leathernecks will get one garbage time touchdown.
Prediction: Indiana wins 56-7
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