has come out as a trumpeter. we may have dodged a bullet

IU - despite 2 drops that wasted our first possession - dominated early.

We went 3 and out. Then we forced a 3 and out.

Then we worked ‘em for a TD 3 straight possessions and forced 3 punts while giving them 27 yards total. Domination.

Then we let up, the heat got us maybe a little, and we gave them a long drive for a TD.

They got a net 11 yards to start the second half, then we worked them again 13 plays for 68 then stalled at the 17 and settled for a FG.

They went 3 and out.

A hold cost us the next posession.

They worked for 37 yards - on 10 plays - and we picked them.

We are still dominating them. When they move it, it’s a struggle.

Hold costs us another possession. Big sack and they go for it on 4th and 19 from their own 38. Domination.

This one bothers me - we go 7 plays to their 30. 4th and 13. We go for it instead of trying the 47 yard FG. Hmmm.

Game is over at 24-7, but we still have fresh RB legs and Green gets a long gut run for a closer TD. 31-7.

I saw what I expected from FIU. Decent offense and a weaker defense.

We were a grinder and our defense mostly played solid to good.

I liked our plays and play calling. Decent runs. Short possession passes. Positive yards over potential. Left. Right. Routes and runs against the grain. We were hard to get a hold of, and fought for the extra yard.

Western Illinois should give us a chance to correct and hone and give depth game reps before we fly out to play a game in an old stadium and whip some azz.

Whoever was in charge of that needs replaced. They were blaring music every chance they had and even had it playing over the band so the crowd could barely hear the school song after players ran on the field. Crowd is usually riled up and clapping along with the IOI but no one could hear the song.

No point in having a band if we are going to deal with a wannabe dj taking over.

"Army hack"?

Has anybody ever heard this term before? I haven't.

Sounds like the people who said it say it a lot and have said it a lot amongst each other, though.

The Good:

We won in spite of errors that probably would have caused us to lose games in the past...

The D looked good to great at times (but my judgment is being withheld overall until after we play a couple of Big Ten games)...

Cignetti was clearly ticked off by the subpar aspects of the game and will have plenty of coaching points to hit on (with sincerity)over the next two weeks...

The next game (Western Ill) is the perfect opponent to simply focus on pure fundamentals against...

UCLA (game 3 @ The Rose Bowl) looks beatable (and probably would have lost against Hawaii if their QB hadn't been injured)...


The Bad:

Fill in the blank ___________
&
If we play the way we did yesterday we'll lose most, if not all, of our Big Ten games...

The Really Ugly:

Our receivers can't drop that many balls and expect us to be able to win against any Big Ten team...

Our backup C needs to learn how to snap the ball under pressure...

Our OL needs to cut their penalties by two thirds and while they're at it learn how to pass block or we're in for a long, ugly, disappointing Big Ten schedule...


The Good News is:
///We have two weeks of practices and what amounts to a scrimmage next Friday before we head to Cali... Let's hope our guys can get their sh-t together by then...///

IU is 1-0 ! I’m gonna enjoy the start and am excited to have Coach Cignetti! Go Hoosiers ! As a college player / college assistant/ and high school head coach . I know there are always things to improve , but a win is a win is a win! Life’s too short not to enjoy the ”w’s”. Love you all , Go Hoosiers Play 13!

Am I crazy or does it look like a video game you are watching

AKA The Karen Lobby

Good:
Defensive Line
Running Backs
Slot Receivers, specifically.

The Meh:
Kurtis Rourke in general
The Secondary (Really thought FIU's ineffectiveness was mostly their own doing.)

The Bad:
Kurtis Rourke on passes of more than intermediate depth
Penalties, especially since most of them were discipline related.
Offensive Line.

Thought IU showed good speed on offense and system is much more creative. D played good. It’s FIU. Cig knows they have a ways to go.

NPT inquired how I'm doing, so I thought I'd give everybody else an update too. I will be moving to assisted living on September 16, 2024 in order to improve my quality of life. I expect to relinquish my car soon thereafter. Greater good, ya know? Mrs. Sope isn't anymore. That's all I'll say about that. I'll see my sons tomorrow. That's good.

It's amazing how fast things can change.

I told NPT about how a friend of mine, upon hearing about the Cooler from me, said it sounds a lot like a bunch of porcupines huddled in the snow. I thought it apt.

Every time I come here, that's the image I get.

Take care of yourselves.

Why didn't Jackson get more of an opportunity to show what he could, or couldn't, do, in the second half, before that last posession? Which, by the way, led to our only touchdown in the second half, thanks to Greens awesome run. He couldn't have done any worse than what Rourke did. Although a large part of the impotent offense was the play calling. Too much of the old IU offensive strategy. Run off tackle, or throw the long, low percentage, pass. Play to not lose, instead of play to win big. Where were the high percentage 2, 5 and 10 yard passes, to move the ball down the field? The offense sucked, especially in the second half. Good thing they got the two-touchdown lead in the first quarter. The whole game looked like, same-o, same-o. Score early, and then stink, the rest of the way. I hope Donaven McCulley is all right.

And won easily. That’s exciting. The defense was outstanding. Running very solid. Passing was pretty blah. Bad OLine protection, drops, didn’t feel great. Great time for FCS this Friday. They’ll gel.

Hope it is not a concussion.

When Cig was asked what the Halftime message was going to be and he just chuckled, smirked, and started walking to the locker room.

Given he sounded pretty pi$$ed about the last 7 minutes, I get the feeling its gonna be a tirade that would make RMK smile...

That was just a very hard hit nothing else. You cannot call that.

New team, new coach, new season. Join us for this #NEWIUFB season, courtesy of @hookyIU1990. Limited to 10 slots unless you register.

If you're returning, it's the same link as in years past.

Game day is upon us, as the Hoosiers open up the season at home on Saturday at 3:30pm against the Panthers.

Follow along this live game thread throughout!

Indiana's availability report:
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Don Fischer:

Count Down to Kickoff Has Begun:


TV: Big Ten Network

Good luck in the Heisman race.

Hey, it could happen.

Go to assembly hall now as they are having a bball alumni gathering. Saw trace Jackson davis on his way out.