September 25, 2025 • 21 mins
The Hoosiers are 4-0 and making believers out of skeptics, but winning at Iowa will go a long way toward proving that IU is deserving of respect. We break down IU's first road trip of the year and what the Hoosiers need to do to score the victory.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:09):
I do, and everybody, I'm Ken bikeoff and welcome to
the Peaks Podcast. Hoosiers four and O Hoosiers eleventh ranked
Hoosiers head to Iowa to play the Hawkeyes at Kinnick Stadium,
first time these two teams have met in four years,
and we all kind of remember that last trip to
Kinnick Stadium, which came at the start of the twenty
(00:31):
twenty one season. Coming off of Indiana's twenty twenty success.
Indiana opened at Iowa expecting to go there and really
get off to a hot start, and instead, i you
was crushed, and that began the downfall of Tom Allen's
(00:53):
time in Bloomington. Essentially, that's where we're at now, four
years later, completely different situation for the Hoosiers. Kurt Signetti
is fifteen and two as a head coach for the
Hoogiers Indiana's coming off of sixty three to ten win
over Illinois at Memorial Stadium last week, and so you
(01:14):
worry about kind of the hangover from that game, or
at the very least, I would say that you normally
would be worried about the hangover from that game with
almost any other coach, this one, Kurt Signetti isn't letting
anybody be hungover too excited about last week's win. Yeah,
(01:35):
the Hoosiers played well, Yes they dominated. Yes they dominated
at a level that has rarely been seen by a
top twenty team, if ever seen by a top twenty
team against a top twenty team. But this is Indiana's
first road experience of the year. So what do the
Hoosiers have to do in order to be successful and
(01:57):
move to five and zero on the season against Iowa.
We'll get to all of that in a couple of minutes,
but I did want to start with just talking about
the approach of this team and this coaching staff in particular,
as they continue to rack up the wins. Kurt Signetti
(02:19):
obviously has a ton of confidence in himself. There are
those wonderful shots of him on the sideline Indiana up
fifty six to ten, and he looks like the score
is not only flipped, but that he's just a dead psychopath,
and it's fantastic. I just really do love that style
(02:43):
and love the way that he goes about everything. And
so when he was talking to us last Monday in
his weekly meeting with the media, and you'll hear this
in a few minutes. He was just very clear that
there were a lot of opportunities were left on the field,
and he's not wrong. Indiana dropped a couple of probable
(03:04):
pick sixes. They had some mistakes along the way, some busts,
and it isn't a matter of focusing on the negative there,
but acknowledging that you played really well and you could
have been better because there were opportunities that went by
the wayside. Heading on the road. This is going to
(03:27):
be another kind of talking point, or at least a
point of emphasis with this team is you're on the road.
Everybody here heard the chatter last year about how Indiana
didn't beat anybody in Indiana, couldn't play away from Memorial Stadium,
And yeah, they picked up wins, but who were those
wins against. This is Iowa. This is a team that
(03:50):
historically has been one of the more consistent teams in
terms of being tough to beat. At Kinnick Stadium. Hoosiers
are favored in this one by the gambling houses by
more than a touchdown. But the whole point of it
is is that if you want to take that next
(04:12):
step now, you have to do it on the road.
Indiana played ODU and left opportunities on the field in
the season opener. They came back the next week, they
were much better against Kansas State. Then they played in
Indiana State and they were fantastic, but they were supposed
(04:34):
to be against that kind of opponent. So now here
you had Illinois come to town, and can you continue
to improve on what you've done week by week? And
good lord did they ever do that? But now without
a couple of hiccups. So sixty three to ten. Now
your next step is winning on the road against a
(04:54):
good program, which Iowa is. So if you want to
take that next step toward being great, that's what you
have to do. And so what you have is another
opportunity for this Hoosier team to prove itself. People are
starting to pay attention. People are realizing last year wasn't
a fluke, and you can continue that if you're able
(05:16):
to go ahead and pick up the win at Iowa
on Saturday. Now we'll have a lot more about what
to expect from this game in just a few minutes,
But I wanted to first bring you Kurt Signetti during
his weekly meeting with the media in the team room
last Monday.
Speaker 2 (05:31):
Yeah, okay, all right, good win Saturday night. Regardless of
the final score. There's always things that show up on tape.
They've got to get corrected, and believe me, there's plenty there.
