Indiana University Athletics
Indiana Embarks on First Big Ten Road Trip at Illinois
10/2/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 2, 2006
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BLOOMINGTON, Ind.- Embarking on its first road trip of the Big Ten season, the Indiana football team travels to Champaign for a battle with Illinois. The Hoosiers (2-3, 0-1) and Fighting Illini (2-3, 1-1) face off at noon EDT/11 a.m. CDT on Saturday, Oct. 7. ESPN Plus will televise the game with Wayne Larrivee (play-by-play) and Kelly Stouffer (analyst) on the call.
IU is looking to bounce back from last week's loss to Wisconsin, while Illinois evened its league record at 1-1 with a 23-20 victory at Michigan State.
Scouting Illinois
Jason Reda's 39-yard field goal with six seconds remaining lifted Illinois past Michigan State, 23-20, on Sept. 30 in East Lansing, Mich. Senior running back Pierre Thomas gained 110 yards on 18 carries, while freshman quarterback Isiah "Juice" Williams added 103 yards on 17 carries and completed 9-of-16 for 122 yards and one touchdown. The Fighting Illini are also third in the league with a 43.3 percent conversion rate on third down and a 90 percent conversion rate in the red zone.
Defensively, Illinois is second in the Big Ten in pass defense at 173.2 yards per game. Junior linebacker J Leman is the league's top tackler at 11 stops per game.
Illinois Connections
Illinois secondary coach Curt Mallory is the son of former IU head coach Bill Mallory, and Curt was a graduate assistant for his father (1993-94) and safeties coach (2002-04) for the Hoosiers.
There are eight Land of Lincoln natives on the Indiana roster: running back Kenni Burns and tight end Jeff Sanders (Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin), defensive end Kenny Kendal (Chicago Gordon Tech), defensive back Leslie Majors (South Holland Thornwood), linebacker Matt Mayberry (Darien Hinsdale South), defensive tackle Todd Newman (Bartlett), offensive lineman Alex Perry (Morris) and tight end Troy Wagner (O'Fallon).
Youth Movement
When Rodger Saffold started at left tackle against Wisconsin, he became the ninth true or redshirt freshman to start for the Hoosiers this season. He joins redshirt freshmen Keith Burrus (defensive end), Demetrius McCray (running back) Todd Newman (defensive tackle), Josh Bailey (buck), Austin Thomas (safety), Kellen Lewis (quarterback) and Nick Polk (wide receiver) and true freshman Will Patterson (buck).
Century Club
Junior fullback Josiah Sears notched the first 100-yard rushing game of his career with 100 yards on nine carries against Wisconsin.
Grosfield Getting It Done
Senior safety Troy Grosfield recorded a career-high 15 tackles (9 solo) against Wisconsin and added a 15-yard fumble return for a score - the Hoosiers fifth touchdown return on the season. Grosfield's 15 tackles were the most by a Hoosier since Herana-Daze Jones collected the same number against Minnesota on Oct. 30, 2004.
Seven Blocks Of Limestone
Seven of Indiana's 24 true freshmen reside on the offensive line, and head coach Terry Hoeppner refers to them as "The Seven Blocks of Limestone." Limestone is the Indiana state stone and primary building block of all the buildings on campus, including Memorial Stadium.
Rodger Saffold became the first "Block" to see action, playing at left tackle against Connecticut, while Pete Saxon received time at left guard in the Big Ten opener vs. Wisconsin. The remaining five - James Brewer, Cody Faulkner, Alex Perry, Jarrod Smith and Mike Stark - provide the Hoosiers with quality depth on the line. The average size of the freshmen is 6-6, 285 pounds.
Returns to Paydirt
When Troy Grosfield recovered a fumble and returned it 15 yards for a touchdown against Wisconsin, it marked the Hoosiers' fifth return for a touchdown this season, which ties the second-best total in school history. Sophomore Marcus Thigpen has returned a pair of kickoffs, with his first coming on a 100-yard kickoff return at Ball State, marking the first kickoff return TD since Lance Bennett's 98-yarder at Oregon (Sept. 11, 2004). Sophomore cornerback Chris Phillips (66-yard interception) and junior cornerback Tracy Porter (86-yard punt) delivered touchdown returns in the team's opening victory against Western Michigan. The last time the Hoosiers recorded an interception and punt return for touchdowns in the same game came in 1980. Tim Wilbur accomplished the feat by himself, returning a punt 78 yards and an interception 40 yards on Sept. 20, 1980 at Kentucky.
Phillips' return was Indiana's first interception for a TD since Kyle Killion scored on a 46-yard return against Penn State on Nov. 13, 2004. It also was the longest interception return for a touchdown since Tracy Porter recorded a 96-yard return in IU's 41-10 season-opening win over Central Michigan on Sept. 4, 2004.
Meanwhile, Porter's 86-yard punt return was the team's first since Lance Bennett ran one back for 94 yards against Michigan State on Sept. 25, 2004.
