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Written By: Josh Wilson 11/25/2018
I wanted to write a hot take article yesterday afternoon, shortly after Indiana succumbed to their rival in a 28-21 loss in the Old Oaken Bucket Game. If you were to ask me, it never really felt that close of a game. Although Indiana is very young, playing 14 freshman close to full time versus Purdue’s three this year, it was clear that Indiana looked outclassed, outsmarted, and Purdue held a distinct athletic advantage. But, I decided to go back to my Thanksgiving get together with my wife’s family and try to allow some perspective back into my conscious.
Let me make this clear; I LOVE Tom Allen, I think he can be successful at Indiana, and I think he is recruiting well enough right now to get it turned around. But in order for that to become reality, Allen needs to have really good coordinators and coaches around him. Mike Debord does not fit in that category. The offensive game plan and play calling this year has been abysmal at best. I think there needs to be a change at Offensive Coordinator for the Hoosiers to take that next step.
As much as I love Tom Allen, my real beef with all of this lies with Fred Glass. The football program is Fred Glass’s baby. He built this mess. I’ve talked with some former players over the last year and they all were not happy with the decision to move on from former coach Kevin Wilson. Who, by the way, just dropped 62 points on the head of that vaunted Michigan defense Saturday afternoon. Wilson had Indiana bowl eligible annually the last few years of his tenure. But, by all accounts, he was fired for being “mean”. IF, Indiana and the outside law firm they hired did find enough problematic information to fire Wilson, why not do a search outside of the program? The University of Kansas just hired Les Miles for crying out loud. But, Glass fires Wilson, and immediately elevates Allen from Defensive Coordinator to Head Coach. Indiana could’ve went after Les Miles, Jeff Brohm, or PJ Fleck, just to name a few. But Glass had his man, and he was already inside the building. So the current state of the program and the results all fall on the shoulders of the Athletic Director. Indiana Football has regressed significantly over the past two seasons, and they will continue to do so unless a change is made, and you can start with Mike Debord. Guess what, Kliff Kingsbury was fired Saturday night as the Head Coach of Texas Tech. He’s a really good offensive mind. Wouldn’t be a bad idea to give him a phone call. Indiana must make a change. But will they? That’s a damn good question. But, Breakthrough! Or Finish! ….. Finish 5-7 for two straight seasons that is.
As for fan support, I don’t want to hear anything from the administration, coaches, or players. How about you guys get serious about on field results. At that point, I guarantee you, us fans will get serious about showing up. Nobody likes to cheer for mediocrity, unless you’re a Cleveland Browns fan. Indiana football needs to be better. Here’s to hoping that there are some changes made soon. Indiana has a long off-season ahead of them to get better. It started yesterday at 4 pm as Purdue was celebrating with the Bucket on their field.