Game Notes: Indiana at FIU

Thursday, September 1

Miami, Fla.

7:30 p.m.

Indiana University

Florida International

8/27/2016 12:00:00 PM | Football

Indiana Game Notes (PDF)FIU Game Notes (PDF)Big Ten Weekly Notes (PDF)

Setting The Scene
•Indiana kicks off its 132nd year of football on Thursday, Sept. 1, against Florida International at Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium (20,000; FieldTurf). Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. EDT and ESPNU will broadcast the game.
•IU returns 17 starters from 2015, including eight on offense, eight on defense and one on special teams. The Hoosiers are multiple on offense and defense.
•FIU returns 17 starters from 2015, including nine on offense, five on defense and three on special teams. The Panthers run a pro set offense and a multiple 4-3 defense.
•Florida International ended the 2015 season with a 5-7 overall record, a 3-5 mark in Conference USA play and a 4-1 record at home.
•The teams are meeting for the second time with Indiana winning the first matchup, 36-22, on Sept. 12, 2015.

The Coaches
•Kevin Wilson is in his sixth season as Indiana head coach. Wilson led IU to the 2015 New Era Pinstripe Bowl, the program's first postseason appearance since 2007. He has mentored three first team All-Americans, 23 players who have either moved on to the NFL or received camp invites and a five-year program record 111 Academic All-Big Ten honorees. The offense has set 54 school records during his tenure.
•Ron Turner is in his fourth season as Florida International head coach, where he owns a 10-26 (.240) record. Turner coached at Illinois from 1997-2004 and San Jose State in 1992, and he has a 52-87 (.375) overall mark.

News & Notes
•Kevin Wilson is 4-1 in openers with four straight victories.
•Indiana is opening on a Thursday night for the fourth time (2009, 2010, 2013) in eight years.
•The Hoosiers have won 12 of their last 13 season openers.
•Since 2012, IU is first in the Big Ten in passing, second in total, third in scoring and fourth in rushing offense per game. Indiana is the only conference team to rank in the top four in each category.
•The 2015 Hoosiers became the fourth team in FBS history with a 3,500-yard passer, two 1,000-yard rushers and one 1,000-yard receiver in the same year, joining 2005 Southern California, 2008 Oklahoma (Wilson was the Sooners offensive coordinator) and 2015 Southern Miss.
•IU also led the Big Ten in total offense, scoring offense and passing offense, the first team since the 1995 Ohio State Buckeyes to do so.
•Indiana has won seven of its last eight non-conference games. The Hoosiers went 4-0 in 2015 and opened the season 4-0 for the first time since 1990.

Team Notes
•Indiana appeared in the 2015 New Era Pinstripe Bowl, the program's first postseason appearance since 2007.
•Offensive linemen Dan Feeney and Jason Spriggs in 2015, and Tevin Coleman in 2014, earned first team All-America honors. The three All-Americans are the most for the Hoosiers over a two-year period since 1968-69 (3).
•Spriggs and Feeney became the first offensive line tandem to secure first team honors in the same season in program history and just the sixth pair of teammates to ever accomplish the feat.
•Twenty-three IU standouts have either moved on to the NFL or received camp invites in Kevin Wilson's tenure, including three draft picks - Spriggs (Green Bay, 48th overall), running back Jordan Howard (Chicago, 5th round) and quarterback Nate Sudfeld (Washington, 6th round), and seven overall in 2016.
•Wide receiver Cody Latimer was selected 56th overall by Denver in 2014 and Coleman was selected 73rd overall by Atlanta in 2015.
•IU has had at least one pick in the first three rounds three straight years for the first time since 1993-95, and six selections overall, the program's most since 1991-93.
•Thirty-eight Hoosiers have earned All-Big Ten honors in the Wilson Era, highlighted by a school record 12 last season.
•In 2015, Indiana won its final two regular season games for the first time since 2001, its final two road games for the first time since 1982 and its final two games with both on the road for the first time since 1946.
•IU had not won back-to-back Big Ten games since 2012, two B1G road games in the same year since 2001, back-to-back league road games since 1993 and three road games in a single season since 1994.
•Wilson has assembled the highest-rated recruiting classes in school history over the past four seasons. The hard work on the recruiting trail has paid off, as eight freshmen earned All-Big Ten freshman recognition in 2013, five in 2014 and three in 2015.
•Nine freshmen have garnered All-America honors and 24 have netted freshman All-Big Ten recognition in Wilson's five seasons.
•A five-year program record 111 Hoosiers have earned Academic All-Big Ten honors under Wilson.
•Twelve Hoosiers hail from the Sunshine State: LB T.J. Simmons (Lakeland), WR Ricky Jones (Sarasota), WR Nick Westbrook (Lake Mary), DB Tony Fields (Tallahassee), DB Khalil Bryant (Jacksonville), LB Reakwon Jones (Lynn Haven), RB Clyde Newton (Punta Corda), DL Greg Gooch (Longwood), OL Grayson Stover (Spring Hill), OL Delroy Baker (Ocala), WR Phil Benker (Jacksonville) and DL Brandon Wilson (Winter Garden).