On the Attack – Hoosiers Hope for Big Senior Send Off Against Michigan

By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Win it for the seniors.

Of course Indiana pushes for that.

Win it for the program, the opportunity, the chance to smash a generation of Michigan futility and show what breakthrough really means.

The Hoosiers have that in mind, and more.

"It's everything," fifth-year senior offensive lineman Simon Stepaniak says about Saturday's Memorial Stadium season finale. "It's the final game of my career in this stadium. It's a humbling experience, especially against a Big Ten team like Michigan.

"I love getting after these guys. They love getting after us. It's always a great game.

"We're going to attack it with everything we have."

Or, as sophomore defensive lineman James Head Jr. says, "We've gotta do what we've gotta do and get a win."

If that means rocking the No. 12 Wolverines' world, well, let's go for it, sophomore linebacker Micah McFadden adds.

"We have to play with the same (physicality) and violence that we did against Penn State."

Head and McFadden represent the future of Cream & Crimson defense firmly rooted in the present. They understand the ramifications and opportunity the Michigan game represents.

"We're young, but we have an urgency," McFadden. "We want to win these type of games for the seniors. This is a great opportunity. We'll get after them."

Fuel comes from last Saturday's near miss at No. 9 Penn State, a game that could have been won in so many ways.

"We had our chances," Head says. "The mistakes we made, we were beating ourselves. If we fix those mistakes, we can hang with anybody."

That experience could be the final catalyst to make a good IU team great.

"There are one or two plays we need to win and finish games like that," McFadden says

The rapidly improving McFadden is doing his part. He leads IU in tackles (46) and tackles for loss (7.5) in just his second college season.

"I've grown a lot," he says. "It's more in the mental part, calling out the defense, getting everyone lined up. It's settling into the game, not overthinking, and doing my responsibility."

Then there is Head, a 6-5, 259-pound Florida product. He had a sack and a forced fumble against Penn State. Specifically, he sacked Nittany Lion quarterback Sean Clifford and forced a fumble, making the kind of play crucial to the Hoosiers' attack-defense style.

"It was one of the few plays we won the one-on-one matchup," defensive coordinator Kane Wommack says of Head's sack. "We need more of those plays."

Figure Head -- who has 18 tackles and five quarterback hits this season -- will provide them in the years ahead.

"My technique has gotten better," he says. "Knowing what I have to do and executing it."

Friendly rivalry among defensive line teammates helps.

"It's been a lot of fun, knowing how much we compete with each other," Head says. "When somebody makes a play, the other guys think, 'Now it's my turn.'"

Regardless of turn, beating Michigan (8-2) is paramount. The Hoosiers (7-3) haven't done it since 1987, although they've been achingly close in recent years, including a pair of overtime losses in the last two Memorial Stadium meetings.

"We have a great team coming in," receiver Ty Fryfogle says. "We have to execute. You can't make many mistakes against these great teams. For the seniors, it will be real emotional. We need to get a win for them. It will be great."

Adds Allen: "We know how we play (Michigan) here and the expectation we have for that. Opportunities like this is one of our goals.

"We want to play our best. It has to be consistent. It has to be from start to finish, a high level of execution. That's what we emphasize. That's what it will come down to."

Michigan has scored 45, 38 and 44 points in its last three games behind quarterback Shea Patterson, who thrived at Mississippi for two seasons before joining the Wolverines program.

"It's a great challenge," Wommack says. "We're up for it."

And then.

"We've got to find a way."

Wommack's father was the defensive coordinator at Mississippi when Patterson was there.

"I've known about Shea for a long time," Wommack says. "I was a much bigger fan when he played with my dad. Now, he just seems like a big pain in the tail.

"I think highly of him. He's very gifted, but like all quarterbacks, if you pressure him, his accuracy will go down.

"He can extend plays, so you want to pressure, but keep him hemmed in, get in his vision."

IU has its own quarterback play extender in Peyton Ramsey, who continues to perform at an elite level. He burned a strong Penn State defense for nearly 400 passing yards without throwing an interception.

In fact, Ramsey has only thrown three interceptions all season while tossing 10 touchdown passes. He completes 72.7 percent of his passes for 1,673 yards.

How does he explain that success?

"Just experience. I've been around. I've played. I've had an opportunity to see when defenses are mixing it up and throwing change-ups.

"It's the situations that (offensive coordinator Kalen DeBoer) puts us in. There's always a check-down guy, always guys getting open and making my life a lot easier."

Ramsey likely won't have it easy against a Michigan defense that has dominated in recent weeks.

"They're playing their best football," Allen says. "They are a really impressive team – physically and athletically. They're doing a lot of great things."

So is Allen. His resurrection of the program – already clinching IU's first winning record since 2007 – has made him a semifinalist for the George Munger College Coach of the Year Award.

Allen pushed much of the credit onto his staff and players.

"I have a great staff. It's a recognition of the people you have in your program.

"I get it. The leader is the one who gets all the blame, and he should, when things do not go right.

"It is everybody. It is our players and how they are performing.

"We are excited about the changes we are creating, but we are not where we want to be."

But the Hoosiers are getting closer and for this, Allen says, credit the seniors.

"They were the catalysts for the change. They wanted something different, and they brought guys in their position groups with them."

Indiana University Athletics

On the Attack – Hoosiers Hope for Big Senior Send Off Against Michigan

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Ty Fryfogle

James Head Jr.

Micah McFadden

Peyton Ramsey

Simon Stepaniak

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