Still unblemished, IU heads into Big Ten play

Terry Hoeppner has said it again and again since arriving at IU, via billboards and radio announcements, word of mouth and press conferences: "Crowds help win games."\nTomorrow, Hoeppner and the Hoosiers will battle the merits of their own motto as they open their Big Ten season with a visit to No. 17-ranked Wisconsin and its legion of loyal Badger fans that pack Camp Randall Stadium every Saturday. \nWhile keeping football in the fronts of their minds, the Hoosiers are aware of the environment they're likely to face when they run onto the field in Madison. \n"You don't want to make it too big of a deal, but you don't want to ignore it either," Hoeppner said. "Our communication and our ability to function will matter." \nEighty-three thousand Badger fans will officially welcome IU to its Big Ten slate. At 3-0 the Hoosiers are one of 25 unbeaten Division I-A teams left, and will jump into a jumbled Big Ten conference with no clear frontrunner. \nHoeppner is excited for his team to test itself against conference foes.\n"This will be a good barometer for us," he said. "We'll find out (how good the team is) relative to our competition now. If we play as well as we can, is that good enough?"\nIU will receive its first test from a Wisconsin team which has already defied many expectations early in the season. The Badgers are unbeaten and coming off a 23-20 upset win over previously No. 13-ranked Michigan last week. \nThe Badgers are dedicated to the run, and their junior running back, Brian Calhoun. The breakout back is one of the top rushers in the nation, rated third in rushing yards (156.5 yards per game), fourth in all-purpose yards (192.5 ypg) and is tied for fifth in scoring (13.5 points per game). He carried 35 times for 155 yards and one touchdown against Michigan Sept. 24.\n"This is a team that's going to line up and run the ball 50 times," senior linebacker John Pannozzo said. "They have some big people up front and they know how to run the ball."\nPannozzo said he has nothing but respect for Wisconsin's program and its head coach Barry Alvarez, who is retiring after the season's end.\n"Alvarez took over that program and turned it into something great," he said. "You like to think that our program is moving in that same \ndirection."\nOn the offensive side of the ball, IU will attempt to continue its fast start in the air. \nSophomore Blake Powers' 11 touchdown passes have provided most of IU's early offensive spark. Two weeks ago, IU balanced the offensive attack behind the career-high rushing day of senior Chris Taylor. \nJunior wide receiver Jahkeen Gilmore said the past three games are merely an afterthought now that Big Ten season has \narrived.\n"Everything in the Big Ten is a little bit more difficult, a little bit more intense," he said. "The hits are harder, and it's just a more physical game. We need to come ready, because it's going to be wild out there"