So really more interested in moving on to our next opponent,
which will be a real challenge at Iowa. Got a
(05:53):
lot of respect for coach Farns everything he's accomplished throughout
his career as a head coach and assistant too. You know,
he's a great line coach before he became a head coach,
and he was a graduate assistant at Pitt in nineteen eighty.
I was a graduate assistant Pitt in eighty three and
eighty four. He's come by the offices now and then
(06:13):
had a chance to meet him, met him a couple
of times out and around, got to know him during
the Big Ten meetings. So congratulate him, you know, on
the big win a couple of weeks ago to make
him the most the winningest coach in the Big Ten
and Iowa. It's a tough place to play, Kennick Stadium,
(06:33):
they sailed out almost every Saturday. It's loud, and so
we're gonna play well. This will be a challenge, a
more difficult challenge than the last one, for sure, and
the sooner our guys realized that the better.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
Great.
Speaker 4 (06:52):
You talk about your history with coach Farns, but I'm
curious if you have any history with Kennick. Obviously it's
a place that is very difficul to go, one of
the tougher environments in the conference, and kind of has
been I think, particularly for you know, sort of teams that,
as you talk about, need that refocusing quickly after a
big win.
Speaker 5 (07:10):
Yeah, I do not, Yes, Yeah, Kurt, Brian Haynes seems
to be really mixing up his personnel at the front seven.
Do you feel like you guys are more versatile there
this year and seem to make a difference on Saturday
in terms of Illinois. Didn't really know what you guys
are doing, couldn't diagnose things, but you feel like that's.
Speaker 2 (07:29):
He always Brian always mixes things up pretty good, find
ways to get to quarterback, create TFLs. I don't think
anything has changed in that regard. That was probably more
about the one on one matchups. But look, I mean,
you know, we have some egregious mistakes in the back end,
particularly it's safety. We have about five of them in
that game, and we only got exposed once because of them.
(07:51):
And if we don't clean those up, we're gonna get fractured.
And you can't put that stuff on tape. Yeah, two questions.
Speaker 3 (08:03):
One with I think his name is we Jim the returner.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
He's everything like thirty five a kickoff, like thirty three
for punt return.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
How big a concern is is?
Speaker 2 (08:11):
Yeah, a great returner, great returner, and they've always done
a good job on kickoff return and he took that
first one against Rutgers. He was about five yards deep
and was really untouched. And he's an excellent punt returner.
He's in the thirties on kickoff return and punt return.
(08:33):
So we're gonna have to do a great job there,
be prepared and give a great effort and tackle in space,
defeat blocks.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
And then I had to fall up.
Speaker 4 (08:42):
Just what are you getting from from Amari?
Speaker 1 (08:44):
And what do you need to get from him? Amari Ferrell?
Speaker 2 (08:48):
Uh yeah, I mean all three of those guys, We
just need him to do what they're supposed to do consistently.
You know, prepare a little better, see what's going on,
make make the proper adjustments, communicate quicker, and be where
they're supposed to be. I mean, you can't play Tampa
two coverage and with the safety it's supposed to be
on the right and he's on the left, and nobody's
(09:10):
on number two to the field, you know, and that's
not necessarily him. Okay. Uh So all three of those
guys are older guys. They're all capable of playing great football,
and they have in spurts, but we need more consistency, Kurt.
Speaker 6 (09:25):
Obviously, towards the end of last year you had some
issues going on the road and dealing with the loud
environments with the silent counts. I guess how much time
do you spend in the off season trying to fix
those issues and what did that process look like?
Speaker 2 (09:37):
Yeah, well we went to something different last year in
the College Football Playoff. We didn't use the silent We
really didn't have a problem here, and then in the
off season you spend time on it, and obviously it'll
be a big point of emphais this week in practice.
I'm not going to tell you what we're.
Speaker 3 (09:51):
Going to do.
Speaker 7 (09:55):
Isaiah Jones having a really strong year.
Speaker 6 (09:57):
Where have you kind of seen him, you know of
all from last year to now and just what's kind
of allowed him to play at that higher level more
often this year.
Speaker 2 (10:05):
Yeah, I think what you're seeing there is just another
year of maturity.
Speaker 8 (10:09):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (10:09):
You know, he was on the team before I got hired,
had a back issue, so missed a law of the
season before got to play last year quite a bit.
And uh, he's just uh, you know, the natural progression
of reps accumulating bigger, stronger, faster, older, wiser, you know
that kind of thing.
