Indiana: A TCY VC 2036

[3ric]

INDIANA: A TCY VC - Year 2036

Previous Seasons:
Indiana VC 2035 - cthomer5000
Indiana VC 2034 - Alf
Indiana VC 2033 - bigjdotcom01
Indiana VC 2032 - 3ric
Indiana VC 2031 - Cornhuskerly
Indiana VC 2030 - Alf
Indiana VC 2029 - bigjdotcom01
Indiana VC 2028 - 3ric
Indiana VC 2027 - Cornhuskerly
Indiana VC 2026 - Alf
Indiana VC 2025 - bigjdotcom01
Indiana VC 2024 - 3ric
Indiana VC 2023 - Cornhuskerly
Indiana VC 2022 - Alf
Indiana VC 2021 - 3ric
Indiana VC 2020 - Cornhuskerly
Indiana VC 2019 - Alf
Indiana VC 2018 - bigjdotcom01
Indiana VC 2017 - 3ric
Indiana VC 2016 - Cornhuskerly
Indiana VC 2015 - Alf
Indiana VC 2014 - bigjdotcom01
Indiana VC 2013 - 3ric
Indiana VC 2012 - Cornhuskerly
Indiana VC 2011 - Alf
Indiana VC 2010 - bigjdotcom01
Indiana VC 2009 - 3ric
Indiana VC 2008 - Alf
Indiana VC 2007 - bigjdotcom01
Indiana VC 2006 - RPI-Fan
Indiana VC 2005 - 3ric
Indiana VC 2004 - Alf
Indiana VC 2003 - andy m
Indiana VC 2002 - RPI-Fan
Indiana VC 2001 - 3ric

Coaching Performance:
Year  Team                  Record Post Rank Perf Acad Recr TV   Tick Don  Sco 
2035  Indiana               9-3    Yes  25   69   74   40   83   70   54   66     
2034  Indiana               8-3    No   21   75   75   41   73   68   81   72     
2033  Indiana               7-4    No   34   48   77   20   51   65   28   51     
2032  Indiana               9-3    Yes  23   66   77   17   82   72   50   64     
2031  Indiana               10-3   Yes  14   84   78   52   89   69   67   75     
2030  Indiana               13-2   Yes  10   93   81   56   60   72   54   74     
2029  Indiana               10-3   Yes  21   88   75   36   83   63   81   76     
2028  Indiana               6-5    No   54   31   78   8    16   55   31   41     
2027  Indiana               7-4    No   41   48   79   19   27   57   53   52     
2026  Indiana               8-3    No   31   83   81   89   83   56   74   77     
2025  Indiana               7-4    No   49   55   80   60   60   58   73   64     
2024  Indiana               7-4    No   47   78   79   80   26   56   78   69     
2023  Indiana               5-6    No   60   44   75   78   47   64   16   51     
2022  Indiana               7-4    No   53   43   75   13   42   65   65   54     
2021  Indiana               7-4    No   44   78   72   77   74   58   71   72     
2020  Indiana               6-5    No   59   75   70   98   64   55   74   71     
2019  Indiana               4-7    No   94   65   70   100  77   47   5    56     
2018  Indiana               2-9    No   111  2    70   41   2    39   26   28     
2017  Indiana               3-8    No   82   13   70   66   36   52   74   47     
2016  Indiana               4-7    No   84   12   70   57   74   61   4    39     
2015  Indiana               6-5    No   49   77   69   28   74   55   78   68     
2014  Indiana               3-8    No   90   9    66   5    25   56   2    28     
2013  Indiana               6-5    No   48   57   62   17   6    57   61   50     
2012  Indiana               7-4    No   45   56   62   8    23   60   61   51     
2011  Indiana               6-5    No   46   78   66   25   51   56   57   61     
2010  Indiana               6-5    No   51   77   69   100  78   52   75   73     
2009  Indiana               4-7    No   86   26   71   67   75   46   3    42     
2008  Indiana               5-6    No   71   74   71   100  4    48   75   64     
2007  Indiana               3-8    No   103  72   72   100  74   40   79   70     
2006  Indiana               1-10   No   117  1    73   98   28   36   0    31     
2005  Indiana               3-8    No   95   7    73   25   5    48   76   40     
2004  Indiana               4-7    No   80   14   64   93   76   60   10   42     
2003  Indiana               2-9    No   98   6    70   13   2    65   8    28     
2002  Indiana               6-5    No   45   78   74   45   80   67   74   72     
2001  Indiana               5-6    No   55   30   64   2    14   67   21   37


Post - Post-Season Appearance, Perf - Team Performance Score, Acad - Academic  
Performance Score, Recr - Recruiting Score, TV - Television Revenue Score,  
Tick - Ticket Revenue Score, Don - Alumni Donations Score



Past Rankings:
Year Team	Perf	Acad	Recr	Revn	Tick	Dons	GPA	Avgr	Perc 
2035 Indiana	25	21	28	20	31	41	2.98	38300	73.1
2034 Indiana	21	18	47	28	36	37	2.88	36700	70.0
2033 Indiana 	34	17	25	32	36	58	2.73	37400	71.4
2032 Indiana 	23	16	31	14	36	42	2.78	43400	82.8
2031 Indiana 	14	15	37	17	31	36	3.08	39900	76.1
2030 Indiana 	10	16	54	34	13	39	3.13	37000	70.6
2029 Indiana 	21	18	32	31	27	34	2.80	30900	59.0
2028 Indiana 	54	16	28	77	53	54	2.90	33700	64.3
2027 Indiana 	41	13	22	59	48	38	3.19	34000	64.9
2026 Indiana	31	14 	67	31	53	32	3.21	35300	67.4
2025 Indiana 	49	15	50	74	48	38	3.16	36200	69.1 
2024 Indiana 	47	17	55	81	54	46	3.18	36200	69.1 
2023 Indiana 	60	19	17	74	33	77	3.25	38100	72.7 
2022 Indiana 	53	22	114	75	41	53	3.52	41700	79.7 
2021 Indiana 	44	25	52	74	45	60	3.17	36700	70.1 
2020 Indiana 	59	26	57	90	45	71	3.24	34800	66.4 
2019 Indiana 	94	26	110	99	60	101	3.31	31100	59.4
2018 Indiana	111	26	114	113	76	88	3.03	32600	62.3
2017 Indiana 	82	26	29	73	51	82	3.01	35300	67.4
2016 Indiana 	84	27	65	69	52	105	2.76	44600	85.2
2015 Indiana 	49	30	80	82	52	45	3.01	40000	76.4
2014 Indiana 	90	34	38	103	59	113	3.10	43200	82.5
2013 Indiana 	48	39	67	98	56	51	3.14	42300	80.7
2012 Indiana 	45	33	33	65	54	55	2.72	44900	85.7
2011 Indiana 	46	30	112	47	47	60	2.90	39300	75.0
2010 Indiana 	51	26	26	44	48	64	2.77	34900	66.7
2009 Indiana 	86	25	122	81	58	108	2.80	34300	65.6
2008 Indiana 	71	24	40	103	55	67	2.84	35500	67.9
2007 Indiana 	103	23	95	78	74	108	2.67	35100	67.0
2006 Indiana 	117	22	86	104	76	125	2.91	33800	64.5
2005 Indiana 	95	28	125	100	59	91	2.89	39100	74.7
2004 Indiana 	80	31	22	55	47	104	2.91	45500	86.8
2003 Indiana 	98	26	120	112	39	94	2.51	47500	90.7
2002 Indiana 	45	29	42	38	50	72	2.94	50300	96.0
2001 Indiana 	55	34	117	80	47	96	2.97	50200	95.8

Perf=Performance ranking, Acad=Academic ranking, Recr=Recruiting ranking, 
Revn=TV revenue ranking, Tick=Ticket revenue ranking, Dons=Donations ranking,
GPA=Grade points average, Avgr=Average attendance, Perc=Percent of capacity

In the mailbox

• DE Louis Hatley has left the team because of academic problems last year.
  
• CB Deron Vuong has been made academically ineligible for failing a class.
  
• Five entries to the college hall of fame. A Wisconsin tight end was one of them.
  
• Five players complain about their relationships. Parr, Blades, Farmer, Donaldson and Kitchens.
  
• Four players request more free time, Ellis, Kanu, Sampson and Humphrey.

[cthomer5000]

I was imagining a worst case scenario in which Salinas left early to go pro and the QB situation was hurtin. Good to see that didn't happen. You should have quite a solid offensive core remaining.

[3ric]

Coach of the year
Sammy Hatcher of Florida has been named Coach of the Year for his performance this past season. Now good ol' Sammy has a full set of "Coach of the year" rings, as he now has as many rings as he has fingers and toes! He is starting to run out of places to wear his rings on (I can only think of one more) unless he'll develop an interest in piercing at the ripe age of 70.

Staff hiring
We retain all our current staff, so I'm only allowed to replace one that has been with us for at least four years:

Staff Hiring Summary:
2035 : MA, NE, SW, NW
2034 : Syndicate Coord, MW
2033 : Offensive Coord, MA
2032 : Syndicate Coord

I find a superb defensive coordinator that replaces Tony Winters - welcome Xavier Burmbaugh!

(see attached file for details)

Scheduling
To honor cthomer5000, our general manager last year, we schedule #114-ranked Rutgers for a home game in week 2. That completes our schedule as we had a home-and-away with Alabama-Birmingham from last year.

  Week  Opponent                   
2       RUTGERS                                                         
3       at (29) North Carolina Stat                                     
4       at (44) Alabama-Birmingham                                      
$$5     at Iowa                                                         
$$6     OHIO STATE                                                      
$$8     at (35) Michigan State                                          
$$9     ILLINOIS                                                        
$$10    (5) NORTHWESTERN                                                
$$11    at Minnesota                                                    
$$12    (3) WISCONSIN                                                   
$$13    at Purdue                                                       

[3ric]

Freshman class

Vallery, Kurt           13   QB   Fr    31                100                 
England, Eugene         36   RB   Fr    32                80                  
Libby, Rodney           38   FB*  Fr    16                63                  
Bell, Terrance          95   TE   Fr    22                46                  
Bergen, Nathan          85   TE*  Fr    16                26                  
Baker, Quentin          4    WR*  Fr    28                57                  
Godfrey, Mitchell       57   C    Fr    26                100                 
Alston, Gilbert         69   G    Fr    17                66                  
Richard, Terry          61   T*   Fr    3                 20                  
Floyd, Wesley           1    P*   Fr    11                24                  
Cash, Howard            16   K    Fr    14                74                  
Horoszowski, Donnell    91   DE   Fr    27                68                  
Bleess, Carlton         47   ILB* Fr    14                60                  
Jeans, Robert           53   OLB  Fr    21                82                  
Marcus, Randal          50   OLB  Fr    11                72                  
Ferguson, Antoine       90   OLB* Fr    10                46                  
Dorrough, Chad          27   S    Fr    32                78                  

• Vallery looks awesome. He even has a full 100 in "Avoid fumbles". He'll be a four-year starter for sure.
  
• England is serviceable, a decent backup. Sure hands, won't fumble at least.
  
• Libby is about the same, a decent guy with some ability in places.
  
• Bell looks good - there's some real pass-catching ability there, a little less as a blocker though.
  
• Bergen is a little worse than Bell - probably won't amount to anything.
  
• Baker is a big-play receiver, perhaps a little inconsistent and not a potential starter even.
  
• Godfrey has good current ability and should be solid if forced to start.
  
• Alston is a huge talent, but very very raw. He's not dumb, so hopefully he'll develop fast.
  
• Richard is a bust, unfortunately. Hope he'll stick in the classroom and behave.
  
• Floyd will at best be an average punter, nothing to write home about.
  
• Cash looks like a very good prospect with a little seasoning needed.
  
• Horoszowski is a beautiful specimen and is almost ready to play right out of the box.
  
• Bleess has talent, and could be a good third or fourth linebacker in two years.
  
• Jeans reminds me of past Hoosier greats at LB as Ogunleye, Reuter or Butkiewicz. He could be that good. A sure-fire starter in a year or two.
  
• Marcus comes into Bloomington as a very green recruit. He could be a solid run defender but lacks a lot in pass situations.
  
• Ferguson has a little more talent, especially in the pass defense department.
  
• Dorrough is our fourth blue-chip recruit in this class. A natural ball-hawk with super talent across the board.

