The Indiana offensive line adjusts to the Michigan defense during last Saturday’s game. The Hoosiers play host to Ohio State at 7 p.m. today. Chris Howell | Herald-Times
Welcome to Hoosier Morning, a daily batch of links intended to keep you informed of what is going on at Indiana, in the Big Ten and throughout the college sporting world.AT HOOSIERSHQ.COM
- The goal today is to win, not just come close, Dustin Dopirak writes.
- Here’s the scouting report, thanks to Chris Korman.
- Going to the game? Trying to get around town? News writers Chris Fyall and Michael Malik have some key information.
- Indiana dedicated the North Endzone expansion Friday afternoon, and Mike Leonard writes that it turned into a pep rally.
IT’S INDIANA
- The Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette’s LaMond Pope gets all new media on us, with a video preview of tonight’s game.
- Can the Hoosier keep quarterback Ben Chappell clean?, Terry Hutchens asks in the Indianapolis Star.
- Five keys to victory, according to Peegs.com’s Matt Weaver.
- Visitors are starting to line up for Hoosier Hysteria, HoosierNation.com’s John Decker writes.
- Tom Crean was at Bloomington South Wednesday night to watch the Panthers’ open gym. Matt Carlino and T.J. Bell both played, I wrote on Quick Hits, the Herald-Times’ high school sports blog.
SWEATER VESTS FOR EVERYONE (or news on Ohio State, today’s opponent)
- Is the I formation dead at Ohio State? No, the Columbus Dispatch’s Ken Gordon writes, but it is ill.
- Brandon Saine has gone from second-string running back to starter and team captain, the Dispatch’s Tim May writes.
- Defensive end Doug Worthington is trying to undo the damage of a DUI, Gordon writes.
- The spotlight is on Anderson Russell, the safety who will replace the suspended Kurt Coleman, May writes.
- Meet linebacker Ross Homan in this Q&A with May.
- Five key players to watch against Indiana, according to the Cleveland Plain-Dealer’s Doug Lesmerises.
BIG TEN GRAB BAG
- Video preview of today’s Michigan-Michigan State game, from AnnArbor.com’s Michael Rothstein and Dave Birkett.
- Running back Carlos Brown and the play of the two freshmen quarterbacks has led Michigan’s offensive revival, Birkett writes.
- The road warriors, AnnArbor.com’s James Dickson writes, is the popular Michigan tailgate crew that will set up shop at Michigan State today.
- Mark Dantonio is still the man for the job at Michigan State, Detroit Free-Press columnist Drew Sharp writes.
- Fans on both sides of the UM-MSU rivalary do not know what to think, Detroit News columnist Angelique S. Chengelis writes.
- This is the most critical day in Dantonio’s tenure, the Lansing State Journal’s Joe Rexrode writes.
- Tom Izzo has been a friend and supporter of Dantonio, Rexrode writes.
- Who’s the man to blame for Illinois’ struggles with Penn State? Former Illinois president Stan Ikenberry, who supported PSU joining the Big Ten, the Champaign News-Gazette’s Bob Asmussen writes.
- Five keys to the Illinois-Penn State game from the News-Gazette.
- Where are the screen passes?, the Harrisburg Patriot-News’ Bob Flounders writes.
- Analysis of the Illinois-Penn State game and keys to victory, from Flounders.
- For Penn State, this game is about rebounding from last week, the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Joe Juliano writes.
- This is a good time to go on the road, the Daily Collegian’s Matt Fortuna writes.
- Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz is cautiously optimistic about a 5-0 start, the Des Moines Registers’ Andrew Logue writes.
- Arkansas State is making $900,000 to play Iowa today. The goal, the Iowa City Press-Citizen’s Andy Hamilton writes, is make that all they get out of today’s game.
- Previewing today’s Northwestern-Purdue game, from the Chicago Tribune’s Teddy Greenstein.
- Purdue safety Torri Williams came to campus in 2004. The freshmen were in the seventh grade then, the Lafayette Journal-Courier’s Mike Carmin writes.
- Northwestern quarterback Mike Kafka is all about accuracy when throwing the football, Carmin writes.
- Who has the edge?, according to Carmin.
- Wisconsin wide receiver Isaac Anderson is more mature, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel’s Jeff Potrykus writes.
- Five things to watch from the Wisconsin-Minnesota game, from Potrykus.
- Minnesota coach Tim Brewer texted three recruits in 2007, violating NCAA rules, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune’s Kent Youngblood writes.
- Gophers hungry to claim the Paul Bunyan Axe back, Youngblood writes.
AROUND THE NATION
- Here is ESPN.com’s College GameDay Kickoff.
- Miami quarterback Jacory Harris is the leader for the newest Hurricanes, ESPN.com’s Heather Dinich writes.
- Oregon’s LeGarrette Blount can return to the team. But, as ESPN.com’s Mark Fainaru-Wada writes, he had a lawyer speak to Oregon.
TAKE A LOOK
A YouTube classic, with highlights of Indiana’s 41-7 defeat of Ohio State back in 1988.
Last week, Washington played at Stanford and IU played at Michigan.
I prayed for the football gods to give me 1 out of 2 wins.
It didn’t happen. It was a tough “O”fer to swallow.
Washington was trounced, and IU lost, but it gave a breathtaking effort, in which it showed its potential as a big-play offensive juggernaut that could win in tough places.
This week, my prayers seem even more far-fetched. Washington is in northern Indiana, taking on the overrated but always dangerous Irish. IU brings its history of ineptitude into a game against a defensive stalwart with complete psychological superiority over the Hoosiers.
Yet, I don’t think I am being too wide-eyed to hope for one win.
Charlie Weis is a crappy head coach. The Irish have had many a choke in recent years, and just barely beat mediocre MSU and Purdue.
IU’s best attributes this year have been preparation and improvement. Each game things have looked better; even last weeks penalties were not a major step back, especially considering the home-field refereeing.
Billy Boy should give us a close game. He should have the team pumped and ready. No more blowouts to Big 10 powers on our home field. This is not the Wisconsin game from last year.
If I have to pick which of my two teams I’d prefer to see win, I say with little hesitation: Go Hoosiers!!!
The Huskies are already on the mend and will be back to powerhouse status in 2 years. The Hoosiers, on the other hand, need this one desperately to announce their national arrival.
We can do it, IU.