Speaker 7 (10:31):
Which Iver brought any guy from the portal I think
from South Dakota. Quarterback Gronowski kind of struggled early on,
but it looks like he's a pretty good athlete and
make some plays with his legs in his arm. What
have you seen from him especially recently, Like he played
better against Rutgers.
Speaker 2 (10:43):
Yeah, we won a lot of football games.
Speaker 3 (10:46):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
You know that guy has He's a great competitor. He's
a big guy, he's got good mobility. They'll run him
design runs and then there's somewhere he could give it
or run it. And you know they've got a good
play action out of pocket game and in the pocket,
and you know he can make the throws he's got
a strong arm. They've built the offense around the quarterback.
There's some new design there. And one thing I'm going
(11:10):
to say about Iowa, and you guys all know this,
they've been in a big ten a while, is I
mean they've been running basically the same defense for a
long time now. There's tweaks, and they've always played great defense,
and they've got great special teams, and they've always been
able to run the ball really well. And this quarterback,
(11:33):
you know, has been a guy that finds a way
to get it done. But the thing about Iowa in general,
they will they will not beat themselves. You will have
to beat them. Okay, they're not going to beat themselves.
And they play really well at home.
Speaker 8 (11:48):
Coach, you talked about the secondary.
Speaker 6 (11:50):
I'm curious you called them day to day a few
weeks ago.
Speaker 8 (11:52):
Where's Byron Baldwin at in his return timetable for you guys?
Speaker 2 (11:56):
Yeah, well, I know more today.
Speaker 8 (12:00):
Joe just getting off to good starts. He got too
off to a decent start last week. How do you
get off to that good start to silence that crowd?
Speaker 2 (12:10):
Yeah, well that always helps, But you know, you got
to play the first play of the last play, which
is I was proud of the way we approached every
play last week, the mental intensity and the urgency we had.
Regardless of the score, We've traditionally gotten off to good starts.
He never really one hundred percent, So it's a reflection
(12:31):
of preparation, I think, and so hopefully get off to
a good start and then play well throughout and finish good.
That's always the goal.
Speaker 3 (12:43):
The receivers and playmakers, especially against Illinois, we're getting the
ball from Fernando and moving it in big chunks after
the catch. How beneficial is it to not just like,
you know, get the ten to fifteen twenty extra yards
after the catch.
Speaker 2 (12:54):
No, it's huge. And a lot of those were on
ourpos where he's not holding the ball very long and
you know you're only throwing it if you get.
Speaker 3 (13:01):
The right look.
Speaker 2 (13:02):
And those guys broke tackles and you know they had
an injury or two in the back. They had one
guy ejected and had an injury coming in. Uh, And
you know our guys did a nice job out there.
Now I'd like see him block every play too, Okay,
because we played the second half and our h's I
don't think they've blocked in by the whole second half.
Speaker 8 (13:24):
Real last one?
Speaker 3 (13:25):
Have you left coach on Saturday?
Speaker 2 (13:27):
You've had a writing on your left hand instead attacking
green and then three names in red.
Speaker 3 (13:31):
What's the significance of that?
Speaker 2 (13:32):
It's a secret, all right, So there's sig.
Speaker 1 (13:41):
I think it was about eight minutes, not not very
long at all. That's what he does. He's very succinct.
But I also think that, you know, it's just that
that confidence that he has in his team and in
what they're doing without being overly confident, and how every
it could always be better, It could always be better,
(14:02):
And that is something that I really do appreciate about
his approach. Now, when you look at this Iowa team,
historically they're known for defense, not putting up big numbers offensively.
Against Rutgers last week they scored more than usual. And
the real matchup in this one, to me, is going
(14:25):
to be Indiana's ability to stop the run, which they've
been really really good and better with each passing week.
Of being able to stop the run force teams to
be one dimensional as that offense continues to roll, and
being able to do that at Iowa is going to
(14:45):
be is going to be important. You want them to
shut down. You want Indiana to be able to shut
down the run, be smart and disciplined with their eyes
at the second level so they're not peeking into the
backfield and giving up some That's something that has cropped
up a few times. It did against ODU, it did
(15:05):
against Kansas State. They played with a lot of tempo,
and something that Illinois had a little bit of success
with was playing with tempo at times. That ain't Iowa.
