Sigh -
I. Case History/Opening Statement
A. Case History
Go ahead and look at Indiana's 2011 schedule and results.
Yeah.
That's horrendous. The defense was asleep at the wheel. The offense showed definite signs of life, but the end result was the same: Losses piled up on top of each other like stacked Jenga pieces. If there was ever a year where Indiana football reached its possible high point of irrelevancy, it may have been 2011. Since OTE was formed, we've had only a few B1G teams fall into the 0-8 death chamber of conference play:
2007 Mini
2011 Indiana
How can we make ourselves care about Indiana football? How can we make Indiana care about Indiana football? These are the questions to be pondered during this closing argument.
B. Opening Statement
Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury, the Indiana Hoosiers football squad and fanbase are stuck in the doldrums. That's not a controversial statement; it's fact. Don't conjure up arguments or invisible facts that claim the Hoosiers are a 6-6 team. So instead of being rude, let's instead use this Closing Argument to ask: What can we possibly point to that leads us to believe the Hoosiers could pull some upsets? Which individuals could push Indiana to some close losses or respectable non-conf showings?
Most of the optimism this year will not stem from any discussion of the defense, because the defense was HOLY CRAP look at this from Bill Connelly of SBN:
And the 2011 Indiana defense was absolutely dreadful. In 2011, Indiana became only the third BCS conference defense in the last five years to rank 117th or worse in Def. F/+ (they were 117th, 2011 Washington State was 118th, and 2010 Michigan was 119th).
Oh my god.
How do you boost a defense? In this case, you just move on to talking about the offense. You've got three individuals who are going to get most of the game planning attention:
Tre Roberson, the good sized, dual threat QB who looked mentally and physically ready to run the Kevin Wilson offense.
Kofi Hughes, the very capable Jr. receiver who is going to be Target #1 for Roberson
Stephen Houston, the tough-running tailback who put up 800 yards on the ground last year. I like him because he usually falls forward. Love that in a running back.
Can these folks put enough points on the board to overcome the cluster of a defense?
II. Discovery
A. What We Can Learn From Pop Culture
There is a philosophical concept at play in "Somebody That I Used To Know.." Namely, this song is devoid of hope. Seriously. The song's narrator knows he screwed up, he knows it was a doomed relationship, and now it just hurts. There's none of this Don Henley "Heart of the Matter"-esque "I learned my lesson and need to move on." No man, it hurt and it hurts and there is no recipe for making things better. Sort of like being an Indiana football fan.
III. Emotional Plea
If you are a cold-hearted man, move on to the next paragraph. You love a skipping-stone Indiana program, you love penciling a victory into your team's schedule yearly...and you could care less that Kevin Wilson is busting his hump trying to get 4 wins.
Check out my 2011 Indiana preview. My favorite quote:
Indiana is the red headed stepchild of the B1G (Although Purdue is making a run). Give them a break. Watch some of their games on the BTN Regional channels. Root for Kevin Wilson's "AGGRESSIVE FOOTBALL IS GOOD FOOTBALL" attitude to take hold of the Indiana players.
If you do happen to have a sympathetic bone in your body, stick around. Indiana's schedule is manageable and its offensive philosophy looked promising last year. Let's not give up on the Hoosiers. Let's not throw Roberson and all his potential to the trash heap. Let's not just assume the Old Oaken Bucket will stay in West Lafayette for another year.
IV. Verdict
A. The Staff Calls the Games
Sheesh.
Big Ted Glover would call this "a dumpster fire."
OTE Staff: 3-9 (0-8)
Jon: 3-9 (0-8)
Ted: 2-10 (0-8)
Chad: 4-8 (1-7)
MSUlaxer27: 3-9 (1-7)
Jesse: 3-9 (0-8)
Paterno Ave: 3-9 (0-8)
Jeff: 3-9 (1-7)
Hilary: 4-8 (0-8)
JDMill: 3-9 (1-7)
Graham: 2-10 (0-8)
Brian: 2-10 (0-8)
Mike Jones: 3-9 (0-8)