[3ric]

Roster

  Player                #    Pos  Elig  Current Estimate  Future Estimate  
Salinas, Allen          3    QB   Sr    88                97                  
Gaines, Charlie         14   QB   Jr*   56                76                  
Vallery, Kurt           13   QB   Fr    31                100                 
Farrell, Sean           9    QB*  So    13                61                  

There's no question on who's the starter here, but what's extra nice is that Gaines is actually a pretty decent backup, which should be his role next year as Vallery steps in.

Rosano, Darren          32   RB   Sr    48                48                  
Konrad, B.J.            20   RB   Sr    76                76                  
Rison, Matt             29   RB   Jr*   38                50                  
Wittich, Erik           21   RB   So*   55                83                  
Niklos, Archie          41   RB   So*   38                38                  
England, Eugene         36   RB   Fr    32                80                  

Konrad looks the part and should be poised to have a huge year if the o-line pans out as I hope it will. Wittich is the backup and the heir apparent, one of the most talented backs I've seen on the Hoosiers.

Lyle, Charles           39   FB   Sr    69                86                  
Sampson, Ken            30   FB   So*   24                99                  
Libby, Rodney           38   FB*  Fr    16                63                  
Hatley, Jake            87   TE   Sr    57                66                  
DeLay, Norman           86   TE   Jr*   40                98                  
Jeffries, Nick          89   TE   So*   50                80                  
Bell, Terrance          95   TE   Fr    22                46                  
Bergen, Nathan          85   TE*  Fr    16                26                  

Lyle is a very good starter at FB, and soph Sampson has the potential to be a monster player. Never have we had so many good tight ends on the team. Hatley is very good, and it looks like Jeffries has the ability to develop to his potential, which would be a first at the position.

Parr, Jimmy             84   WR   Sr    70                76                  
Sailer, Russell         5    WR   Sr*   74                88                  
Hemingway, Chad         83   WR   Sr*   52                77                  
Kaplan, Earl            2    WR   Sr*   50                63                  
Blades, J.B.            80   WR   Jr*   55                63                  
Shannon, Carl           82   WR   So*   28                69                  
Baker, Quentin          4    WR*  Fr    28                57                  

Russ Sailer is a fantastic WR, with Parr only a little worse. Blades is the third receiver with Hemingway next.

Hoedemaker, Tyrus       54   C    Sr    86                100                 
Pritchett, Scottie      55   C    So*   3                 80                  
Godfrey, Mitchell       57   C    Fr    26                100                 
Tate, Bucky             75   G    Sr    59                59                  
Franz, Darren           73   G    Sr*   53                56                  
Huang, Warren           79   G    Jr*   34                55                  
Abate, Joe              62   G    So*   43                78                  
Hancock, Tito           76   G    So*   35                100                 
Alston, Gilbert         69   G    Fr    17                66                  
Stanton, T.J.           74   T    Sr    47                47                  
Carter, Les             66   T    Jr*   43                67                  
Cucina, Les             60   T*   So*   10                22                  
Richard, Terry          61   T*   Fr    3                 20                  

If Hoedemaker is Godzilla, then his backups are newts. Frosh Godfrey will have to play as soon as next season. Franz and junior Huang man the guard spots with some very capable backups in Abate and Tate, and Hancock and Alston being groomed for the future. Very strong position. At right tackle, we have a problem. Stanton isn't Big Ten material, but he'll get his first start anyway unless we can convince one of the guards to take his place. Carter is very good, but the backups are non-existent. Their names are Richard and Cucina, but it's their ability at offensive tackle which isn't there at all.

[3ric]

Cook, Tony              11   P    Sr    60                64                  
Cash, Bennie            18   P    Sr*   60                95                  
Floyd, Wesley           1    P*   Fr    11                24                  
Lofton, Norman          17   K    Sr    68                73                  
Cash, Howard            16   K    Fr    14                74                  
Kanu, Karl              7    K*   So*   8                 8                   

Cook and B. Cash is two very good punters, sadly a waste of roster space since only one get to play, and that'll be Bennie C since he has a year extra left. Lofton is a solid kicker.

Humphrey, Jerald        77   DE   Sr    97                97                  
Jenkins, Zach           78   DE   Sr*   39                69                  
Cox, Reggie             96   DE   Jr*   59                83                  
Farmer, J.C.            72   DE   Jr*   35                59                  
Horoszowski, Donnell    91   DE   Fr    27                68                  
Donaldson, Jeremy       64   DE*  Jr*   7                 23                  
Monroe, Morris          92   DE*  So*   21                31                  
Carvin, Danny           70   DT   Sr    47                57                  
Nason, Rico             71   DT   Sr*   27                71                  
Osborne, Malcolm        63   DT   Jr*   17                49                  
Cabrera, Malcolm        99   DT   So*   34                83                 

Humphrey is a 2nd-team All-USA DE, and Cox at the other end isn't half bad either. Jenkins is a very good backup and Farmer with "Horoscope" Horoszowski secure this position for several years. Soph Cabrera and Nason will start at DT unless we go with a 3-4, then it's Cabrera.

Buckner, Cedric         44   ILB  Sr    48                62                  
Graham, Mo              43   ILB  Sr*   74                90                  
Fleming, Barry          58   ILB  Jr*   72                72                  
Whalen, Lorenzo         52   ILB  Jr*   52                64                  
Baker, Earnest          51   ILB  Jr*   37                86                  
Ellis, Tom              98   ILB  So*   22                43                  
Bleess, Carlton         47   ILB* Fr    14                60                  
Shanahan, Louie         56   OLB  Sr    69                75                  
Taylor, Seth            93   OLB  Sr*   43                79                  
Richardson, Leonard     46   OLB  Sr*   31                71                  
Wasserman, Myron        59   OLB  So*   21                49                  
Jeans, Robert           53   OLB  Fr    21                82                  
Marcus, Randal          50   OLB  Fr    11                72                  
Zimmer, Will            40   OLB* Sr    34                70                  
Ferguson, Antoine       90   OLB* Fr    10                46                  

Graham and Fleming are flat-out studs with Whalen a huge talent waiting in the wings. Shanahan is also great but Taylor hasn't developed despite a huge upside. We'll probably play soph Wasserman a lot to help him learn on the job. It looks like a 3-4 this year.

Fuller, Nicky           48   CB   Sr    69                72                  
Buchanan, Ed            35   CB   Sr*   65                65                  
Banks, Jerome           49   CB   Jr*   51                94                  
Sonnier, Jared          26   CB   So*   41                74                  
Kitchens, Marvin        45   CB   So*   19                54                  
Vuong, Deron            42   CB*  So    10                10                  
Kratky, Brad            24   CB*  So    6                 19                  
Nellums, Blaine         31   S    Sr    76                76                  
Jarvis, Jorge           34   S    Jr*   60                64                  
Brignac, Lamar          28   S    Jr*   48                75                  
Drudge, Tom             33   S    Jr*   45                71                  
Dorrough, Chad          27   S    Fr    32                78                  

Buchanan is super with Fuller a steady 2nd corner, Banks and Sonnier complete a good foursome for the present and for later. Nellums is the sheriff that patrols the secondary with Jarvis as his little sidekick. Behind them it's a little thin as Dorrough will be redshirted.

Recruiting priorities:
QB,FB,WRx2,C,Tx3,DTx3,ILB,CBx2,Sx2 (16)

[cthomer5000]

If both lines can hold up, this could be a very interesting season!

[3ric]

Week 1

We have five in the state of Indiana who idolizes us, the best is:
ILB Herb Irwin, Avon, IN, #862 (#42 ILB), 63, 44 ath prep. Fit score 91.

Scholarship offers:
T O.J. Brady, Lincoln City, IN, #47 (#8 T), 92-, 92 ath prep. Fit score 97.
T Isaac Spann, Powell, TN, #15 (#3 T), 84+, 84 ath prep. Fit score 84.
DT Tyrone Prescott, Grand Rapids, MI, #77 (#5 DT), 70-, 100 ath prep. Fit score 91.
DT Burt Gaines, Staunton, IL, #206 (#12 DT), 74+, 41 ath prep. Fit score 82.
WR Richie Reed, Plymouth, WI, #38 (#3 WR), 85-, 89 ath prep. Fit score 86.

Results
Washington State 24, Illinois 20.
Michigan State 65, New Mexico 0.
Northwestern 44, San Diego State 7.

[3ric]

Week 2

Scholarship offers:
S Brant Sample, Frankfort, IN, #516 (#28 S), 72+, 31 ath prep. Fit score 93.
S D.J. Winters, Greenback, TN, #304 (#18 S), 76+, 49 ath prep. Fit score 79.
CB Bobby Kanell, Harborcreek, PA, #156 (#12 CB), 84+, 31 ath prep. Fit score 87.

Rutgers (0-0) at #41 Indiana (0-0) (-10)

There's some pre-game jitters as the Hoosiers prepare for this game. A good start of this season can be all that we need to take that extra step towards the college elite teams. The weather today is bad and we hope to maintain a balanced offense while not underestimating the Scarlet Knights. Konrad is stuffed for -1 yd on the very first play, but on 2nd down Salinas shows off his cannon arm by throwing a 47-yd pass to Blades. The ball goes over on downs at their 32 as the next two passes are incomplete. The conditions makes for sloppy play, but in the beginning of the second quarter we get our first TD on a 19-yd pass to Jeffries. 7-0, Indiana, with the defense still holding strong - Rutgers haven't even got a first down yet!

On our next offensive drive we get a 44-yd gain on a Salinas pass, and our QB finds Lyle for the score a couple of plays later. 14-0, Indiana, at 5:18 in the 2nd quarter. With 1:29 left of the half, Konrad runs in from five yards out and we're up 21-0. After holding Rutgers to three-and-out they punt the ball to WR Russ Sailer, who returns it 59 yds for a touchdown with 48 seconds to go. 28-0, Indiana. At halftime, we have 14 first downs, 47 rushing yards and 248 passing yards, while the Knights have 3 first downs, 38 rushing yards and 29 passing yards.

Rutgers begin the second half with challenging our secondary with more long passes, and get two big completions for 21 and 26 yards. Suddenly their QB Thigpen finds an open man in our endzone, and it's touchdown, Rutgers! A 15-yd pass makes it 28-7, Indiana, at 12:45 in the third quarter. We start to run the ball a little more, and mix in a 38-yd pass to Parr, which leads to a 5-yd TD pass to Konrad for 35-7. Rutgers kick a 62-yd FG (with tailwind) and the score is 35-10 at 5:14 in the 3rd.

In the middle of the 4th quarter is a Rutgers fumble recovered by Buchanan on their 32. We only get 20 yards, however, and settle for a Lofton FG. 38-10, Indiana. The defense is slacking off in garbage time and let the Knights move 80 yds in six plays and score their second TD today, 38-17 with 4:14 left of the game. With just three seconds remaining, we kick a 22-yd FG to make the final score 41-17, Indiana.

Indiana Individual Statistics
 
Rushing		Att	Yards	Avg	Long	TD	Stufd	Sackd
20 Konrad	25	77	3.0	19	1	8	0
21 Wittich	10	11	1.1	11	0	5	0
 
Passing		Att	Comp	Yards	Yd/Att	Long	TD	Int
3 Salinas	34	24	416	12.2	47	3	1
 
Receiving	Catch	Yards	Avg	YAC	Long	TD
20 Konrad	7	91	13.0	46	32	1
39 Lyle		6	53	8.8	34	15	1
5 Sailer	3	61	20.3	22	22	0
 
Defense		Tackle	Assist	Sack	Int	IntYds	IntTD
43 Graham	8	2	0.5	0	0	0
31 Nellums	7	0	0.0	0	0	0
77 Humphrey	5	2	1.5	0	0	0

Injuries
K Norman Lofton, probable, concussion, 3 weeks.
DT Rico Nason, probable, broken finger, 2 weeks.

Results
California 58, Illinois 21.
Northern Illinois 45, Iowa 16.
Notre Dame 41, Michigan 0.
Baylor 38, Minnesota 0.
Wyoming 30, Ohio State 27.
Pittsburgh 41, Penn State 24.
Fresno State 31, Purdue 24.
Wisconsin 59, Oregon 0. (Business as usual for the Badgers, I see)

[cthomer5000]

I think Salinas could finish in the top 5 in Heisman voting this year. The offense is pretty much the same squad as last year (at least at the skill positions), so it should only be better. I predict 30 touchdown passes.

