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IU football game day: Indiana vs. Maryland primer and predictions

October 29, 2021 Mike Schumann IUFB 1

 

INDIANA (2-5, 0-4) vs. MARYLAND (4-3, 1-3)

  • Kickoff:  Noon Eastern
  • Location:  College Park, Md., Capital One Field at Maryland Stadium (51,802; FieldTurf)
  • Television: BTN, Chris Vosters (p-b-p), Matt Millen (analyst) & Krystle Rich (sideline)
  • Stream:  Fox Sports
  • Radio:  IU Football radio network
  • Odds:  Maryland is a 5-point favorite
  • Weather at kickoff:  60 degrees, mostly cloudy, wind 5 mph, 15% chance of precipitation.
  • Series:  Indiana leads 7-2.  The Hoosiers won the last meeting 27-11 in 2020.
  • The Coaches:

Tom Allen Tom Allen is 26-27 in his fifth season as Indiana head football coach. His 24 wins over his first four years are the most for an IU head coach during that span. Allen was also named the 2020 Hayes-Schembechler Coach of the Year (Big Ten coaches vote) and the Dave McClain Coach of the Year.

Michael Locksley was named Maryland’s 37th head coach in Dec. 2018. The Washington, D.C., native has nearly 30 years of coaching experience, including 13 seasons over two separate stints in College Park.

See Also:

TALE OF THE TAPE

THE COMPLETE BIG TEN WEEK 8 SLATE
Indiana
Maryland
12:00 P.M.
 Capital One Field at Maryland Stadium  TV: BTN Stats Radio: Maryland Sports Radio Network
Rutgers
Illinois
12:00 P.M.
 Urbana-Champaign, Ill.  TV: BTN Stats Radio: Busey Bank Illini Sports Network Video
Iowa
Wisconsin
12:00 P.M.
 Madison, WI  TV: ESPN Stats Radio: Badger Sports Network Video
Michigan
Michigan State
12:00 P.M.
 East Lansing, MI  TV: FOX Stats Radio: Spartan Media Network Video
Purdue
Nebraska
3:30 P.M.
 Lincoln, Neb.  TV: ESPN2 Stats Radio: Huskers Radio Network Video
Minnesota
Northwestern
3:30 P.M.
 Evanston, Ill. TV: Big Ten Network Stats Radio: WGN Radio AM-720 Video
Penn State
Ohio State
7:30 P.M.
 Columbus, Ohio  Video

WHEN MARYLAND HAS THE FOOTBALL

Indiana will be looking for a rebound performance after being picked apart by Ohio State.  The Hoosiers hope to have starting cornerbacks Tiawan Mullen and Reese Taylor back against an offense that has been struggling.

Taulia Tagovailoa led the Terrapins to a 4-0 start and he threw ten touchdowns with just one interception over that season-opening span.  But he has committed eight turnovers in the last three games, all Maryland losses.  Tagovailoa has had questionable decision-making skills while under pressure, so look for IU to bring pressure, especially since the Terps lost big-play threat wideout Dontay Demus for the season.

Rakim Jarrett is the biggest threat in the passing game with 26 grabs for 375 yards and five scores.  Maryland also lost current third leading receiver Jeshaun Jones for the season.  Tight end Chigoziem Okonkwo has the second most catches among active players with 18 for 175 yards and three scores.

The running game hasn’t been emphasized by Maryland, with only 42.6 percent of their plays coming on the ground.  But their top five ball carriers have a better than 4.1 yards per rush average, and the top two are 5.7 or better.  Tayon Fleet-Davis leads the way with 63 carries for 359 yards (5.7 per carry), and Challen Faamatau has been effective as well with 24 carries for 153 yards (6.4 per carry).

Maryland hasn’t scored more than 17 points in any of its last three games, and not more than 20 in its four Big Ten contests.  With that in mind coupled with the injuries, the offense isn’t as good as it looks on paper.

WHEN INDIANA HAS THE FOOTBALL

All eyes will be on the Indiana quarterbacks in pregame warmups.  Michael Penix, Jr. and Jack Tuttle are not expected to be available, meaning the Hoosiers could turn to freshman Donaven McCulley for the start, or walk-on Grant Gremel.  If the game follows the Ohio State script we could see both.

Minnesota ran for 326 yards on Maryland last weekend, and that has to be the formula for IU and its inexperienced quarterbacks to defeat the Terrapins.  Tom Allen identified the running game as a way to keep Maryland’s offense off the field.  But of course Maryland knows that and it will likely stack the box and force IU to win through the air.  The Hoosiers are expected to adjust their personnel on the offensive line with the hope being that they can establish the running game and better protect the quarterback.

Maryland’s defense can be had.  They’ve given up at least 30 points in each of their last three games.  In those losses the Terrapins have allowed 1,477 yards, or nearly 500 a game.  In those last three games Maryland is averaging just one sack and has generated no takeaways.  If Indiana can limit sacks and turnovers, they’ve got a shot.

PREDICTIONS

Indiana’s quarterback situation is such a wildcard in this one.  With Tuttle we might predict an IU win by a healthy margin.

Indiana’s defense has the chance to dominate this game, but how many short fields will the offense put them in?  How many three-and-outs will the IU offense deliver, perhaps wearing down the defense?

If the Hoosiers win the turnover margin and/or generate a defensive score they can win the game, but it is too difficult to trust these quarterbacks right now.

TDH:  MARYLAND 20 INDIANA 17

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COLLEGE FOOTBALL NEWS:  Indiana 26 Maryland 20

ATHLON: Maryland 24  Indiana 10

ESPN SP+ (Computer):  Maryland 30  Indiana 23

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