2023 Indiana Hoosiers State of the Program

[PoopyRhinoPickle]

Graphic courtesy of @Sarge

*This is part of a series previewing Premium members' team for the 2023 college football season.

 

Coaching

Little is known about the first coaching staff that led Indiana through the 2021 season. Institutional leadership has purged all information about them from the Hoosiers' website as the program is firmly looking to the future with @Piercewise1 at the helm. Another program that saw a big turnaround in performance from 2021 to 2022, Indiana finished the season on a high, beating their in-state rival and winning a bowl game. To what does Piercewise1 attribute the successful turning of the tides? "The ’21 team really struggled to score points, but had a lot of talent at the receiver position that was being under-utilized. We switched to a scheme that put a lot of that skill on the field at once, and it made an immediate impact. I also put Geoff Alburquerque in as a slot receiver to catch passes and run jet sweeps, where he excelled. So I guess I learned how to creatively get the most out of the players in front of me." It should be no surprise that Piercewise1 has found success, he grew up in one football-crazed state of Ohio just to go to college in another football-crazed state in Georgia. After graduating college he cut his teeth at various FCS schools in the south before heading back up north to take the head coaching gig at Indiana. Hoosier fans couldn't be happier to have him leading the program.

 

History

2021 Season: 4-8

Week	Opponent	Result
1	Kent State	L 10-20
3	Ole Miss	W 17-3
4	at Iowa	W 17-7
5	at Penn State	L 16-24
6	Buffalo	W 16-13
7	Michigan State	L 0-14
8	at Maryland	L 6-14
9	Ohio State	W 7-3
10	Rutgers	L 6-20
11	Minnesota	L 7-14
12	at Michigan	L 6-7
14	at Purdue	L 0-44

Honors:

Big Ten All-Conference

1st Team

DL Eric Williams

LB Ryan Fede

P Raffy Doubront

 

2022 Draft Picks

Round	Pick	Overall	Player	Team	Position
7	9	201	Zack Ellington	Baltimore Ravens	SS

 

2022 Season: 7-6, Beef O'Brady's Gasparilla Bowl winner

Week	Opponent	Result
1	at Oklahoma State	L 16-45
2	Illinois	W 21-20
3	at California	L 17-28
5	Tulane	W 29-20
6	at Nebraska	L 24-38
7	Michigan	W 48-9
8	Maryland	W 24-17
9	at Rutgers	L 23-38
11	Penn State	W 21-10
12	at Ohio State	L 3-35
13	at Michigan State	L 3-61
14	Purdue	W 13-10
Bowl	Temple	W 33-27

2022 Big Ten Standings

Western Division	Conf Record	Overall Record		Eastern Division	Conf Record	Overall Record
Northwestern	6-4	8-6		Michigan State	8-2	11-3
Illinois	5-4	9-4		Penn State	6-3	8-5
Iowa	5-4	7-6		Ohio State	6-3	8-5
Wisconsin	5-4	6-7		Indiana	5-4	7-6
Purdue	4-5	4-8		Rutgers	4-5	5-7
Nebraska	4-5	5-7		Michigan	3-6	4-8
Minnesota	0-9	0-12		Maryland	3-6	5-7

Honors:

Big Ten All-Conference

1st Team

OG Tyler Tate

OLB Joe Griffin

ILB JC Ward

 

2nd Team

QB Aaron Gossett

WR Tarell Griffin

DE Ty Bogdanovic

 

3rd Team

K Sean Curtiss

 

2022 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year: ILB JC Ward

2022 Big Ten Coach of the Year: Piercewise1

 

2022 PRP Team Awards

 

Offensive MVP - QB Aaron Gossett - 4,570 pass yards, 25 pass TDs, 14 Ints, 101 rush yards, 1 rush TD

 

 

Defensive MVP - ILB JC Ward - 110 tackles, 15.5 TFLs

 

All-time Big Ten all-conference selections (2021-2022):

Illinois - 15

Purdue - 14

Michigan State - 12

Northwestern - 11

Indiana - 10

Minnesota - 8

Rutgers - 8

Maryland - 7

Penn State - 7

Wisconsin - 6

Michigan - 5

Nebraska - 5

Ohio State - 5

Iowa - 4

 

 

Offseason

2023 NFL Draft prospects

 

C Cesar Barnes - 4 stars - C+ overall - B+ potential

13 games played; 0 pancakes, 1 sack allowed

 

Barnes is a solid pass blocking prospect I have rated as the 7th or 8th best center going into the draft. His A+ pass blocking grade will have teams willing to take him even with a run block grade of just B. Given that centers are typically in high demand I think we'll see him go in the mid rounds with his higher potential.