[3ric]

Yes, but I think we had a wee bit too many short passes to backs, as Konrad and Lyle led the team in receptions. Salinas had some huge completions - for 47, 46, 38 and 32 yds, which indicates he could easily have passed for 500 yards if he looked for wideouts more often.

Also, I think I will increase the playing time for WR Sailer and Parr to make sure they are on the field as much as possible.

[3ric]

Week 3

Scholarship offers:
QB Desmond Bishop, Harrison City, PA, #20 (#4 QB), 81-, 98 ath prep. Fit score 88.
FB Ken Wyant, Litchfield, MI, #324 (#5 FB), 72-, 69 ath prep. Fit score 82.
WR Herb Bertram, Bryant, AR, #229 (#16 WR), 86+, 12 ath prep. Fit score 89.
C Luther Briggs, Philadelphia, PA, #58 (#3 C), 83-, 89 ath prep. Fit score 91.

#21 Indiana (1-0) (-4) at North Carolina State (0-0) on TV5.

The Wolfpack kick off and we begin play with a short pass to Lyle for 6 yds. We punt from the 42 after WR Sailer got injured on a play. NC State get a good offensive drive and comes into our red zone. S Nellums bail us out with an interception on our 5-yd line, which is returned 23 yds. Then Salinas find Blades with a short 10-yd pass, with which the receiver runs 46 yds downfield. Konrad runs twice and it's touchdown, Indiana! 7-0 at 2:13 in the 1st quarter.

The home team once again move across the entire field and get a 3rd and goal on our 5-yd line, only to throw another interception, this time to Banks, who kneels in the endzone for a touchback. We try to convert a 4th down on the next drive, but turn the ball over on downs on their 21-yd line. Then boom, just like that, the score is tied thanks to a 79-yd TD pass by North Carolina State. The score is tied, 7-7, at 6:20 in the 2nd quarter. Salinas goes for it with a deep pass, which is picked off by a defender on their 8-yd line. With 41 seconds left of the first half the Wolfpack takes the lead on a 34-yd FG.

At halftime we have 8 first downs, 30 rushing yards and 210 passing yards. The opposition ha 15 first downs, 15 rushing yards and 250 passing yards. They move the ball extremely well on third downs, that's something our defense must improve on in the second half. We make a statement on our first offensive drive in the 3rd quarter by moving 99 yds in 12 plays and finishing with a 6-yd TD pass to Blades. 14-10, Indiana, at 7:02 in the 3rd. Again we can't stop them on defense, but an interception by Buchanan in the ed zone kills their drive and preserves our lead.

Lofton kick a FG and we have a 7-point lead, 17-10, with 9 seconds left of the third quarter. We stop them quickly on the following drive and start a new drive on our 24. Suddenly the offense start firing on all cylinders, we move 76 yards on 9 plays with near-perfect execution and FB Lyle catches a TD pass from Salinas. 24-10, Indiana, with 8:29 left in the 4th. But the NC State quarterback, Lodde, is a resilient character. He guides the Wolfpack to a 93-yd drive with a 25-yd TD pass as the exclamation point. 24-17, Indiana, with 5:08 left.

We quickly score again to regain the 14-point cushion, 31-17, on a 35-yd TD pass to Lyle, but the worry is that we moved too quickly, and left 2:47 left on the clock. The defense has to step up now and prevent this to turn into a nail-biter. We were correct - Lodde complete two passes for 28 yds and a 42-yd TD pass! 31-24 with 2:10 left. The offense has to consume all the time remaining on the clock for us to be safe. Konrad runs for 9 and 8 yds on successive carries, but then is stuffed twice. We have a 3rd and 12 on our 35 with 56 seconds left. Salinas takes a knee and they haven't any timeouts left. After fielding the punt on their 25, it's 16 seconds to go and we stop them, Humphrey and Graham sacks Lodde for -6 yds. Game over!

Indiana Individual Statistics
 
Rushing		Att	Yards	Avg	Long	TD	Stufd	Sackd
20 Konrad	23	116	5.0	15	1	2	0
 
Passing		Att	Comp	Yards	Yd/Att	Long	TD	Int
3 Salinas	32	23	419	13.0	56	3	1
 
Receiving	Catch	Yards	Avg	YAC	Long	TD
39 Lyle		5	83	16.6	19	35	2
20 Konrad	5	48	9.6	42	20	0
84 Parr		4	65	16.2	35	25	0
80 Blades	4	91	22.7	61	56	1
 
Defense		Tackle	Assist	Sack	Int	IntYds	IntTD
77 Humphrey	8	0	1.5	0	0	0
35 Buchanan	8	0	0.0	1	0	0
52 Whalen	7	1	0.0	0	0	0

North Carolina State QB Roman Lodde was 28-for-40, 496 yds, 3 TDs, 3 ints.

Injuries
WR Russell Sailer, out, separated shoulder, 8 weeks.
K Norman Lofton, probable, concussion, 2 weeks.

Results
Northwestern 38, Duke 0.
Troy State 28, Iowa 10.
East Carolina 28, Michigan 13.
Michigan State 38, Missouri 7.
Arizona 17, Minnesota 3.
UCLA 45, Ohio State 14.
Penn State 45, Iowa State 28.
UNLV 21, Purdue 14.
Wisconsin 27, Florida 24.

[3ric]

BTW - Salinas is second in the nation in passing yardage (with a game less played) and also second in passing efficiency with a 201.4 rating. His 12.65 yds/pass average is the highest of all qualifiers.

[cthomer5000]

Salinas is looking quite good, and Konrad looks like he's really met his potential!

Again, it's looking like Northwestern and Wisconsin are strong. I assume the Florida team that Wisconsin barely beat was quite highly ranked.

[3ric]

Week 4

Scholarship offers:
CB Brant Lange, Knoxville, TN, #442 (#30 CB), 72+, 26 ath prep. Fit score 83.
ILB Brenden Sanders, La Belle, FL, #200 (#8 ILB), 91+, 16 ath prep. Fit score 92.
T Rickey Pray, Bristol, TN, #172 (#18 T), 72+, 62 ath prep. Fit score 88.

#18 Indiana (2-0) (-3) at Alabama-Birmingham (1-1)

The Blazers receives the opening kickoff and drive 76 yards to open the scoring by a 14-yd counterplay. 0-7, UAB. S Nellums fields the following kickoff and returns it 62 yds to their 38-yd line. Salinas finds TE Hatley for 34 yds and then Blades for a 4-yd TD pass to tie the score, 7-7, at 7:52 in the 1st quarter. After an UAB punt is Hatley the recipient of a 14-yd pass, followed by a 10-yarder to Konrad. We turn the ball over on downs at their 32, however.

Lofton misses a 42-yd FG right before the two-point warning and we finish the first half tied at 7 points each. UAB has 9 first downs, 102 rushing yards and 85 passing yards. We have 10 first downs, 26 rushing yards and 148 passing yards. We get the best possible start of the second half as Konrad breaks loose for a 72-yd TD run after only a minute of play. 14-7, Indiana! Konrad gets a 38-yd run on our next drive which leads to him catching a 1-yd pass for another score and 21-7 at 11:01 in the 3rd quarter.

After pinning UAB deep back into their half we get a short field to work with early in the fourth quarter. Salinas finds Parr from 8 yards out for a touchdown and 28-7 at 14:07 in the 4th. After a time-consuming drive where Konrad and Wittich pounded away with the ball we get three points from a 19-yd FG by Lofton with 26 seconds left. Final score: 31-7.

Indiana Individual Statistics
 
Rushing		Att	Yards	Avg	Long	TD	Stufd	Sackd
20 Konrad	22	157	7.1	72	1	6	0
21 Wittich	9	43	4.7	17	0	2	0
 
Passing		Att	Comp	Yards	Yd/Att	Long	TD	Int
3 Salinas	24	16	221	9.2	34	3	0
 
Receiving	Catch	Yards	Avg	YAC	Long	TD
87 Hatley	5	95	19.0	35	34	0
80 Blades	4	56	14.0	21	19	1
84 Parr		3	38	12.6	21	19	1
 
Defense		Tackle	Assist	Sack	Int	IntYds	IntTD
56 Shanahan	8	3	0.0	0	0	0
77 Humphrey	7	5	0.5	0	0	0
43 Graham	5	0	0.0	0	0	0

Injuries
WR Russell Sailer, out, separated shoulder, 7 weeks.
K Norman Lofton, probable, concussion, 1 week.

Results
UNLV 38, Illinois 10.
Iowa State 23, Iowa 21.
Michigan 22, Kansas 10.
Michigan State 45, San Diego State 14.
Minnesota 14, Bethel 10.
Stanford 52, Ohio State 14.
Barrow 27, Penn State 17.
Notre Dame 63, Purdue 13.

OLB Wasserman is suspended for breaking team rules.

[3ric]

I do my best to boost Salinas' Heisman Throphy credentials, but UAB's run defense was just too easy to exploit when we have such a balanced offense. Our two backs combined for 200 yds on the ground, that's much to like about that.

Still a little worried about Parr. His best game is four catches for 65 yds so far - not the numbers I'd like to see from our best healthy wideout even if Salinas does an excellent job in spreading the ball around.

[cthomer5000]

Sailer is injured again!??!?! Man, thats a real blow to the offense. I've always thought the 2nd and 3rd receiver were the most important parts of an offense, and obviously losing the #1 kills that depth. Salinas is still looking good though.

I see 3,000 yards and 30 touchdowns at least making him a top 5 heisman finisher.

[3ric]

Week 5

Scholarship offers:
QB Charlie Whitfield, Spencer, OK, #16 (#3 QB), 87+, 65 ath prep. Fit score 78.
WR R.J. Peterson, Yakima, WA, #135 (#7 WR), 64, 99 ath prep. Fit score 74.
C Cornell Holland, Salem, VA, #557 (#31 C), 71+, 48 ath prep. Fit score 86.
T David Rasmuson, Waverly, TN, #486 (#52 T), 72, 8 ath prep. Fit score 86.
DT O.J. Wilcox, Prestonburg, KY, #266 (#15 DT), 65, 78 ath prep. Fit score 92.
ILB Bert O'Connell, Decatur, IL, #139 (#3 ILB), 87, 39 ath prep. Fit score 84.

#18 Indiana (3-0) (-15) at Iowa (0-3)

We go backwards 10 yards on the opening drive and punt from our own 10. Iowa starts at midfield, but two great plays by DE Humphrey prevent them from doing much. Salinas hasn't started the game well, completing just one of four passes, but Konrad helps out by moving the chains. The drive, which lasted for 15 plays and 96 yards in length, is finished by a 9-yd TD pass to Blades for 7-0. Iowa go three-and-out again as they have no answer for Humphrey - he sacked the QB on 1st down and downed the RB for -4 yds on 3rd down.

In the middle of the second quarter we score again to go ahead 14-0 on a Salinas pass to Lyle from the 5-yd line. With 19 seconds left we manage to kick an 18-yd FG and go into halftime at 17-0. We have 13 first downs, 86 rushing yards and 164 passing yards and have held Iowa to 2 first downs, -2 rushing yards and 58 passing yards. When the Hawkeyes start playing in the second half it doesn't last long until they turn the ball over - the first pass is picked off by Buchanan, who returns it 18 yds to their 45-yd line.

We need only 8 plays before Konrad runs into the end zone and it's 24-0, Indiana, at 10:45 in the 3rd quarter. At 11:11 in the 4th quarter we get our shutout ruined as Iowa successfully kick a field goal for 24-3. The defensive backups are in, which lets the Hawkeyes to go 76 yds for their first TD and 24-9 with 5:17 left in the 4th quarter. On the final play of the game, on which their QB attempts a desperation pass, we get another interception, by backup S Tom Drudge. Drudge returns the ball 42 yds for the touchdown as time expires, making the final score 30-9. Game MVP: DE Jerald Humphrey.

