2019 RECORD 8-5, 5-4 Big Ten
COACH Tom Allen (18-20 in three sea-
sons at Indiana; career record: same)
OFFENSE Michael Penix Jr. looks like he
could develop into one of the Big Ten's
best quarterbacks, but the Hoosiers have
to er he was
arrested in February on domestic battery
charges. But those charges were dropped
in June when he pleaded guilty to a count
of misdemeanor criminal trespass.
DEFENSE Indiana returns nine starters,
including a pair of standouts in line-
backer Micah McFadden and cornerback
Tiawan Mullen. Last year, McFadden led
the Hoosiers with 61 tackles and tied for
the team lead with a pair of intercep-
tions; Mullen made 29 tackles and broke
up 13 passes, single-handedly account-
ing for nearly a third of Indiana's team
total of 43 breakups. The Hoosiers also
landed a potential impact player with the
arrival of grad transfer defensive end
Jovan Swann. In 39 games at Stanford,
including 19 starts, Swann had 18.5 tack-
les for loss and 11.5 sacks. The Hoosiers
will undoubtedly be looking for more
takeaways this year. Their seven inter-
ceptions in 2019 were the Big Ten's sec-
ond-lowest total, ahead of only Rutgers.
SPECIAL TEAMS Punter Haydon
Whitehead returns a>er averaging 42.5
yards per attempt last season. The
Hoosiers have lost Logan Justus, one of
the league's most accurate kickers, but
his likely successor, Charles Campbell,
went 2 of 2 last year, including a 48-
yarder vs. Eastern Illinois.
OUTLOOK Three full seasons into his
tenure, Allen is o= to the best start of any
coach in school history. Indiana's up-
swing earned him a seven-year, $27.3
million contract extension in December,
and it has given rise to hopes that the
program will be able to break out of the
rut it's been in for decades. But if the
Hoosiers are to take the next step, they'll
have to start beating the East Division's
power programs. They went 0-4 vs. Ohio
State, Penn State, Michigan and Michi-
gan State last year. Whether they're able
to do better this year will likely depend
on how Penix fares. If he stays healthy,
the upswing could continue.
■
TOP RETURNEES
PASSING
Michael Penix Jr. 110 of 160 | 1,394 yds. | 10 TD | 4 int.
RUSHING
Stevie Scott III 178 att. | 845 yds. | 10 TD
RECEIVING
Whop Philyor 70 rec. | 1,002 yds. | 5 TD
TACKLING
Micah McFadden 42 solo | 19 asst. | 61 total
SACKS
Jerome Johnson 5 sacks | 46 yds.
4. INDIANA
PENIX
2019 RECORD
7-5, 4-5 Big Ten
COACH Mel Tucker (
