It’s Homecoming weekend for the Indiana football team.
But for it to be a happy one, the Hoosiers will have to knock off the No. 10 team in the country, undefeated Michigan State.
The Spartans will be the fourth ranked team Indiana will have faced so far this season. After Saturday’s game, two of the next three games will also be against ranked teams — No. 6 Ohio State and No. 8 Michigan.
“This is what we came here to do, to play against the best,” Indiana senior defensive back Devon Matthews said. “I feel like we just need to go out there execute, do our jobs, and win games. We just have to win, that's it.”
The Hoosiers are 2-3 overall and 0-2 in the Big Ten and coming off their bye week. They used that time to evaluate their play over the first five weeks of the season.
“To me, it was just an overall sharpening of what we do, making some adjustments and changes to things that have not worked or that we are not getting out of it what we want, a thorough self-scout and evaluation, and then just fundamentally improving,” Indiana head coach Tom Allen said.
Matthews said the break came at a much-needed time for the team, especially one coming off a 24-0 loss at Penn State.
“it gave us a break, a time to relax and get our minds focused,” Matthews said. “I feel like we'll be good now. It's a whole new part of the season, the second half. We are not worried about the past, we are worried about the future and now.”
Getting the offense on track will have a lot to do with how the Hoosiers do the rest of the season.
Indiana ranks near in the bottom third of the Big Ten in scoring offense, rushing offense and total offense. The passing game is ranked in the middle – seventh – but Hoosier quarterbacks have thrown eight interceptions to just five touchdowns this season.
The Hoosiers will likely start backup Jack Tuttle this week after Michael Penix suffered a separated shoulder in the Penn State game. Tuttle filled in for Penix in the final two games last season and has appeared in all five games this season.
“Obviously, we haven't had the success that we're capable of,” Indiana offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan said. “So, you spend a lot of time reflecting, evaluating, looking for ways to improve, looking for ways to coach better, tell our players to play more confidently, faster and allow them to be the players we know that they are.”
That begins Saturday at Memorial Stadium. The game kicks off at noon and will be televised on FS1.