Indiana Individual Statistics
 
Rushing		Att	Yards	Avg	Long	TD	Stufd	Sackd
20 Konrad	31	166	5.3	23	1	5	0
 
Passing		Att	Comp	Yards	Yd/Att	Long	TD	Int
3 Salinas	41	23	279	6.8	32	2	2
 
Receiving	Catch	Yards	Avg	YAC	Long	TD
39 Lyle		8	73	9.1	40	13	1
20 Konrad	5	62	12.4	13	32	0
80 Blades	4	45	11.2	5	19	1
 
Defense		Tackle	Assist	Sack	Int	IntYds	IntTD
77 Humphrey	8	2	4.0	0	0	0
35 Buchanan	6	0	0.0	1	18	0
31 Nellums	4	1	0.0	0	0	0
 
Pass Rush	Sacks	PsBlks	Hurries	PassPlay
77 Humphrey	4.0	1	7	44

Injuries
WR Russell Sailer, out, separated shoulder, 6 weeks.
FB Charles Lyle, questionable, broken hand, 9 weeks.

Results
Illinois 14, Michigan 13.
Penn State 37, Minnesota 13.
Wisconsin 27, Northwestern 14.
Ohio State 58, Purdue 14.

I'm proud to announce that the Defensive Player of the Week is: Indiana Hoosiers' DE Jerald Humphrey, an expected choice after his incredible performance!

[MylesKnight]

Hey Guys, sorry I'm a bit late in posting this but I just noticed BigJ is no longer going to be able to be part of the IU Coaching Rotation..

Is there a spot open? Or will there be a "Guest Coach" kind of a situation once every few seasons, with different FOFC'ers jumping in for a season of IU Football?....(This had been mentioned sometime ago)..

I'd like to be a part of what is the Best FOFC Village Challenge in existence, that being... this one of course.

Let me know what you fellas think.... & GO HOOSIERS!!


------- CT, I hope you're doing better my friend.. Get well soon!! All the best to you & yours..

[3ric]

Myles, we'd love you to join us in the regular rotation! You could have the choice of doing next season (2037) or jump in after Alf the next season.

[MylesKnight]

Great!!

I'll jump in after Alf's 2037 Season if that's alright..

So let me see, is it now IU VC Vets 3ric & Alf, CTH, and now myself?

I hope I don't let you guys down.. CT came in with high credentials from the job he has done at Rutgers, while I've struggled mightly at UCF..

My best season has been an 8-4 campaign, although thus far in my most current season (2015), I'm 7-2 with a 3 Point Loss to Georgia and a 2 Point Defeat at the hands of a Miami of Ohio team that is ranked in the Top 10 of the current BCS Poll.

Overall though, my record is.... well there's no need to discuss that now is there? Lets just say that it closely resembles the records from the first 9 seasons of IU Football ('01-'09)..

IU is definitely a big step up in terms of talent for yours truly. It looks as if this Hoosier Program is now a solid #3 in the Big Ten, with a nice gap between themselves and the 4th best program on down in the Conference. This IU Program has gone 70-21 (.769) in its past 91 games, from the beginning of the '29 Season through this solid 4-0 start in '36.. Now that's quality..

The goal now is to catch up with the two gorillas of the Big Ten, Wisconsin & Northwestern.. The good thing about that is once that gap is closed, a National Championship Trophy in Bloomington will be well within sight..

[3ric]

Week 6

In the mailbox
CB Kanell chooses Pittsburgh.

Visits
S Brant Sample.

Scholarship offers:
CB Kennedy King, Philadelphia, PA, #110 (#10 CB), 90++, 9 ath prep. Fit score 83.

Ohio State (1-3) at #19 Indiana (4-0) (-18) on TV4.

We get the worst possible start of the game as Salinas' pass on the first play of the game is intercepted and returned to our 12-yd line. But Whalen, our ILB, rescues us by intercepting the OSU quarterback's pass in the end zone. We are moving pretty well on offense until we reach the Buckeyes' 14-yd line, where another Salinas pass is intercepted. Our defense steps up and holds OSU to a 4th and 20 on their own 4-yd line. A weak punt later, and we have a first down on their 26.

Salinas, looking to improve, wastes no time and hits TE Hatley for a 26-yd TD pass. 7-0, Indiana, at 7:12 in the first quarter. In the middle of the second quarter our quarterback is picked off for the fourth time! What's going on? The problems on offense continues when Konrad fumbles away the ball on the visitor's 5-yd line. It's lucky OSU is equally inept as us! They have been held to only one first down, 8 rushing yards and 28 passing yards throughout the whole first half. We have 12 first downs, 54 rushing yards and 170 passing yards, but only 7 points and have committed 5 turnovers.

Our first lucky break occurs on our second play in the third quarter, as Konrad runs a trap off left guard and don't stop until the end zone, 63 yds later. Touchdown, Indiana, and it's 14-0. Late in the quarter we get another TD from Konrad, as he runs for 29 and 14 yds to score. 21-0, Indiana. Next drive last only 2 minutes and 58 yds but it's enough as Salinas finds Lyle for a 6-yd TD pass, and we're up 28-0 at 13:04 in the 4th quarter.

AS the reserves on defense seems to contain OSU, we look like we're going to get our shutout until Wittich fumbles away the ball on our own 28-yd line with 1:17 left. We get a sarcastic "The weather has definitely created a very slippery ball today" comment from the TV booth. But S Drudge picks off the OSU pass on third and long which preserves the score until the final gun.

Indiana Individual Statistics
 
Rushing		Att	Yards	Avg	Long	TD	Stufd	Sackd
20 Konrad	20	179	8.9	63	2	6	0
21 Wittich	10	31	3.1	27	0	5	0
 
Passing		Att	Comp	Yards	Yd/Att	Long	TD	Int
3 Salinas	36	21	259	7.1	26	2	4
 
Receiving	Catch	Yards	Avg	YAC	Long	TD
20 Konrad	6	56	9.3	29	18	0
80 Blades	6	79	13.1	11	18	0
84 Parr		3	43	14.3	11	21	0
 
Defense		Tackle	Assist	Sack	Int	IntYds	IntTD
43 Graham	4	1	0.0	1	17	0
34 Jarvis	4	0	0.0	0	0	0
78 Jenkins	3	0	1.0	0	0	0

Injuries
WR Russell Sailer, out, separated shoulder, 5 weeks.
DE Jerald Humphrey, doubtful, abdominal strain, 3 weeks.
CB Brad Kratky, probable, sprained neck, 4 weeks.
FB Charles Lyle, questionable, broken hand, 8 weeks.

Results
Illinois 35, Minnesota 10.
Iowa 34, Penn State 7.
Northwestern 57, Michigan 21.
Michigan State 49, Purdue 0.
Wisconsin 68, Pittsburgh 7.

Next week: bye.

[3ric]

Originally posted by MylesKnight
Great!!

I'll jump in after Alf's 2037 Season if that's alright..

So let me see, is it now IU VC Vets 3ric & Alf, CTH, and now myself?

I hope I don't let you guys down.. CT came in with high credentials from the job he has done at Rutgers, while I've struggled mightly at UCF..

Actually Homer only agreed to "guest star" for one season, but we'd be delighted if he wanted to do some more stints for IU. We have to ask him first,though.

As for your abilities as IU coach, there's every reason to believe you're going to do just fine!

[ShagVT]

Wow. So much for Salinas' Heisman bid, eh? Two pedestrian performances in a row.

[3ric]

Originally posted by ShagVT
Wow. So much for Salinas' Heisman bid, eh? Two pedestrian performances in a row.

Yeah, I'm starting to worry about him - I'll try to analyze the stats to see if I can improve the pass protection or do something about the game plan. This trend can't continue if we are going to have any chance of reaching the top 10 this season.

[3ric]

Week 7

In the mailbox
ILB Irwin committs to Ball State.

Visits
T David Rasmuson.

Scholarship offers:
None.

Injuries
WR Russell Sailer, questionable, separated shoulder, 4 weeks.
DE Jerald Humphrey, questionable, abdominal strain, 2 weeks.
CB Brad Kratky, probable, sprained neck, 3 weeks.
FB Charles Lyle, probable, broken hand, 7 weeks.

Results
Illinois 33, Iowa 23.
Wisconsin 48, Michigan 0.
Michigan State 47, Minnesota 7.
Northwestern 27, Ohio State 7.
Purdue 24, Penn State 21.

Next week:
away vs #18 Michigan State (5-0)

[3ric]

Week 8

In the mailbox
QB Whitfield committs to Vanderbilt.
FB Wyant committs to Michigan State.
T Rasmuson committs to Tennessee.
T Pray committs to Vanderbilt.
ILB O'Connell committs to Army.
S Sample accepts our invitation.

Visits
ILB Sanders, WR Bertram, C Holland, CB Lange, CB King, DT Gaines, S Winters, WR Peterson.

Scholarship offers:
QB Rickey Hudgens, Columbia, TN, #14 (#2 QB), 93+, 33 ath prep. Fit score 93.
FB Ethan Kaplan, Muldrow, OK, #388 (#10 FB), 88, 3 ath prep. Fit score 72.
T Clay Stump, Munster, IN, #302 (#33 T), 71++, 6 ath prep. Fit score 86.
T D.J. Horn, Concord, CA, #254 (#28 T), 81, 28 ath prep. Fit score 76.
DT Kirk Lane, Columbus, OH, #246 (# DT), 66+, 47 ath prep. Fit score 91.
ILB Orlando McGee, Maple Grove, MN, #452 (#20 ILB), 87, 47 ath prep. Fit score 87.

After analying the box scores from the last two games, it's clear we have two problems in the passing game - the receivers don't get open on the deep routes and the offensive tackles have difficulties in the protection. I bench RT Stanton and put backup guard Huang there instead. I also switch Blades to flanker to let Parr play as split end. DE Jerald Humphrey returns to the lineup.

#17 Indiana (5-0) at #18 Michigan State (5-0) (-3) on TV4

The Spartans begin on offense, and unlike last week, we get a great start when the first play is intercepted and returned 48 yds for a touchdown by S Jarvis! 7-0, Indiana, after only 9 seconds. A little later we get another TD on a 19-yd pass from Salinas to Hatley, the tight end. 14-0, Indiana. Salinas completed passes of 25 and 26 yds to Hemingway on the drive. Michigan State answer immediately with an 80-yd TD run by their RB, Watkins. 14-7, Indiana, at 6:13 in the 1st quarter.

We crank out a 13-play, 72-yd drive and increase our lead to 10 points with a 31-yd FG by Lofton early in the 2nd quarter. 17-10, Indiana. The Spartans pull one back with a 9-yd TD pass to Watkins. 17-14, Indiana, at 4:17 in the second quarter. We can't retaliate and are being pushed back when Buchanan, our star corner, intercepts a pass from their QB Gephart and returns it to our 37. At halftime we have 10 first downs, 35 rushing yards and 178 passing yards and have conceded 9 first downs, 115 rushing yards and 121 passing yards to Michigan State.

On the Spartans' first drive in the second half we get a turnover on a sack by Cabrera, which Cox recovers on their 45-yd line. We gain only 22 yds from that but it's enough for a Lofton FG and 20-14, Indiana. The Spartans move 74 yds but has to settle for a FG to pull within 3 points. 20-17, Indiana, at 2:29 in the third quarter. On the next drive their defense get a roughing the passer penalty against them, which is followed by a 54-yd TD run by Konrad! 27-17, Indiana! We're just barely keeping pace with them as they score right away on a 7-yd pass. 27-24, Indiana, at 12:16 in the 4th quarter.

Then the Spartans get a lucky break. Backup RB Wittich fumbles away the ball at our own 12-yd line. Fortunately our defense holds them and they only get a FG. The score is 27-27 with 10:19 left. To add insult to injury, we go three-and-out and then the punt is blocked and recovered at our 5-yd line. Parr had a dropped ball there that really wasn't neccessary. QB Gephart quickly finds WR Harrelson for a 5-yd TD pass, and they take the lead for the first time today. 27-34, Michigan State.

We can't score on the next drive - actually, we turn the ball over on downs on their 39-yd line at 4:46. Two minutes and 41 seconds later it's touchdown, Spartans, on a 27-yd run. 27-41, Michigan State, with 2:05 left of the game. It doesn't look good! But suddenly, Salinas finds Blades for 40 yds and then Hemingway for 12 yds and a touchdown! 80 yards in 1:36, and 34-41, there's still hope left! The onside kick is recovered by the home team, however, and we don't have any timeouts left. The Spartans' QB kneels with the ball and runs out the clock.