 

FB Brian Gurriel - 4 stars - C+ overall - C+ potential

13 games played; 367 rush yards, 1 rush TD, 187 receiving yards, 1 receiving TD

 

OLB Joe Griffin - 4 stars - C overall - C+ potential

13 games played; 82 tackles, 8.5 TFLs, 1 FF

 

WR Tarell Griffin - 3 stars - C+ overall - A- potential

13 games played; 112 receptions, 1687 receiving yards, 12 receiving TDs

 

The players above are all late round prospects at best, but I could see them getting drafted. Joe Griffin is at a position that doesn't have much top end talent, and his production is impressive for an OLB. Tarell Griffin had terrific production and has very high potential but there are a lot of good WRs coming out this year.

 

2023 recruiting class

247 rank: 32

Rivals rank: 22

ESPN rank: 27

SSEC: 6

 

Position	Name	Archetype	Stars	Overall	Potential	Hometown
C	Timothy Doak	Pass Blocking	5	B	C+	WIndermere, FL
QB	Samuel Johnson	Balanced	4	C	B	Chattanooga, TN
OG	Michael Williams	Run Blocking	4	B	B	Laurel, MD
DE	Patrick Patton	Run Stopper	4	C	B	Bethesda, MD
FS	Timothy Moore	Ball Hawk	4	B	B+	Lynchburg, VA
QB	Manuel Garcia	Pocket	3	C	C+	Crete, IL
RB	James Whitt	Speed	3	C	C+	Woodstock, IL
TE	Frank Ksor	Vertical Threat	3	C	B+	Arlington Heights, IL
OT	Peter Landis	Balanced	3	C	C+	Columbus, OH
DE	Eugene Yeboah	Run Stopper	3	C	C+	DeLand, FL
DT	Phillip Otter	Nose Tackle	3	C	C+	Alexander City, AL
OLB	Daniel Crowell	Pass Rush	3	C	C	Vancouver, WA
ILB	Damon Devlin	Field General	3	C	B	Honolulu, HI
ILB	Steven Fifer	Speed	3	C	C+	Buffalo Grove, IL
CB	Kenneth Mossey	Zone Coverage	3	C	C+	Denton, TX
SS	Robert Porter	Run Stopper	3	C	B+	Atlanta, GA
WR	Mauricio Roberts	Speed	2	C	B	Wintersville, OH
OT	James Huelsman	Pass Blocking	2	C	B-	Tuscaloosa AL
C	Scott Creech	Pass Blocking	2	C	C+	Tallmadge, OH
DE	Anthony Gomes	Run Stopper	2	C	B-	Lexington, SC
DT	Stephen Padden	Nose Tackle	2	C	C	Pleasant Grove, AL
CB	Ted Castilleja	Ball Hawk	2	C	C+	Carpentersville, IL
FS	Chad Grant	Zone Coverage	2	C	C+	St. Clair Shores, MI
FS	Scott Preston	Zone Coverage	2	C	C+	Monroe, MI
SS	Thomas Ireland	Zone Coverage	2	C	C+	Loveland, CO

State Breakdown:

 

Impact Freshman

One thing that is known about the previous coaching staff is that they didn't believe in putting in the hard work on the recruiting trail. Piercewise1 is constantly trying to pick up the slack, as last year's class only had one 4 star and three 3 stars. Hoosier fans are happy now as they have a coach who recognizes the effort required to bring talent into the program. It's easy to recognize immediately that they got a stud in 5 star center Timothy Doak. "Getting a 5-star recruit to sign with our program was a huge win, and I expect Timothy Doak to start at center immediately." Piercewise1 is proud of some other prospects he pulled in as well. "QB Samuel Johnson and DE Patrick Patton also look like future playmakers, but they’ll both be redshirts this year." A player that wasn't mentioned by the coach is OG Michael Williams. He has the ability to potentially impact the game in year 1, but what will coach's approach to redshirts be this year? "Almost exclusively freshmen. While I would love to stretch out the eligibility of some of our better players, the truth is at most positions we’re a team of upperclassmen starters with not a lot of depth behind them. So we’re going to put our best team on the field right now, and next year I expect we’ll have quite a few redshirt freshmen either starting or competing for significant playing time." Looks like we'll have to wait and see what the plan for Williams will be.

2023 Preview

 

2023 Schedule

Week	Opponent	All-time record against
1	SMU	Never played
2	Ohio State	1-1
3	at Tulane	1-0
4	Indiana State	Never played
5	at Maryland	1-1
6	OPEN
7	at Michigan	1-1
8	Rutgers	0-2
9	at Penn State	1-1
10	Wisconsin	Never played
11	at Illinois	1-0
12	Michigan State	0-2
13	OPEN
14	at Purdue	1-1

Indiana's 2023 schedule has 6 teams that played in a bowl game last year, and there is no shortage of talented teams in the Big Ten East. Are there any games that Piercewise1 is circling heading into the season? "Week 3 at Tulane should be a great early test. We beat them last year at home and I’m sure they’re anxious to return the favor. Same with Purdue in West Lafayette; any self-respecting Hoosier circles that game on the calendar every year."

