Indiana will head into Saturday’s matchup at Michigan with a clean bill of health, while the Wolverines are carrying a long injury list into the noon kickoff in Ann Arbor.
The contrast on the Big Ten availability report is hard to miss. Michigan has 15 players listed as out, questionable or probable. Indiana has none.
That’s notable on its own, but it stands out even more because Michigan has already used its bye week. Indiana, meanwhile, has gone through seven straight games to open the season.
Michigan’s report includes seven players out, seven questionable and one probable. Among the questionable group are four defenders who rank among the team’s top 13 in defensive snaps: safety Rod Moore, who has played 280 snaps; defensive tackle Enow Etta, with 240; edge Dom Nichols, with 202; and linebacker Aisea Moa, with 150. All four were on the field last weekend against Penn State.
The offense isn’t any cleaner. Starting right tackle Andrew Sprague remains out and has not played since Week 2.
Starting center Jake Guarnera, starting tackle Blake Frazier and starting guard Brady Norton are all listed as questionable. Guarnera and Frazier have appeared in every game so far, while Norton has played in five.
For Indiana, the empty report means running back Khobie Martin is expected back in action this week. Martin broke his arm in the first quarter of IU’s opener and has been sidelined ever since, so his return would give the Hoosiers a fresh option in the backfield.
No. 6 Indiana is 6-1, while Michigan enters at 4-2. The game kicks at noon ET on FOX.
In Other News...
Indiana Fans Just Got A Bigger Reason To Watch Josh Hoover
Josh Hoovers rise to the top of the Big Ten quarterback rankings gives Indiana fans another reason to keep a close eye on him as Week 8 arrives. With Ohio States Julian Sayin sidelined by injury, the field at the top of the conference has shifted again, and Hoover now sits in the No. 1 spot in a group that has been trimmed from eight quarterbacks to five because of injuries and uneven play across the league.
The shakeup also says plenty about how volatile the Big Ten passing race has become. Purdues Ryan Browne moved into the top five after a strong showing in a loss, while Northwesterns Hunter Maiava and Nebraskas Jeff Colandrea are still hanging around based on season-long production. For Indiana, though, Hoovers ascent is the part that matters most, because every weekly ranking seems to add another layer to what he has already done and what he still has left to prove. [Read more 🡒]
Bob Knight Is Getting Another Lasting Indiana Honor Near Assembly Hall
Bob Knight is about to receive another permanent nod from Indiana, this time just steps from the place where he built one of college basketballs most famous legacies. A ceremony on Friday will rename a section of Indiana-45 near Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in his honor, adding his name to the landscape around the arena where he coached the Hoosiers from 1971 to 2000.
Knights tenure at Indiana remains one of the defining runs in the programs history, marked by three national championships and 11 Big Ten titles. The public ceremony is being sponsored by Peggy Mayfield of Martinsville, giving fans another chance to gather around a figure whose presence still looms large over the school and the stretch of campus that will now carry his name. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Defense Just Gave Hoosiers A Reason To Keep Believing
Even in a loss, Indianas defense left a mark against Ohio State by turning in its most encouraging performance of the season so far. The Hoosiers held the Buckeyes to their lowest scoring output of the year to that point, and the effort was driven by a front and secondary that kept showing up at key moments, from Isaiah Jones and Rolijah Hardy to transfer additions AJ Harris and Preston Zachman.
Under Bryant Haines, the unit put together the kind of disruptive night Indiana can build on, finishing with four sacks, six and a half tackles for loss and two interceptions. For a program still searching for proof that it can hang with the Big Tens elite, the defense offered something valuable: a clear reason to believe the gap is not as wide as it once looked. [Read more 🡒]