Indiana Individual Statistics
 
Rushing		Att	Yards	Avg	Long	TD	Stufd	Sackd
20 Konrad	24	112	4.6	54	1	7	0
 
Passing		Att	Comp	Yards	Yd/Att	Long	TD	Int
3 Salinas	36	19	320	8.8	40	2	1
 
Receiving	Catch	Yards	Avg	YAC	Long	TD
20 Konrad	4	38	9.5	24	16	0
83 Hemingway	4	78	19.5	29	26	1
80 Blades	4	99	24.7	18	40	0
 
Defense		Tackle	Assist	Sack	Int	IntYds	IntTD
56 Shanahan	8	3	0.0	0	0	0
43 Graham	8	0	0.0	0	0	0
52 Whalen	8	0	0.0	0	0	0

Injuries
WR Russell Sailer, questionable, separated shoulder, 3 weeks.
DE Jerald Humphrey, probable, abdominal strain, 1 week.
CB Brad Kratky, probable, sprained neck, 2 weeks.
FB Charles Lyle, probable, broken hand, 6 weeks.

Results
Wisconsin 77, Illinois 7.
Iowa 31, Michigan 17.
Minnesota 38, Purdue 16.
Northwestern 30, South Florida 27.

[cthomer5000]

Ouch. Now you really need one of the home games against Northwestern or Wisconsin....

[3ric]

The lost fumble and the blocked punt really bugs me. We gave them 10 points gift-wrapped right there.

[3ric]

Week 9

In the mailbox
WR Peterson committs to Idaho.
CB King committs to Notre Dame.
WR Shannon on academic notice.
S Nellums commits team violation.

Visits
QB Hudgens, T Stump, FB Kaplan.

Scholarship offers:
WR Preston Horner
CB Bo Butler
ILB Randy Gunn
DT Emmitt Foreman
T K.C. Tanner

Nellums is suspended and replaced in the lineup with Banks.

Illinois (3-4) at #21 Indiana (5-1) (-17)

The Fighting Illini starts with the ball but turn it over on a fumble after only three plays. Fleming recovers the ball on their 35-yd line. Konrad do some strong running before Salinas find Hatley for a 14-yd TD pass. 7-0, Indiana, at 10:34 in the first quarter. Good defensive play gives us a short field to work with at the end of the quarter, and Salinas get his second TD pass when he connects with Jeffries from the 3. 14-0, Indiana!

Our defensive dominance continues when LBs Graham and Whalen sacks their QB, and causes a fumble which is recovered by DE Cox and returned 29 yds for a TD! 21-0, Indiana, at 11:02 in the second quarter. Lofton kick a 40-yd FG six minutes later and we have a 24-0 lead. On the very next play from the line of scrimmage, the Illini QB takes off on a draw play, and fumbles on a hit by Fuller. Humphrey recovers on their 25-yd line. Salinas finds Konrad for 19 yds and then completes a 2-yarder to Parr for the score. 31-0, Indiana, at 3:29 in the 2nd quarter.

Pandemonium erupts on the last play of the first half, as Konrad is tackled hard and him and others are objecting vigorously to the treatment, to the degree that we are flagged for unsportmanlike conduct and Konrad is ejected for bumping a referee. In addition to that is Parr injured in the scuffle. In the first half we got 11 first downs, 96 rushing yards and 80 passing yards, while conceding only 3 first downs, -3 rushing yards and 62 passing yards.

That doesn't stop us, however, as Salinas completes a 33-yd pass to Kaplan and Wittich goes in for a 1-yd TD run. 38-0, Indiana, after the first drive in the second half. Now most of the reserves are in on defense, but they are able to stop the Illini just fine. Second-string QB Gaines relieves Salinas and completes a 17-yd pass to Kaplan and a 34-yarder to Hemingway to get a first down on their 21-yd line. A little later it's touchdown, Indiana, through a 9-yd pass from Gaines to Parr. 45-0, Indiana, at 5:09 in the third quarter.

Nothing much happens for the next 12 minutes, but suddenly we get an interception from Brignac, who returns it 34 yds for a touchdown and 52-0! Illinois are desperate to break their scoring drought and manage to complete a 52-yd pass to get to our 19-yd line. Two plays later, however, their hopes are crushed as Drudge intercepts a pass in the endzone. We run a couple of times without much ambition and punt away the ball, only to get it back when Stanton flatlines their returner, causing another fumble which Abate recovers on the 16-yd line.

3rd-string RB Rosano is close to get his first career TD, but is stopped at the 1. Instead it's 3rd-string QB Farrell who takes it in on a QB sneak. The final score is set to 59-0 with 44 seconds left.

Indiana Individual Statistics
 
Rushing		Att	Yards	Avg	Long	TD	Stufd	Sackd
21 Wittich	18	34	1.8	11	1	8	0
20 Konrad	16	72	4.5	11	0	2	0
 
Passing		Att	Comp	Yards	Yd/Att	Long	TD	Int
3 Salinas	17	10	133	7.8	33	3	0
9 Farrell	11	6	87	7.9	22	0	0
14 Gaines	6	4	71	11.8	34	1	0
 
Receiving	Catch	Yards	Avg	YAC	Long	TD
83 Hemingway	4	78	19.5	12	34	0
21 Wittich	3	34	11.3	18	14	0
89 Jeffries	3	32	10.6	12	19	1
 
Defense		Tackle	Assist	Sack	Int	IntYds	IntTD
48 Fuller	5	0	0.0	0	0	0
35 Buchanan	4	0	0.0	1	0	0
34 Jarvis	4	0	0.0	0	0	0

Injuries
DE Zach Jenkins, out, torn knee cartilage, 7 weeks.
WR J.B. Blades, doubtful, hip pointer, 4 weeks.
WR Russell Sailer, probable, separated shoulder, 2 weeks.
CB Brad Kratky, probable, sprained neck, 1 weeks.
FB Charles Lyle, probable, broken hand, 5 weeks.
DE Jerald Humphrey is fully recovered.

Results
Northwestern 33, Iowa 9.
Michigan 45, Minnesota 7.
Michigan State 27, Ohio State 13.
Wisconsin 38, Penn State 0.

[3ric]

Week 10

In the mailbox
C Holland committs to Ohio.
DT Gaines committs to Florida.
ILB Sanders committs to Barrow.
CB Butler committs to Tulane.
CB Lange committs to Middle Tennessee State.

Visits
ILB Gunn, WR Horner, DT Foreman, T Tanner.

Scholarship offers:
C Charles Gullett
DT David Schulz
CB Antonio Palmer
CB Jimmy Wright

#6 Northwestern (6-1) at #21 Indiana (6-1)(-6) on TV3.

The Wildcats elected to receive and are flagged for holding on the kick return, and are starting on their 9-yd line. Northwestern's QB Rotruck drops back, fires a pass downfield... and it's intercepted by Graham! We have the ball at their 26-yd line. Salinas finds Kaplan for 19 yds and then Hemingway for 13 yds and a touchdown! 7-0, Indiana, at 12:25 in the first quarter. Now the Wildcats start running the ball, their RB Lyons chews up large chunks of yardage. Rotruck completes passes of 20 and 15 yds and they have a first down on our 9-yd line. Two plays later it's touchdown, Northwestern, and 7-7 at 7:44 in the 1st quarter.

The score remains tied through the entire second quarter, but on the last play of the first half we send in the kicker, and Lofton connects on a 48-yd FG to give us a three-point lead at the break. 10-7, Indiana, after two quarters. We have 10 first downs, 31 rushing yds and 135 passing yds while the Wildcats have 6 first downs, 39 rushing yds and 47 passing yds. It's a very intense and close game!

Salinas get a big completion to Hemingway for 27 yds to open the second half, and a 12-yd pass to Parr gives us 1st and 10 on the 20. Konrad goes for 5 and 7 to move the 1st down marker to the 8-yd line. A beautiful drive is capped with a Salinas TD pass to Parr, and we have a 10-point lead, 17-7, at 10:04 in the third quarter. After some difficulties we force a punt and get the ball on our 46-yd line. Salinas finds Hemingway for 10 and Sailer for 4, before connecting with Parr for a 40-yd TD strike!!! 24-7, Indiana, at 6:48. Wo-hoo!

Again we stop Northwestern's offense, but it took a holding penalty on 4th and 1 to make them punt it away. We have to punt from our own 29 after a minute elapsed of the fourth quarter. We're bracing ourselves for the furious rally that is sure to come from the Wildcats. The defensive ends Cox and Humphrey does an outstanding job of harrassing QB Rotruck, forcing him into hurried passes. Then DT Nason turn in a big play by blocking the visitor's punt, which is recovered by ILB Barry Fleming on their 21-yd line. We can't get a first down and take three points from a 30-yd Lofton FG.

27-7, Indiana, at 11:20 in the 4th quarter. Rotruck start passing and completes an 11-yd pass, before going deep for WR Castillo! The ball goes 30, 40, 50 yds downfield and Buchanan makes a jump for the ball - it's an interception! Castillo brings him down on our 28. We can only do three plays before punting, but Humphrey downs Rotruck for a loss of 10 yds on their first down. The Wildcats' QB must be unaccustomed to pass this much to make up for a large deficit, because his next pass is wildly off target, and picked off by Banks! He returns it 15 yds to our 37-yd line.

Again we go three-and-out, and Northwestern fair catches on their own 14. 5 minutes and 11 seconds remaining, still with a 20-point lead. We continue to pile on the pressure on the quarterback and finally Carvin sacks Rotruck and forces a fumble which is recovered by Nason and returned 12 yds to the Wildcats' 24. We run 4 times in a row, switching between Konrad and Wittich, until Konrad goes off left tackle for a 6-yd TD run! 34-7, Indiana, with 2:34 left in the game! That completely took away the spirit from the visitors and both teams just go through the motions until it's over. A fantastic effort from the defense which held one of the top teams to a total of 169 yds of offense!

Indiana Individual Statistics
  
Rushing		Att	Yards	Avg	Long	TD	Stufd	Sackd
20 Konrad	27	62	2.2	15	1	9	0
 
Passing		Att	Comp	Yards	Yd/Att	Long	TD	Int
3 Salinas	28	19	243	8.6	40	3	0
 
Receiving	Catch	Yards	Avg	YAC	Long	TD
83 Hemingway	7	102	14.5	33	27	1
20 Konrad	5	37	7.4	23	9	0
84 Parr		3	60	20.0	66	40	2
 
Defense		Tackle	Assist	Sack	Int	IntYds	IntTD
77 Humphrey	5	1	2.0	0	0	0
49 Banks	5	0	0.0	1	15	0
35 Buchanan	4	0	0.0	1	0	0
 
Northwestern Individual Statistics
 
Rushing		Att	Yards	Avg	Long	TD	Stufd	Sackd
31 Lyons	17	69	4.0	19	0	6	0
 
Passing		Att	Comp	Yards	Yd/Att	Long	TD	Int
13 Rotruck	27	8	101	3.7	20	1	3
 
Receiving	Catch	Yards	Avg	YAC	Long	TD
86 Jarvis	3	35	11.6	9	16	1
82 Finley	2	14	7.0	0	11	0
31 Lyons	1	15	15.0	13	15	0

Injuries
DE Zach Jenkins, out, torn knee cartilage, 6 weeks.
WR J.B. Blades, questionable, hip pointer, 3 weeks.
WR Russell Sailer, probable, separated shoulder, 1 week.
FB Charles Lyle, probable, broken hand, 4 weeks.

Results
Iowa 24, Minnesota 21.
Michigan State 28, Michigan 21.
Ohio State 28, Penn State 21.
Wisconsin 77, Purdue 7. (The second time in three weeks they've scored 77 points!)

Next week:
away at Minnesota (2-7)

[cthomer5000]

My congratulations on an absolutely huge victory!

Salinas could be back in the hunt for the Heisman, and Indiana is definitely back in the hunt for the playoffs and Big 10 title!

[tucker342]

awesome win!!!!! Great job!!!!

[3ric]

Week 11

In the mailbox
QB Hudgens committs to Miami (OH)
T Stump accepts our invitation.
DT Schultz accepts our invitation.
ILB Gunn committs to Florida.
S Winters committs to Tennessee.