Roster Breakdown

 

Returning Leaders

Passing: None

Rushing: RB Geoff Alburquerque - 132 rush yards, 3 rush TDs

Receiving: WR Jeremiah McCray - 770 receiving yards, 6 receiving TDs

Tackles: DE Ty Bogdanovic - 65 total tackles, 14.5 TFLs

Sacks: Bogdanovic - 6.5 sacks

Interceptions: None

 

Offense

Well we're starting things off with a bona fide competition at Quarterback. There are 2 seniors in Michael Miles and Tim Feliciano, who are similar players and will likely be battling all through spring and fall camps to settle who will be taking the starting snaps against SMU. What does Piercewise1 like about what these players bring to the offense? "Both of these guys have the arm strength you want to see: they can stretch the field with the deep ball, or force a pass into a tight window. With the receivers we have on the roster, I intend to make the most of that strength." Neither of these guys match the talent that 2022 starter Gossett has, but it looks like they'll have more tools around them to help them out. True freshman blue chipper Samuel Johnson might have been the most important recruit Indiana pulled in in the offseason, seeing as the previous coach elected to not recruit a QB.

 

The Running Backs and Fullbacks will be the subject of the "Focus on the Room" below.

 

There are a couple of pieces in the Wide Receiver room that Piercewise1 should be pretty excited about. First, he has a solid #1 receiver in senior speedster Jeremiah McCray, who had a decent year in 2022. Second, redshirt freshman Tyler Looney is an all-conference player in the making. Rumor has it that the previous coaching staff only received his commitment after texting the wrong phone number and finding out that Looney was the son of an Indiana alum. Regardless, Looney has a very bright future in Bloomington and Piercewise1 doesn't hide his excitement about it. "I’m excited to see what WR Tyler Looney brings to our passing game. He already has great hands as a redshirt freshman and he’s only going to get better with experience." Outside of McCray and Looney, there are 2 above average options in junior Troy Thomas and senior Sean Grant to round out targets for whoever wins the QB battle. I wouldn't be surprised to see some RBs play out of position to get some snaps at WR, as well. Look for coach to hit the recruiting trail hard for WRs, as there isn't much other than Looney for underclassman. At Tight End, Indiana has returning 2022 starter Jeremy Sutton. Sutton is a steady blocking tight end who probably won't get a lot of targets. It was important that Piercewise1 brought in freshman Frank Ksor, a vertical threat who better fits Indiana's offense, as someone to replace Sutton.

 

Offensive Line is where things mostly look straightforward, with a lot of the pieces of the puzzle falling into place. At OT you have 3 star seniors in Garrett Nugent (returning starter) and Danny Pressley, who will be looking to hold down both bookends. There's one more returning starter in junior OG Seantrel Tom, who is an easy starter. For the other OG position, we have another position battle between senior Bobo Campbell and true freshman Michael Williams, a battle that will really test coach's redshirt philosophy. Look for Williams to be a star in the future for the program. Speaking of stars, 5 star freshman Timothy Doak fits perfectly into this lineup, and as mentioned above, expect to see him start day 1. There are a few pieces that look to be capable of adding depth on the line and may back up players out of position. Junior OT Jose McGrath is a good depth piece, along with centers Jamar Ivory and Alex Miller. I see true freshman Peter Landis as a redshirt candidate, as most of the offensive line will be another recruiting focus for coach Piercewise1.

Defense

Looking at Indiana's defense, one could probably say that the Defensive Line is the strength of the unit. At defensive end you have returning starter and likely preseason All-Big Ten selection Ty Bogdanovic, who has NFL scouts excited.

 

 

Opposite Bogdanovic things are a little less clear. Redshirt sophomore Antwaun Pagnozzi looks to have a lead over senior Trevor Whittaker and junior Francisco Guaipe. As mentioned previously true freshman Patrick Patton will likely be redshirted this year. When asked about the prospect of experience vs potential at the defensive end position, Piercewise1 had this to say: "Generally I prioritize the player who can help us most right now, because I still think this team can compete for a winning record and a bowl game this year. That’s especially true on the defensive front, as we’re working toward a scheme change in the coming years. So the best guy for the future might not be the best guy for right now." At defensive tackle you have another returning starter in junior Kyle Pena, who will look to team up with Jake Manuel, a pairing that has the head coach excited. "DT Jake Manuel has some big shoes to fill but should form an impressive tandem with Kyle Pena in the middle of our line."

