Hold hands, deep breaths – let’s get hysterical. That’s right, Hoosier fans, as though you needed me to tell you it was coming: It’s Hoosier Hysteria time again. Time to blast off on another year of ruckus and roundball down on 17th Street.
A missed block, a missed assignment or pouncing for the ball at the wrong time. That’s how the option can kill you.IU was on the losing end of that formula when the Hoosiers (2-4, 0-3) played Illinois (3-3, 1-2) a year ago at the Bloomington version of Memorial Stadium. Rashard Mendenhall, quarterback Juice Williams and wide receiver Arrelious Benn thoroughly exposed the IU defense, running for 288 yards.This time around, expect more of the same.
Halting the negative momentum a four-game losing streak carries will not be easy for the IU football team (2-4). Making the task more difficult will be the possible absence of the Hoosiers’ offensive catalyst, Kellen Lewis. During practices this week, Lewis wore a protective gray immobilizing boot around his right ankle, nursing what IU coach Bill Lynch called a high-ankle sprain. “(We) went through halftime, got it re-taped and all that, and we thought that it would loosen up and we’d get him going in the second half, and it never loosened up," Lynch said of Lewis' injury sustained against Iowa. “Some athletes bounce back pretty quickly. He really hasn’t been hurt much, so we haven’t really been through this in terms of how quickly he can bounce back. Certainly, we’re hopeful that a guy like that can bounce back quicker than our 300-pound guys, just because of his body type.”
The IU women’s soccer team will return home this weekend, enjoying the comforts of Bloomington for the first time since Sept. 28. The Hoosiers (5-10-0, 0-6) have been on the road the last four games, narrowly losing each game by a one-goal deficit. “I think the kids are going to be excited to get back on their pitch,” IU coach Mick Lyon said. “You know, with short, fast grass, instead of this thick, mush stuff they have up north, that’s definitely going to be to our benefit.”
The women’s volleyball team took a step backward last weekend on the road against Minnesota and Iowa, putting them 1-5 in the Big Ten with only 14 matches left. “We just didn’t show up,” said senior captain Erica Short. “We didn’t enter the building. I don’t know who played last weekend. It wasn’t an IU program at all.”
IU women’s basketball coach Felisha Legette-Jack and her team hope the expression “third time’s a charm” will pay big dividends this year.
The bench players stood in their black warm-ups, some wearing red beanies, waiting for the game to end and for the celebration to begin. The Hoosiers (7-4-2) finally lived up to past legends and current expectations as they defeated No. 9 Notre Dame 3-1 on Thursday. Their first home victory since a 3-2 win against Big Ten foe Wisconsin on Sept. 21 and first upset of the year, Thursday’s match marked a turning point in the season. Brushing off an away defeat to Michigan State last week, the Hoosiers entered the match ready to start a winning streak. In a team meeting this week after practice, the players and coaches discussed their strengths and weaknesses. “It’s a game that shows the players have a feeling what’s it like to have to play a 90 minute game,” said IU coach Mike Freitag. “It’s a feeling we’ve had in other games, but now we can’t forget it.” One strength of the Hoosiers, depth, was forced into action in the game’s opening minutes. Sophomore defender Rich Balchan had his nose broken in a tussle in the sixth minute and left the game, Freitag said. Freshman Tommy Meyer took his place for the remaining minutes. In the 24th minute junior defender Kevin Alston rifled the ball from 25 yards out into the right corner for his second goal of the season. “It was a rush,” Alston said. “I didn’t really expect it. It felt great.” Three minutes later, senior forward Kevin Noschang hit the ball into the bottom left corner.
Tom Crean isn’t holding his first official practice at midnight, but you can expect the traditional madness.
The Indianapolis Colts needed help in their injury-depleted backfield. They expect three new running backs to fill the holes. With Pro Bowler Joseph Addai unlikely to play Sunday against Green Bay, and Mike Hart out for the rest of the season, the Colts added three running backs to the roster Wednesday, one day after acquiring defensive tackle John McCargo in a trade with Buffalo. The Colts addressed their most pressing need – a leaky run defense – with the trade for McCargo, but Sunday’s injuries to Addai and Hart changed their priorities.
Forty-one-year-old Jeff Burton now has two race wins in 2008, but his victory Saturday night at Lowe’s Motor Speedway outside of Charlotte, N.C., could not have come at a better time.
LAS VEGAS – Sometimes, the smartest move is to fold. That statement is extremely relevant for a lot of businesses in Las Vegas. Last week, the Indiana Daily Student sent me to Vegas for an extensive research trip for this column. Before you run to the newsroom to grab an application, let me tell you that the Indiana Daily Student didn’t pay a cent for my trip. National sports columnists don’t get top priority on budgetary concerns, and I doubt they will ever pay me a dime past the amazing weekly salary I currently rake in.
Dropping out of the national rankings and falling further back in the Big Ten, IU men’s soccer coach Mike Freitag decided to change up his typical practice regimen this week. His players responded. “I found out that these guys need external motivation,” Freitag said. “If you lose, you have to run. ... I didn’t have those punishments before. We had a long discussion as a team on how to get things right. You get it out in the air, talk about it, and go back to work, and that is what we did.” The Hoosiers face No. 9 Notre Dame at 7:30 p.m. today at Bill Armstrong Stadium. Senior midfielder John Mellencamp said the added passion in practice is necessary for his team’s crucial matchup against the Fighting Irish. “It was one of the most intense trainings I have seen this season,” he said. “There was a lot more competition today and guys were taking things personally on the field. No one wanted to lose a single thing they did today, and that is the mind-set that gets you ready to play a game.”
More than 55 percent of the IU football team’s offensive production was in a protective boot Tuesday. IU coach Bill Lynch said junior quarterback Kellen Lewis sustained a high ankle sprain during last Saturday’s 45-9 loss to Iowa, the team’s fourth consecutive loss, and is listed as questionable for this weekend’s contest at Illinois.Audio: Lynch's press conference