Visits
C Gullett

Scholarship offers:
QB Larry Clayton
ILB Dusty Farmer
ILB Ricky Martinez
CB Jeff Crane
S Courtney Vivaldi

#20 Indiana (7-1) (-23) at Minnesota (2-7)

We start slowly and don't get on the scoreboard until the end of the first quarter, on a Salinas pass to Parr from the 1-yd line. 7-0, Indiana! Salinas was 7-for-9 for 94 yds passing in the quarter. We score again on the next drive with another short TD pass to Parr. Wittich had two runs of 18 and 23 yds on the drive. 14-0, Indiana! The score remains 14-all at the end of the first half. We have 15 first downs, 42 rushing yds and 154 passing yds, while Minnesota has 8 first downs, 35 rushing yds and 50 passing yds.

We start the second half with a 63-yd scoring drive, which is ended in the usual way - a 1-yd TD pass from Salinas to Parr. 21-0, Indiana! Minnesota answer with a quick score - they move 60 yds in just 3 plays and 1:15. 21-7, Indiana, at 9:21 in the third quarter. With that, we decide to show them up with some fireworks from Salinas, who complete 5 straight passes for 59 yds before handing off to Wittich, who runs 19 yds for the score. 28-7, Indiana!

We score again at the beginning on the 4th quarter to increase our lead to 28 points. Sailer caught the 2-yd TD pass, and it's 35-7, Indiana, at 14:45 in the 4th quarter. Minnesota hasn't given up yet, though - they reduce our lead on a 24-yd TD pass four minutes later. 35-14, Indiana. We start the drive on our own 8 thanks to a holding penalty on the return, and use two Salinas passes to get away a little, before running out the clock with Wittich. He does it so well that we move 92 yds before scoring on a 2-yd run by the guy who could be our new starting RB. 42-14, Indiana.

Indiana Individual Statistics
 
Rushing		Att	Yards	Avg	Long	TD	Stufd	Sackd
21 Wittich	25	171	6.8	35	2	7	0
 
Passing		Att	Comp	Yards	Yd/Att	Long	TD	Int
3 Salinas	33	24	343	10.3	35	4	0
 
Receiving	Catch	Yards	Avg	YAC	Long	TD
5 Sailer	6	102	17.0	53	25	1
84 Parr		5	52	10.4	63	30	3
39 Lyle		4	38	9.5	16	15	0
87 Hatley	4	54	13.5	22	18	0
 
Defense		Tackle	Assist	Sack	Int	IntYds	IntTD
58 Fleming	6	1	0.0	0	0	0
48 Fuller	5	1	0.0	0	0	0
43 Graham	5	0	0.0	0	0	0
96 Cox		4	3	3.0	0	0	0

Injuries
RB B.J. Konrad, out, hyperextended elbow, 3 weeks.
DE Zach Jenkins, out, torn knee cartilage, 6 weeks.
WR Russell Sailer, out, separated shoulder, 7 weeks.
WR J.B. Blades, questionable, hip pointer, 2 weeks.
TE Jake Hatley, probable, bruised shoulder, 2 weeks.
FB Charles Lyle, probable, broken hand, 3 weeks.

Results
Illinois 35, Penn State 7.
Iowa 45, Purdue 10.
Northwestern 31, Michigan State 6.
Wisconsin 59, Ohio State 10.

Standings

2036 Season Standings, Big Ten
   
  School                 W  L  T  Pct   PF  PA  W  L  T  Pct   PF  PA  Streak  
Wisconsin                9  0  0  1.000 480 69  6  0  0  1.000 326 38  Won 9       
Michigan State           8  1  0  .888  346 127 5  1  0  .833  198 106 Lost 1      
**Indiana                8  1  0  .888  330 119 5  1  0  .833  227 71  Won 3       
Northwestern             7  2  0  .777  281 138 4  2  0  .666  169 104 Won 1       
Illinois                 4  5  0  .444  175 309 4  2  0  .666  124 189 Won 1       
Iowa                     4  6  0  .400  222 247 4  3  0  .571  175 151 Won 2       
Ohio State               2  7  0  .222  171 303 2  4  0  .333  116 176 Lost 1      
Penn State               2  7  0  .222  179 268 1  5  0  .166  93  172 Lost 5      
Michigan                 2  7  0  .222  152 264 1  5  0  .166  117 185 Lost 1      
Purdue                   1  8  0  .111  122 403 1  5  0  .166  71  288 Lost 3      
Minnesota                2  8  0  .200  127 311 1  6  0  .142  110 246 Lost 3

Next week:
at home vs Wisconsin on TV1.

[3ric]

Week 12

In the mailbox
DT Foreman committs to Louisiana-Lafayette.
ILB Farmer committs to Colorado State.

Visits
QB Clayton, ILB Martinez, CB Crane.

Scholarship offers:
T Jeremy Clark
DT Bubba Joseph
DT Duane Nordby
CB Darren Sanford
S Russell Linquist

#2 Wisconsin (9-0)(-1) at #18 Indiana (8-1)

We win the toss and begin at our 17-yd line. Wittich gain 10 yds on a run, and then 14 yds a little later. We are eventually stopped on their 43-yd line, where we face a 4th and 23. The Badgers get a 33-yd FG on their first drive to get a 0-3 lead at 7:22 in the 1st quarter. We are stopped on the next drive too and the resulting punt is blocked and recovered by Wisconsin on our 12-yd line. They need only two plays to score, and it's 0-10, Wisconsin.

We can move the ball a little, but hasn't had a viable scoring opportunity so far, and in the middle of the second quarter we yield another touchdown. The Badgers move 93 yds and finish with a 9-yd TD run. 0-17, Wisconsin. The first half ends and we're still down by 17 points. We have 7 first downs, 28 rushing yds and 63 passing yds while the visitors have 8 first downs, 94 rushing yds and 51 passing yds. It looks closer statistically than in practice.

The Badgers start the second half strong, with a 92-yd drive and a 21-yd TD run for 0-24. Salinas tries to rally the Hoosiers and shows the way with a 30-yd completion to Parr. But Wisconsin intensify their pass rush and force a punt. When we get the ball back, we lose it again as a Salinas pass is intercepted, which eventually leads to a score for 0-31, Wisconsin, at 2:57 in the third quarter. Salinas continue to gamble with deep passes and connects with Hemingway for a 41-yd gain.

After another pass to Hemingway for 17 yds the drive stalls and K Lofton attempts a 40-yd FG but it's wide right. Two sacks by Cox end the Badgers' drive, and Salinas tries again with a 23-yd pass to Jeffries. A couple of other plays get us close enough for Lofton to step in and kick a 42-yd FG. 3-31, Wisconsin, at 12:30 in the 4th quarter. But we have to concede another touchdown on their next drive and are now down 3-38 with 6:33 left. The rest of the game passes quickly.

Indiana Individual Statistics
 
Rushing		Att	Yards	Avg	Long	TD	Stufd	Sackd
21 Wittich	14	54	3.8	14	0	4	0
 
Passing		Att	Comp	Yards	Yd/Att	Long	TD	Int
3 Salinas	31	14	202	6.5	41	0	1
 
Receiving	Catch	Yards	Avg	YAC	Long	TD
83 Hemingway	6	95	15.8	4	41	0
84 Parr		2	38	19.0	6	30	0
21 Wittich	2	24	12.0	0	19	0
 
Defense		Tackle	Assist	Sack	Int	IntYds	IntTD
58 Fleming	7	1	0.0	0	0	0
96 Cox		6	1	2.0	0	0	0
34 Jarvis	6	0	0.0	0	0	0

Injuries
DE Zach Jenkins, out, torn knee cartilage, 5 weeks.
WR Russell Sailer, out, separated shoulder, 6 weeks.
WR J.B. Blades, doubtful, hip pointer, 5 weeks.
RB B.J. Konrad, questionable, hyperextended elbow, 2 weeks.
OLB Seth Taylor, questionable, stretched knee ligament, 7 weeks.
TE Jake Hatley, probable, bruised shoulder, 1 week.
FB Charles Lyle, probable, broken hand, 2 weeks.

Results
Illinois 13, Michigan State 7. (Wo-hoo! Thank you, Illinois!)
Ohio State 51, Iowa 14.
Penn State 31, Michigan 6.
Northwestern 28, Purdue 0.

Next week:
away at Purdue (1-9)

[3ric]

Week 13

In the mailbox
WR Horner committs to Tennessee.

Visits
DT Nordby, DT Joseph, LB Martinez, CB Sanford.

Scholarship offers:
S Butch Preston
T Nicky Oldham

#25 Indiana (8-2)(-24) at Purdue (1-9)

We open the scoring with a 6-yd TD pass to FB Lyle after about five minutes of play. In that span we've lost a fumble, but regained possession on a blocked field goal attempt. 7-0, Indiana! The Boilermakers answer with a 14-play drive which spanned 72 yds, finishing with a 11-yd TD run. 7-7 at 4:53 in the first quarter. We regain the lead on a quick drive in the 2nd quarter where Salinas complete three passes for 65 yds, with the 30-yarder to Parr as the clincher. 14-7, Indiana!

Our next drive is equally quick as Salinas first hits Jeffries for 16 yds and then TE Hatley for 60 yds and a touchdown! 21-7, Indiana, at 2:51 in the 2nd quarter. With 40 seconds left on the clock, we move 45 yds to get Lofton in range for a FG, which is good. We exit the field to the locker rooms with a 24-7 lead. We have 13 first downs, 17 rushing yds and 272 passing yds, while allowing Purdue to get 11 first downs, 3 rushing yds and 143 passing yds.

But Purdue QB Hanspard is plucky - despite being sacked 6 times already, he's still fighting, and Purdue moves 74 yds on his passing to score on the first drive of the second half. 24-14, Indiana. We reply with a 77-yd scoring drive, Hemingway caught a 2-yd pass from Salinas for six points. 31-14, Indiana, at 3:44 in the third quarter. When Purdue tries to convert a 4th and 3 on their own 40, we get our first interception through Banks, who returns the ball 46 yds for the TD! 38-14, Indiana!

Then we get a repeat occurrence of that big play when Fuller intercepts Hanspard again, and returns it 57 yds for another score! 45-14, Indiana! Hanspard digs deep into himself for strength, but his confidence is shattered - after a incompletion on first down, his second pass is picked off by Buchanan on our 41-yd line. Three turnovers and two TDs in four plays by the defense! Purdue get a big running play and manage to kick a 41-yd FG, 45-17 at 12:32 in the final quarter. Finally, Lofton kick a 40-yd FG with 1:33 left, and the score is 48-17, Indiana.

Indiana Individual Statistics
 
Rushing		Att	Yards	Avg	Long	TD	Stufd	Sackd
21 Wittich	17	32	1.8	19	0	7	0
 
Passing		Att	Comp	Yards	Yd/Att	Long	TD	Int
3 Salinas	24	20	350	14.5	60	4	1
 
Receiving	Catch	Yards	Avg	YAC	Long	TD
87 Hatley	6	132	22.0	44	60	1
39 Lyle		4	41	10.2	30	23	1
83 Hemingway	3	33	11.0	17	22	1
 
Defense		Tackle	Assist	Sack	Int	IntYds	IntTD
43 Graham	8	0	1.0	0	0	0
48 Fuller	7	0	0.0	1	57	1
58 Fleming	5	5	0.0	0	0	0
77 Humphrey	4	1	2.5	0	0	0

Injuries
WR Russell Sailer, out, separated shoulder, 5 weeks.
WR J.B. Blades, questionable, hip pointer, 4 weeks.
DE Zach Jenkins, questionable, torn knee cartilage, 3 weeks.
OLB Seth Taylor, questionable, stretched knee ligament, 6 weeks.
RB B.J. Konrad, probable, hyperextended elbow, 1 week.
FB Charles Lyle, probable, broken hand, 2 weeks.
WR Jimmy Parr, probable, sprained neck, 2 weeks.

Results
Northwestern 40, Illinois 6.
Ohio State 31, Michigan 7.
Michigan State 48, Penn State 17.
Wisconsin 48, Minnesota 18.

Next week:
No game scheduled.

[Alf]

Great timing as I just came back from vacation. 9-2 and second place in the Big 10. Congrtas on that huge Northwestern win !!!

[3ric]

Week 14

In the mailbox
FB Kaplan accepts our invitation.
C Gullett accepts our invitation.
T Oldham accepts our invitation.
DT Nordby accepts our invitation.
CB Crane accepts our invitation.
S Preston committs to Louisiana-Monroe.

