Indiana University Athletics
Ask Coach Hep
4/10/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
April 10, 2006
Indiana football fans can ask head coach Terry Hoeppner his thoughts on the Hoosiers' progress this spring or the outlook for the 2006 season by e-mailing Coach Hep at athlweb@indiana.edu. Your questions and Coach Hep's answers will be posted weekly through April 15, the date of the annual Cream-Crimson spring intrasquad game. Here is the third installment of responses.
Luis Mion
Coach, you lost two of your top defensive ends from last year. How do you think it will impact the line, and how has Kenny Kendal looked during spring? He has been an off-and-on starter at defensive end since his redshirt freshman year. So, I imagine you will look to him for leadership.
Luis,
Losing players the caliber of Vic Adeyanju and Ben Ishola (watch for both of them to be drafted) would normally be cause for concern, but with Kenny Kendal playing the best that I've seen him play along with Charles Emerson and freshmen Jammie Kirlew and Neal Jones, I feel defensive end can be a position of strength. Thanks for your question.
Coach Hep
David Gustavson
Coach Hep,
First, let me say how good I feel about having you at the helm of IU football. I'm pleased with the progress I've seen from afar. I love the enthusiasm and the effort to establish football traditions, and I like the fact that you appear to be emphasizing the recruiting of athletes and then fitting them to your scheme.
That said, while I try to get to Bloomington on occasion for a game, it is a pretty good haul from Louisiana to Indiana. Any chance of a home-and-home with someone from this neck of the woods - LSU, Louisiana Tech, SMU, TCU, Texas, Arkansas, etc. - down the line?
David,
Thanks for the question. I've enjoyed my experience playing Louisiana teams. While at Miami, we played LSU several times, beating them in Baton Rouge in 1986. We also played Louisiana at Lafayette when they were Southwest Louisiana (and a QB named Jake Delhomme came to Oxford). As for scheduling teams from your area now, it's hard to say. Scheduling is done so far in advance, but with 12 games, we will be looking for teams to add to our schedule in the future. We are playing seven home games this year and as our program grows, that will become a greater advantage all the time. Hope to see you in Bloomington. Go Hoosiers!
Coach Hep
Carol Buszkiewicz
Dear Coach Hep,
I attended the Women's Football Clinic last year and it was a wonderful day! Has a date been set for one this year? I believe we were told that as 'inaugural attendees', we would all get first notification about this year's clinic, but so far, I've not heard anything. I really hope there will be one this year and I suspect that attendance will greatly increase!
Thank you very much!
GO HOOSIERS
Carol,
You are correct and we will be sending last year's attendees a flyer with the info first. We are planning to send out the flyers any day, so hopefully you'll receive it soon. Hope to see you again this year.
Coach Hep
John Gerni
Coach
How has the coaching staff's approach to spring practice changed this year from last year?
Also would you care to comment on the talent level this spring compared to last spring, and who specifically has made significant progress in their development from last spring?
John,
I've said from the beginning of spring practice that we are "light years" ahead of last year. Knowing the players and what they can and can't do gives us a huge advantage over last year. They also know us and what to expect from us. We are definitely faster this year as a team and I know that that will be reflected in the results we see on the field. The incoming freshmen will add to the overall athleticism of the team. Thanks for the question.
Coach Hep
Jonathan D. White
Coach Hep,
As a Brown County Native, living in Charleston, S.C., IUHOOSIERS.com is my best way to follow the Hoosiers. I want to thank everyone responsible for maintaining such a great website. Keep up the good work.
As for my question, it looks as if James Hardy will be our #1 go to guy this year. As summer is getting closer, besides Blake Powers, do you see any other potential "big play" threats on offense this season?
GO HOOSIERS!
Jonathan,
We feel we have the potential to have a number of "big play" players on both sides of the ball this year. The key is to be consistent as a player and not "try" to make big plays. Those big plays will happen in the regular flow of the game, if you are carrying out your assignment and executing. No one knows when that big play will occur. It may be the first play of the game or late in the fourth quarter. We stress to the team that we must play every play likes it's the most important play of the game--because it might be. Go Hoosiers!
Coach Hep
Brian Lacey
Coach Hep,
Who do you think may be a front runner right now, to start the season at quarterback for the Indiana Hoosiers? Would you and coach Kelvin Sampson work together on players that want to play basketball and football? Are there any prospects at this time?
Brian,
Blake is running #1 right now, but Graeme McFarland and Kellen Lewis are both making plays and give us more quality depth than we had last year. We also have Ben Chapell from Bloomington South coming in. You can only play one quarterback at a time, but you better have more than one in today's game. It's a long time until Sept. 2 and a lot can change, but I feel good about where we are at quarterback right now. I don't anticipate having any football players playing basketball. Both sports are almost year-round now, and it is hard to do justice to both. We do have players running track and playing baseball, and I think that is great. Thanks for the question.
Coach Hep
Dillen Friend
Coach Hep,
I am very excited about Indiana Football. Last year, 20 out of 23 freshmen were redshirted, in which there was good talent in last year's recruiting class. Do you think that Blake Powers can become a very good quarterback? I certainly believe that he has the potential. The move of Marcus Thigpen from wide receiver to running back is a good move, and I think that you trying to recruit in Indiana is very smart. The state is known for its basketball but there are good football players as well. I can't stand to see in-state guys go somewhere else. Do you think that the linebacker position is a weak spot? Or with Will Meyers will it be better this year? Thanks for the confidence you have brought to Indiana football.
Good luck. Go Hoosiers.
Dillen,
I'm really excited about our redshirt freshmen. We knew they looked good on the scout field, but they look even better playing our offense and defense. If you saw the way our linebackers are playing this spring (plus we have some very talented incoming freshmen linebackers) you would feel good about that position. Thanks for the question.
Coach Hep
Damon VanHook
Coach Hep,
First of all, I would love to thank you for the gift of the T-shirts and hat you sent me a while back. The snail mail system here in Korea is kind of slow. I just received the letter back last week, return to sender. Second of all, I am a big fan of the passing offense that you employ. Is there any chance that at some point in the near future it might become something like the Houston Offense with David Klingler in the early 1990's?
Damon,
I believe in being able to throw the football. If you can throw the football you are never out of a game. I was a fan of David Klingler. Hopefully, we can establish a passing game (and a running game) that we can all be proud of and one that will help us win Big Ten Championships. Thanks for your question.
Coach Hep
