Indiana University Football- We Were So Close

Homecoming is a pivotal weekend for Hoosiers to tailgate and check out a football game and this one marked the 100th year for Indiana's Homecoming festivities. For the most part (as mentioned in my last article) Hoosiers rise at the first break of dawn in order to start drinking with friends and new acquaintances. However this tailgate would be different, and not in a good way. Normally students wake up at 6am to get their stamp at a local bar, then head off to the tailgate fields to meet with those less fortunate than them (aka those under 21). Music starts as soon as people start arriving at the fields and chaos ensues. But not this tailgate. There were new rules enforced here that music could not be playing until 10:00am. This meant that students only got to fully party with their pals for an hour before the tailgates got shut down and security tries to shepherd the throngs of students into Memorial Stadium… Usually unsuccessfully.

However, once tailgates were over something amazing happened. While everyone was initially shocked that we booked homecoming with Michigan State(usually wanting a cupcake team to ensure a victory), people were equally as shocked that we were actually holding our own… and winning. That’s right Hoosier fans, we were winning! We started out hot with Cameron Coffman and his team scoring the first points of the game in just 77 seconds. This was not only shocking because it was the Hoosiers who scored first, but it was also against one of the top defenses in the country. Two positions later Mitch Ewald made a 32-yard field goal to make the game 10-0… With the Hoosiers winning.

I was just as dumbfounded as anyone and in fact couldn’t believe my eyes while reading the ESPN update on my phone. I was home (I know, home during Homecoming is sacrilegious…) and immediately turned on the TV for video confirmation. While the Hoosiers were already up I just figured we would stay this way for the rest of the game and eventually fizzle out. Which is typically what the Hoosiers do. We start out hot but fizzle soon into the game.  But the Hoosiers actually continued to stay hot. With a call against Michigan State for roughing-the-punter, Coffman again threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Ted Bolser… in 38 seconds.

Although the Hoosiers lost their spark at the end of the game and Michigan State ended the game with a victory (31-27), it was still amazing to see them finally show all the hard work that has been put into this season. Wilson may have a lot of work in the upcoming years but they are showing a lot of progress in the way they are playing. I am personally impressed with all the work that the team has been putting in and students are beginning to notice. Football is on the student brain more and more and last weekend definitely proved it. With the nationally ranked Ohio State to look forward to I expect the Hoosiers to play well and even if they don’t win- I still expect the Hoosiers to show up. Even if it’s just a half to early like Michigan State.