Scholarship offers:
WR Michael Husted
S Charles Gordon
ILB Marcus Holliday

Standings

2036 Season Standings, Big Ten
   
  School                 W  L  T  Pct   PF  PA  W  L  T  Pct   PF  PA  Streak  
Wisconsin                11 0  0  1.000 566 90  8  0  0  1.000 412 59  Won 11      
Michigan State           9  2  0  .818  401 157 6  2  0  .750  253 136 Won 1       
**Indiana                9  2  0  .818  381 174 6  2  0  .750  278 126 Won 1       
Northwestern             9  2  0  .818  349 144 6  2  0  .750  237 110 Won 3       
Illinois                 5  6  0  .454  194 356 5  3  0  .625  143 236 Lost 1      
Ohio State               4  7  0  .363  253 324 4  4  0  .500  198 197 Won 2       
Iowa                     4  7  0  .363  236 298 4  4  0  .500  189 202 Lost 1      
Penn State               3  8  0  .272  227 322 2  6  0  .250  141 226 Lost 1      
Michigan                 2  9  0  .181  165 326 1  7  0  .125  130 247 Lost 3      
Minnesota                2  9  0  .181  145 359 1  7  0  .125  128 294 Lost 4      
Purdue                   1  10 0  .090  139 479 1  7  0  .125  88  364 Lost 5

Injuries
WR Russell Sailer, out, separated shoulder, 4 weeks.
WR J.B. Blades, questionable, hip pointer, 3 weeks.
DE Zach Jenkins, questionable, torn knee cartilage, 2 weeks.
OLB Seth Taylor, questionable, stretched knee ligament, 5 weeks.
FB Charles Lyle, probable, broken hand, 2 weeks.
WR Jimmy Parr, probable, sprained neck, 1 week.
RB B.J. Konrad is fully recovered.

Next week:
No game scheduled.

[3ric]

Week 15

In the mailbox
WR Husted accepts our invitation.
T Tanner accepts our invitation.

Injuries
WR Russell Sailer, out, separated shoulder, 4 weeks.
WR J.B. Blades, questionable, hip pointer, 3 weeks.
DE Zach Jenkins, questionable, torn knee cartilage, 2 weeks.
OLB Seth Taylor, questionable, stretched knee ligament, 5 weeks.
FB Charles Lyle, probable, broken hand, 2 weeks.
WR Jimmy Parr is fully recovered.

Next week:
No game scheduled, since - we missed the playoffs! Northwestern and Wisconsin represent the Big 10... I'll try to sort it out in the next post.

[Alf]

No playoffs -- That sucks

[3ric]

Week 15

In the mailbox
QB Clayton accepts our invitation.
WR Bertram accepts our invitation.
DT Joseph accepts our invitation.
ILB Holliday accepts our invitation.
CB Sanford accepts our invitation.
S Gordon accepts our invitation, and that completes the 2036 class!

Northwestern beat Michigan State and lost to Indiana,
Michigan State beat Indiana, and lost to Northwestern,
Indiana beat Northwestern and lost to Michigan State.

All had a 9-2 record and was 6-2 within the Big 10. That leaves Northwestern as the qualifying team due to the highest ranking (#8) in the coaches' poll (I think?).

[3ric]

Recruits

  Player                  Pos   HT   WT   ST   NRank Visiting
$$Clayton, Larry          QB    6-6  200  GA   422   Indiana (committed)          
##Kaplan, Ethan           FB    5-8  186  OK   388   Indiana (committed)          
##Husted, Michael         WR    6-1  192  GA   ---   Indiana (committed)          
$$Bertram, Herb           WR    6-2  174  AR   229   Indiana (committed)          
$$Gullett, Charles        C     6-3  263  IL   483   Indiana (committed)          
$$Tanner, K.C.            T     6-4  272  IL   476   Indiana (committed)          
##Oldham, Nicky           T     6-3  262  KS   ---   Indiana (committed)          
$$Stump, Clay             T     6-6  276  IN   302   Indiana (committed)          
##Schultz, David          DT    6-5  254  GA   723   Indiana (committed)          
##Nordby, Duane           DT    6-1  247  NY   ---   Indiana (committed)          
##Joseph, Bubba           DT    6-3  263  GA   ---   Indiana (committed)          
##Holliday, Marcus        ILB   6-2  219  IL   ---   Indiana (committed)          
##Sanford, Darren         CB    6-3  174  WI   ---   Indiana (committed)          
##Crane, Jeff             CB    6-1  165  NY   810   Indiana (committed)          
##Gordon, Charles         S     5-11 177  MD   ---   Indiana (committed)          
$$Sample, Brant           S     6-1  183  IN   516   Indiana (committed)          
 
  Player                  Pos   ST   Visit Cost  Dist.   Fit Score
$$Clayton, Larry          QB    GA   415         485     86            
##Kaplan, Ethan           FB    OK   607         519     72            
$$Bertram, Herb           WR    AR   379         461     89            
##Husted, Michael         WR    GA   435         480     95            
$$Gullett, Charles        C     IL   355         236     86            
$$Stump, Clay             T     IN   291         175     86            
$$Tanner, K.C.            T     IL   299         197     93            
##Oldham, Nicky           T     KS   512         595     87            
##Joseph, Bubba           DT    GA   416         492     93            
##Schultz, David          DT    GA   431         415     87            
##Nordby, Duane           DT    NY   531         697     81            
##Holliday, Marcus        ILB   IL   283         151     82            
##Crane, Jeff             CB    NY   512         692     91            
##Sanford, Darren         CB    WI   368         430     92            
$$Sample, Brant           S     IN   259         78      93            
##Gordon, Charles         S     MD   420         531     83            
   
  Player                  Scout   Phone   Visit   Emphasis    Status
$$Clayton, Larry          76-     4       3       Prest/Dist  Committed *      
##Kaplan, Ethan           88+     2       2       Acad/Dist   Committed *      
$$Bertram, Herb           86+     4       3       Acad*/Dist  Committed *      
##Husted, Michael         55--    1       1       Prest*/Acad Committed *      
$$Gullett, Charles        74-     2       2       Acad*/Dist  Committed *      
$$Stump, Clay             71++    1       2       Acad*/Dist  Committed *      
$$Tanner, K.C.            70--    3       2       Acad/Dist   Committed *      
##Oldham, Nicky           53      1       0       Dist/Acad   Committed *      
##Joseph, Bubba           61+     2       2       Acad/Prest  Committed *      
##Schultz, David          64+     1       1       Dist/Acad   Committed *      
##Nordby, Duane           52+     1       1       Dist/Acad   Committed *      
##Holliday, Marcus        59+     2       1       Dist*/Acad  Committed *      
##Crane, Jeff             64+     2       2       Dist/Prest  Committed *      
##Sanford, Darren         61-     3       1       Dist/Prest  Committed *      
$$Sample, Brant           72+     2       2       Dist/Acad   Committed *      
##Gordon, Charles         57-     2       1       Acad*/Prest Committed *      
 
  Player                  Pos   HT   WT   ST   NRank ByPos  StRank ByPos
$$Clayton, Larry          QB    6-6  200  GA   422   38     18     3        
##Kaplan, Ethan           FB    5-8  186  OK   388   10     6      1        
$$Bertram, Herb           WR    6-2  174  AR   229   16     1      1        
##Husted, Michael         WR    6-1  192  GA   ---   ---    52     7        
$$Gullett, Charles        C     6-3  263  IL   483   25     29     2        
$$Stump, Clay             T     6-6  276  IN   302   33     2      2        
$$Tanner, K.C.            T     6-4  272  IL   476   51     28     3        
##Oldham, Nicky           T     6-3  262  KS   ---   ---    21     2        
##Schultz, David          DT    6-5  254  GA   723   42     22     2        
##Joseph, Bubba           DT    6-3  263  GA   ---   74     40     5        
##Nordby, Duane           DT    6-1  247  NY   ---   79     91     6        
##Holliday, Marcus        ILB   6-2  219  IL   ---   90     68     5        
##Crane, Jeff             CB    6-1  165  NY   810   63     52     9        
##Sanford, Darren         CB    6-3  174  WI   ---   100    31     4        
$$Sample, Brant           S     6-1  183  IN   516   28     11     1        
##Gordon, Charles         S     5-11 177  MD   ---   96     26     1        
   
  Player                  All-St All-US Status
$$Clayton, Larry          No     No     Committed *      
##Kaplan, Ethan           Yes    No     Committed *      
$$Bertram, Herb           Yes    No     Committed *      
##Husted, Michael         No     No     Committed *      
$$Gullett, Charles        No     No     Committed *      
$$Stump, Clay             Yes    No     Committed *      
$$Tanner, K.C.            No     No     Committed *      
##Oldham, Nicky           Yes    No     Committed *      
##Schultz, David          Yes    No     Committed *      
##Joseph, Bubba           No     No     Committed *      
##Nordby, Duane           No     No     Committed *      
##Holliday, Marcus        No     No     Committed *      
##Crane, Jeff             No     No     Committed *      
##Sanford, Darren         Yes    No     Committed *      
$$Sample, Brant           Yes    No     Committed *      
##Gordon, Charles         Yes    No     Committed *      
 
  Player                  Pos   HT   WT   ST   NRank Home Town
$$Clayton, Larry          QB    6-6  200  GA   422   Sandersville                 
##Kaplan, Ethan           FB    5-8  186  OK   388   Muldrow                      
##Husted, Michael         WR    6-1  192  GA   ---   Columbus                     
$$Bertram, Herb           WR    6-2  174  AR   229   Bryant                       
$$Gullett, Charles        C     6-3  263  IL   483   Crystal Lake                 
##Oldham, Nicky           T     6-3  262  KS   ---   Mulvane                      
$$Stump, Clay             T     6-6  276  IN   302   Munster                      
$$Tanner, K.C.            T     6-4  272  IL   476   Chicago                      
##Joseph, Bubba           DT    6-3  263  GA   ---   Fort Valley                  
##Nordby, Duane           DT    6-1  247  NY   ---   Merrick                      
##Schultz, David          DT    6-5  254  GA   723   Watkinsville                 
##Holliday, Marcus        ILB   6-2  219  IL   ---   Cullom                       
##Crane, Jeff             CB    6-1  165  NY   810   Hopewell Junction            
##Sanford, Darren         CB    6-3  174  WI   ---   Mosinee                      
##Gordon, Charles         S     5-11 177  MD   ---   Baltimore                    
$$Sample, Brant           S     6-1  183  IN   516   Frankfort                    
   
  Player                  High School              Reg  Ath. Prep
$$Clayton, Larry          Washington County        SE   9           
##Kaplan, Ethan           Muldrow                  DS   3           
##Husted, Michael         Hardaway                 SE   42          
$$Bertram, Herb           Bryant                   DS   12          
$$Gullett, Charles        Crystal Lake South       GL   13          
##Oldham, Nicky           Mulvane                  MW   7           
$$Stump, Clay             Munster                  GL   6           
$$Tanner, K.C.            Hubbard                  GL   57          
##Joseph, Bubba           Peach County             SE   5           
##Nordby, Duane           Sanford H Calhoun        NE   10          
##Schultz, David          Oconee County            SE   23          
##Holliday, Marcus        Tri-Point                GL   0           
##Crane, Jeff             John Jay                 NE   34          
##Sanford, Darren         Mosinee                  GL   10          
##Gordon, Charles         Southern                 MA   10          
$$Sample, Brant           Frankfort                GL   31

[3ric]

Playoff Bracket

  Game                   Matchup  
Championship Game        Wisconsin (15-0) 38, Tulane (14-2) 12                  
Semifinal Game 1         Tulane (14-2) 38, Idaho (13-2) 31                      
Semifinal Game 2         Wisconsin (15-0) 41, Baylor (13-2) 14                  
Quarterfinal Game 1      Tulane (14-2) 45, Army (10-3) 28                       
Quarterfinal Game 2      Baylor (13-2) 27, Southern California (12-3) 17        
Quarterfinal Game 3      Idaho (13-2) 20, California-Los Angeles (11-3) 17      
Quarterfinal Game 4      Wisconsin (15-0) 31, North Carolina State (11-2) 30    
Second Round Game 1      Army (10-3) 20, Boston College (11-2) 17               
Second Round Game 2      Idaho (13-2) 48, Air Force (11-1) 35                   
Second Round Game 3      Southern California (12-3) 49, Syracuse (10-2) 10      
Second Round Game 4      North Carolina State (11-2) 35, Rice (11-3) 28         
Second Round Game 5      Tulane (14-2) 48, Mississippi State (12-1) 25          
Second Round Game 6      California-Los Angeles (11-3) 19, California (10-2) 1  
Second Round Game 7      Baylor (13-2) 17, San Jose State (10-3) 10             
Second Round Game 8      Wisconsin (15-0) 21, South Florida (9-4) 11            
First Round Game 1       Idaho (13-2) 35, Vanderbilt (11-2) 32                  
First Round Game 2       Boston College (11-2) 24, Florida (9-3) 14             
First Round Game 3       Rice (11-3) 45, Bowling Green (6-7) 20                 
First Round Game 4       South Florida (9-4) 12, Utah (10-2) 10                 
First Round Game 5       San Jose State (10-3) 27, Northwestern (9-3) 17        
First Round Game 6       Southern California (12-3) 52, Central Michigan (10-3  
First Round Game 7       Tulane (14-2) 59, Louisiana-Monroe (10-2) 31           
First Round Game 8       California-Los Angeles (11-3) 38, Barrow (11-1) 13

National champions 2036 is the Wisconsin Badgers, after a 38-12 win over Tulane.