That's not how they roll. And so being able to
shut down the run, stop the grind, try to force
Iowa to become one dimensional is going to be really
(15:27):
really critical. Offensively, Indiana's offensive line has to control that
line of scrimmage. Indiana, which has done a great job
of running the ball, needs to continue to take that
next step. You know, are you going to get three
hundred more yards on the ground. Probably not, That is
(15:48):
something that is unusual. But you do have an Indiana
offense that is very, very has been consistent in being
able to get these runs thanks to the depth of
(16:08):
their running back room. Lee BB obviously is out, but
you're talking about Roman Hemby and Kaylon Black and Kobe
Martin these guys are showing great burst at the line
of scrimmage, can take any carry the distance. And you're
talking about guys where no matter who is in the
(16:31):
on the field at any one time, you're not seeing
a drop off, and I think that that is really
critical as well. Meanwhile, Indiana's passing game has been great
with Fernando Mendoza. I mean, here's a guy that has
thrown ten touchdown passes in the last two weeks. He
completes like three out of every four of his passes,
(16:54):
has learned to deal with and and and over. You've
seen this growth over the four games of the year
this year of just getting comfortable in a clean pocket.
At his previous stop at col he was pressured a lot,
had run for his life a lot, and you could
see in the first couple of games that he was
a little uncomfortable, a little jittery in a quiet pocket.
(17:20):
Over the past couple of games, he's had that quiet
pocket and he's been able to learn how to be
comfortable and go through his progressions and not rush, not
get sped up. Iowa is going to try to be
very disruptive and it's going to be really important for
Indiana to keep that clean pocket there. But when you
(17:41):
have the weapons that he has Elijah Sarratt and E. J.
Williams and Omar Cooper and you know, just that group
of skill position guys, you have so many options that
really stresses a defense as long as that quarterback has
that opportunity to go through his progressions. We've seen for
Nando Mendoza get better at that week after week after week.
(18:03):
And I think Indiana is going to be able to
move the ball a little bit on an Iowa defense
that isn't the rock solid, hardcore defense that they've had
in the past. It's a little bit more generous this year.
Not not terribly generous, but you know, a little bit
more generous. And I like the way Indiana has been
moving the ball. I think, especially if the Hoosiers get
(18:25):
out to an early lead, it's gonna be real tough
for this Iowa team to come back. Now, all of
that said, I am not at a point in covering
this program, in watching this program, and I think you're
a lot of you listening are probably the exact same way.
You're not comfortable with the idea of Indiana just you know,
(18:47):
going to Iowa picking up a win and moving on.
We're not there yet. It's too new. It's just too new.
And I think back to last year's Michigan State game
where indiannafl behind ten to nothing right off the bat,
and then I think the Hoosier scored something like forty
eight unanswered points and just dominated. The whole point of
(19:11):
it is is Indiana is going to have I know,
their favorite I know all these things point to to
the Hoosiers coming home with a victory. But what you
really what I'm really focused on is just seeing consistency
and seeing even some improvement from last week's game against Illinois.
I feel like Iowa's game against Rutgers exposed some of
(19:32):
the weaknesses of the Hawkeyes, and being able to come
out and really exploit those weaknesses and those exposures is
going to be really important. Getting off to a quick start,
quieting that Iowa crowd and turning the Hawkeyes one dimensional
is going to be incredibly important, and so should be
(19:55):
a fun day at Kinnick Stadium. I think it's a
three thirty Eastern time kickoff for the Hoosiers have every
opportunity in the world to move to five at zero
and to take that next step, improving everybody that not
only are they a contender, but that they are a
team that's going to be reckoned with for the foreseeable future.
(20:16):
That's really important, and that next step will be beating
Iowa on the road. We'll see if they could do it.
What's all the time we have on the Peaks podcast
this week, I want to thank you for listening, and
I want to remind you to visit peaks dot com
for the very best and IU football and basketball coverage
You're going to find anywhere nobody covers who's you're recruiting
better than Jeff rab John's, Matt Weaver, Trevor Andershock, and
Jared Kelly. So come be a part of a thriving
(20:37):
and excited community at peaks dot com. Folks, you are
not going to be disappointed. Folks are out of time.