 

Linebacker was a position that Piercewise1 wanted to address head-on in the offseason, to bring in some more talent. It proved difficult, finding themselves in contention for multiple recruits without being able to lock in commitments. They did eventually pull in three 3 stars who will likely be redshirted this season. At outside linebacker returning starter Brooks Jones will look to increase production in his senior year as he'll pair with junior Justin Marquez. Not much depth exists behind those two; outside of true freshman Daniel Crowell, there are just two 2 stars in Alfredo Aquino and Daryl DeRozan. Another position battle to keep an eye on is at inside linebacker. Gone is Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year JC Ward. How do you replace not just the production, but also the leadership that Ward provided this team?

"We’re definitely going to miss Ward; you don’t just replace the B1G Defensive Player of the Year. It’s going to be an open competition this summer, and quite possibly a group job where we rotate different guys in depending on game situation. After that, as with so many positions, it will be up to the new recruits to step up and show us what they’ve learned." Look for junior Elijah Robinson, senior Alex Danish, and redshirt sophomore Jaydon Montgomery to battle it out for the starting spot.

 

In the Secondary, Indiana should feel pretty good about the returning experience they have. At cornerback, returning starter Stephen Hernandez, nickel corner Marco Gurka, and dimeback Lane Korkmaz are all back. What these guys have to do this year is figure out how to be more productive in forcing turnovers, as none of these corners had an interception in 2022. It will be interesting to see what Piercewise1 decides to do at safety. Senior Bo Robinson is a solid candidate to win the free safety position, but behind him you have blue chip true freshman Timothy Moore. At strong safety, 2022 starter Chad Fountain returns, but could find himself susceptible to being overtaken by either Robinson or Moore. The head coach didn't mention redshirting Moore so don't rule out seeing someone play out of position in the secondary.

Special Teams

Indiana looks to be in good hands at Kicker, as Sean Curtiss, who went 14-16 in 2022, is back. Curtiss is just a junior so he still has time in Bloomington. Punter was a bit of an adventure for Indiana in 2022, with senior Ezekiel Stratton recording 52 punts, and freshman Quinten Bierria recording 40. Bierria is the only punter on the roster, so don't expect too many surprises there this year. Don't be surprised if we see speedy WRs McCray and Sean Grant back for Returns this year.

"Focus on the Room"

I decided to look at Running Backs and Fullbacks in the FotR because it is easily the deepest room on the team. I decided to group them together because all indications points to Indiana keeping the Air Raid offense, and after seeing a FB led the team in rush yards in 2022, there's no reason to separate them for me. Piercewise1 himself said that they're going to get innovative with how they find snaps for all these guys. "We’ve been working on creative ways to get all these great running backs into the game while sticking with the formations we installed last year. I don’t expect you’ll see a lot of 2- and 3-back sets from us, but you’ll still see their numbers in the formation. Not a lot of Air Raid teams employ a fullback, but I think Mike Nader will get some touches, for example." The real question is who will be starting where? It's already been pointed out that last year Alburquerque was in the slot to catch balls and take reverses, will we see that again? He could just be moved to WR with his skillset. Given Nader's ability to catch the ball will he be split out wide? Who is most likely to get the majority of the carries with some of these players going out wide? All those questions and you still have good players in Parker Metu, Santiago Mickolio, and Mike Bradley to figure out. It's likely we will see Piercewise1 experiment quite a bit with these players, he may be becoming the Mad Scientist of the SimFBA community.

Position Battles

QB

QB Michael Miles - Sr, B- overall, 2 stars, B+ potential

QB Tim Feliciano - Sr, B- overall, 3 stars, C+ potential

QB Jusuf Ebner - Jr, C+ overall, 2 stars, B- potential

QB Hayden Redmond - Jr, C+ overall, 2 stars, C+ potential

 

OG

OG Seantrel Tom - Sr, B overall, 2 stars, C potential

OG Michael Williams - Fr, B overall, 4 stars, B potential

 

ILB

ILB Elijah Robinson - Jr, B- overall, 3 stars, B- potential

ILB Alex Danish - Sr, B- overall, 2 stars, C+ potential

ILB Jaydon Montgomery - (So), C+ overall, 2 stars, C+ potential

 

Safeties

FS Bo Robinson - Sr, B+ overall, 3 stars, B- potential

FS Timothy Moore - Fr, B overall, 4 stars, B+ potential

SS Chad Fountain - Sr, B overall, 2 stars, B+ potential

 

 

Final Say:

"2022 was a giant leap for the program: we went 6-0 at home, defeated our biggest rival, won a bowl game, and recruited a solid class of freshmen. 2023 could be a challenge on the field, as we replace 15 starters and lament the lack of depth caused by a subpar 2021 recruiting effort. But I believe the future is bright for Indiana, and I think our fans have a lot they can look forward to in the years to come."

-Piercewise1

Edited February 18, 2023 by PoopyRhinoPickle