The winner of the Heisman Trophy award was USC WR Donnie Whitfield, who had 125 receptions for 2509 yds and 28 TDs, all league records, except receptions, which is one catch less than Texas A&M WR Irv Sheldon's record from 2030.

[3ric]

Team Summary

The College Years
2036 Summary for Indiana
   
Record: 9-2
Rank: 20
   
Indiana                 Team      Rank  
Rushes                  402       63 (T)      
Rushing Yards           1441      67          
Yards Per Carry         3.58      66          
Pass Attempts           353       39 (T)      
Completions             223       21          
Passing Yards           3343      17          
Yards Per Attempt       9.47      8           
3rd Down Conversions    42.6      18          
Points Per Game         34.6      19          
Turnovers               22        71 (T)      
Turnover Margin         +9        19 (T)      
   
Opponents               Team      Rank  
Rushes                  354       13          
Rushing Yards           928       9           
Yards Per Carry         2.62      11 (T)      
Pass Attempts           340       87 (T)      
Completions             147       10 (T)      
Passing Yards           2166      46          
Yards Per Attempt       6.37      30          
3rd Down Conversions    28.1      17 (T)      
Points Per Game         15.8      10          
   
Primary Formation: Pro Formation
   
Week  Team  Versus        Oppnt  
2     41    RUTG (90)     17      
3     31    at NCST (19)  24      
4     31    at ALBI (58)  7       
5     30    at IOWA (80)  9       
6     28    OHST (88)     0       
8     34    at MIST (22)  41      
9     59    ILLN (77)     0       
10    34    NWES (10)     7       
11    42    at MINN (106) 14      
12    3     WISC (1)      38      
13    48    at PURD (119) 17      
   
Passing             Pos   Att   Comp  Yards Y/Att TD    Int  
3 Salinas           QB    336   213   3185  9.47  29    11      
Team                ---   353   223   3343  9.47  30    11      
   
Rushing             Pos   Att   Yards Y/Att TD    Stff  YdLst  
20 Konrad           RB    189   938   4.96  8     46    62      
21 Wittich          RB    122   426   3.49  3     45    68      
3 Salinas           QB    62    -17   -0.27 0     38    193     
Team                ---   402   1441  3.58  12    140   337     
   
Receiving           Pos   Targ  Catch Yards Y/Ctc YAC   TD  
84 Parr             WR    64    31    462   14.9  309   9       
83 Hemingway        WR    56    33    569   17.2  130   3       
20 Konrad           RB    45    36    373   10.3  200   2       
87 Hatley           TE    43    26    472   18.1  177   4       
39 Lyle             FB    39    32    345   10.7  178   6       
80 Blades           WR    35    24    439   18.2  133   3       
21 Wittich          RB    18    9     116   12.8  34    0       
2 Kaplan            WR    17    8     134   16.7  45    0       
5 Sailer            WR    17    10    167   16.7  79    1       
89 Jeffries         TE    12    9     169   18.7  116   2       
Team                ---   353   223   3343  14.9  1416  30      
   
Defense             Pos   Tack  Asst  Sack  TFL   Ints  Defn  
77 Humphrey         DE    52    16    16.0  28    0     0       
43 Graham           ILB   51    14    3.5   10    2     4       
52 Whalen           ILB   40    8     3.0   12    2     2       
58 Fleming          ILB   38    18    0.0   6     0     3       
48 Fuller           CB    36    5     0.0   2     1     7       
34 Jarvis           S     36    7     0.0   6     1     8       
56 Shanahan         OLB   34    14    0.0   9     0     2       
35 Buchanan         CB    33    6     0.0   4     6     12      
31 Nellums          S     27    11    0.0   3     1     4       
49 Banks            CB    27    15    0.5   2     4     11      
96 Cox              DE    25    16    11.5  15    0     0       
99 Cabrera          DT    15    9     1.5   6     0     0       
28 Brignac          S     14    8     0.0   4     1     1       
44 Buckner          ILB   11    5     0.0   3     0     0       
26 Sonnier          CB    11    7     1.0   2     0     1       
Team                ---   561   176   44.0  127   21    56

[3ric]

Awards

All-US Senior Team: DE Jerald Humphrey.

Big 10 First Team: DE Jerald Humphrey.

Big 10 Second Team: QB Allen Salinas, FB Charles Lyle.

Records

Team passing yards, season: 303.9 yds/game

Team total yards, season: 434.9 yds/game

[3ric]

Top 25

Overall Rankings
   
  School                Record  Conf  Comp  Poll  Loss  Sched Total Rank  
Wisconsin               15-0    B10   1.00  1.00  0.00  0.96  2.96  1       
Boston College          11-2    BGE   2.75  2.50  2.00  0.20  7.45  2       
Idaho                   13-2    SNB   5.25  4.50  2.00  0.84  12.59 3       
Air Force               11-1    MWS   7.75  3.00  1.00  3.00  14.75 4       
Tulane                  14-2    CFU   4.00  12.50 2.00  0.40  18.90 5       
Southern California     12-3    PAC   10.25 7.00  3.00  0.76  21.01 6       
Rice                    11-3    WAC   12.50 4.00  3.00  3.08  22.58 7       
Barrow                  11-1    SCE   10.00 9.50  1.00  4.36  24.86 8       
Baylor                  13-2    BTW   5.50  16.00 2.00  1.44  24.94 9       
Florida                 9-3     SEC   16.00 7.50  3.00  0.52  27.02 10      
Vanderbilt              11-2    SEC   12.50 10.00 2.00  2.88  27.38 11      
Mississippi State       12-1    SEC   13.50 9.00  1.00  4.20  27.70 12      
Army                    10-3    CFU   16.00 9.50  3.00  0.32  28.82 13      
Northwestern            9-3     B10   13.00 12.00 3.00  1.56  29.56 14      
North Carolina State    11-2    ACC   6.50  20.00 2.00  3.20  31.70 15      
California-Los Angeles  11-3    PAC   13.25 15.50 3.00  0.08  31.83 16      
Syracuse                10-2    BGE   14.25 13.00 2.00  2.64  31.89 17      
Utah                    10-2    MWS   10.25 17.50 2.00  2.92  32.67 18      
Louisiana-Monroe        10-2    SNB   8.00  24.50 2.00  0.48  34.98 19      
**Indiana               9-2     B10   10.75 21.00 2.00  1.84  35.59 20      
Southern Methodist      9-2     WAC   14.75 19.50 2.00  2.40  38.65 21      
California              10-2    PAC   18.00 17.50 2.00  1.64  39.14 22      
Michigan State          9-2     B10   21.25 21.00 2.00  4.88  49.13 23      
San Jose State          10-3    WAC   22.50 27.00 3.00  1.20  53.70 24      
Notre Dame              8-3     IND   24.00 25.00 3.00  2.12  54.12 25

[3ric]

Graduating class

  Player                #    Pos  Elig  HT   WT   High School  
Salinas, Allen          3    QB   Sr    6-2   226   Gary, IN - West Side           
Rosano, Darren          32   RB   Sr    5-11  199   Piedmont, SC - Wren            
Lyle, Charles           39   FB   Sr    6-0   251   South Bend, IN - John Adams    
Parr, Jimmy             84   WR   Sr    6-0   186   Baltimore, MD - Kenwood        
Hoedemaker, Tyrus       54   C    Sr    6-5   309   Carbondale, IL - Central East  
Tate, Bucky             75   G    Sr    6-2   310   Gardner, IL - Gardner-South Wi 
Stanton, T.J.           74   T    Sr    6-4   319   Xenia, OH - Xenia              
Cook, Tony              11   P    Sr    6-0   203   Paris, TN - Henry County       
Lofton, Norman          17   K    Sr    6-1   197   Pleasanton, CA - Amador Valley 
Humphrey, Jerald        77   DE   Sr    6-3   261   New Harmony, IN - New Harmony  
Buckner, Cedric         44   ILB  Sr    6-3   251   McKeesport, PA - South Alleghe 
Shanahan, Louie         56   OLB  Sr    6-1   232   Fort Wayne, IN - South Side    
Fuller, Nicky           48   CB   Sr    5-9   178   Smyrna, TN - Smyrna            
Nellums, Blaine         31   S    Sr    6-1   213   Granite City, IL - Granite Cit 
Konrad, B.J.            20   RB   Sr    6-3   227   Okemos, MI - Okemos            
Hatley, Jake            87   TE   Sr    6-3   262   London Mills, IL - Spoon River 
Carvin, Danny           70   DT   Sr    6-4   286   Freeport, IL - Freeport        
Zimmer, Will            40   OLB* Sr    6-1   236   Barstow, CA - Barstow

• Salinas started 20 of 29 games and passed for 5741 yds and 54 TDs, with a career rating of 156.7.
  
• Rosano was a career backup with no starts and ran for only 44 yds.
  
• Lyle started 23 games and ran only for 202 yds but caught 80 passes for 733 yds and 8 TDs.
  
• Parr caught 114 passes for 1961 yds and 25 TDs in 33 starts.
  
• Hoedemaker started 45 games and had 101 KRBs for a career 36.9 BPct.
  
• Tate started 11 of 37 games (all starts in senior season) and had a 31.4 BPct.
  
• Stanton started only 5 of 28 games but had a superb 41.3 BPct.
  
• Cook punted 180 times for a 36.3 average with 51 within the red zone.
  
• Lofton kicked 57 FGs and was perfect on 159 PATs.
  
• Humphrey started 39 of 40 games and had 174 tck, 54 ast and 49 sacks,
  
• Buckner played in 36 games but had no starts and only 14 tackles.
  
• Shanahan started 45 games and had 153 tck, 56 ast, 6 sacks and 4 ints for 120 yds and 1 TD.
  
• Fuller started 40 of 44 games and had 118 tck, 30 ast, 1 sack and 6 ints for 202 yds and 3 TDs.
  
• Nellums started 18 of 35 games and had 89 tck, 32 ast and 5 ints for 57 yds.
  
• Konrad started 30 of 44 games and ran for 2871 yds and 20 TDs and caught 115 passes for 1163 yds and 6 TDs.
  
• Hatley started 17 of 44 games and caught 39 passes for 700 yds and 5 TDs.
  
• Carvin played in 42 games with no starts and had 22 tck, 8 ast and 9 sacks.
  
• Zimmer played in 38 games but had only 2 tackles, 1 ast and 1 sack.
  

Significant freshman/sophomore contributions

• RB Erik Wittich started two games and ran for 426 yds and 3 TDs, and caught 9 passes for 116 yds.
  
• TE Nick Jeffries caught 9 passes for 169 yds and 2 TDs.
  
• DT Malcolm Cabrera started 11 games and had 15 tck, 9 ast and 1.5 sacks.
  

[3ric]

The end of season file can be found here:
http://user.tninet.se/~swi795t/india...-endof2036.zip

Next in line is Alf for the 2037 season (since bigjdotcom01 resigned), MylesKnight takes his place in 2038. If we can find another "guest star" then he'll run 2039, otherwise I step in a year early and we do a three-year rotation.

[cthomer5000]

oh man. what a bummer of an end to the season! it looks like you were really robbed for the playoffs... and that was a pretty veteran squad of players.. damn!

[Alf]

download underway. Since I have a day off, I will have enough time to post the early thoughts today.