But for now and for Jeff, Matt, Trevor, and Jared,
I'm ken bike off saying thanks for listening. Everybody,
I do, and everybody, I'm Ken bikeoff and welcome to
the Peaks Podcast. Hoosiers four and O Hoosiers eleventh ranked
Hoosiers head to Iowa to play the Hawkeyes at Kinnick Stadium,
first time these two teams have met in four years,
and we all kind of remember that last trip to
Kinnick Stadium, which came at the start of the twenty
(00:31):
twenty one season. Coming off of Indiana's twenty twenty success.
Indiana opened at Iowa expecting to go there and really
get off to a hot start, and instead, i you
was crushed, and that began the downfall of Tom Allen's
(00:53):
time in Bloomington. Essentially, that's where we're at now, four
years later, completely different situation for the Hoosiers. Kurt Signetti
is fifteen and two as a head coach for the
Hoogiers Indiana's coming off of sixty three to ten win
over Illinois at Memorial Stadium last week, and so you
(01:14):
worry about kind of the hangover from that game, or
at the very least, I would say that you normally
would be worried about the hangover from that game with
almost any other coach, this one, Kurt Signetti isn't letting
anybody be hungover too excited about last week's win. Yeah,
(01:35):
the Hoosiers played well, Yes they dominated. Yes they dominated
at a level that has rarely been seen by a
top twenty team, if ever seen by a top twenty
team against a top twenty team. But this is Indiana's
first road experience of the year. So what do the
Hoosiers have to do in order to be successful and
(01:57):
move to five and zero on the season against Iowa.
We'll get to all of that in a couple of minutes,
but I did want to start with just talking about
the approach of this team and this coaching staff in particular,
as they continue to rack up the wins. Kurt Signetti
(02:19):
obviously has a ton of confidence in himself. There are
those wonderful shots of him on the sideline Indiana up
fifty six to ten, and he looks like the score
is not only flipped, but that he's just a dead psychopath,
and it's fantastic. I just really do love that style
(02:43):
and love the way that he goes about everything. And
so when he was talking to us last Monday in
his weekly meeting with the media, and you'll hear this
in a few minutes. He was just very clear that
there were a lot of opportunities were left on the field,
and he's not wrong. Indiana dropped a couple of probable
(03:04):
pick sixes. They had some mistakes along the way, some busts,
and it isn't a matter of focusing on the negative there,
but acknowledging that you played really well and you could
have been better because there were opportunities that went by
the wayside. Heading on the road. This is going to
(03:27):
be another kind of talking point, or at least a
point of emphasis with this team is you're on the road.
Everybody here heard the chatter last year about how Indiana
didn't beat anybody in Indiana, couldn't play away from Memorial Stadium,
And yeah, they picked up wins, but who were those
wins against. This is Iowa. This is a team that
(03:50):
historically has been one of the more consistent teams in
terms of being tough to beat. At Kinnick Stadium. Hoosiers
are favored in this one by the gambling houses by
more than a touchdown. But the whole point of it
is is that if you want to take that next
(04:12):
step now, you have to do it on the road.
Indiana played ODU and left opportunities on the field in
the season opener. They came back the next week, they
were much better against Kansas State. Then they played in
Indiana State and they were fantastic, but they were supposed
(04:34):
to be against that kind of opponent. So now here
you had Illinois come to town, and can you continue
to improve on what you've done week by week? And
good lord did they ever do that? But now without
a couple of hiccups. So sixty three to ten. Now
your next step is winning on the road against a
(04:54):
good program, which Iowa is. So if you want to
take that next step toward being great, that's what you
have to do. And so what you have is another
opportunity for this Hoosier team to prove itself. People are
starting to pay attention. People are realizing last year wasn't
a fluke, and you can continue that if you're able
(05:16):
to go ahead and pick up the win at Iowa
on Saturday. Now we'll have a lot more about what
to expect from this game in just a few minutes,
But I wanted to first bring you Kurt Signetti during
his weekly meeting with the media in the team room
last Monday.
Speaker 2 (05:31):
Yeah, okay, all right, good win Saturday night. Regardless of
the final score. There's always things that show up on tape.
They've got to get corrected, and believe me, there's plenty there.
So really more interested in moving on to our next opponent,
which will be a real challenge at Iowa. Got a
(05:53):
lot of respect for coach Farns everything he's accomplished throughout
his career as a head coach and assistant too. You know,
he's a great line coach before he became a head coach,
and he was a graduate assistant at Pitt in nineteen eighty.
I was a graduate assistant Pitt in eighty three and
eighty four. He's come by the offices now and then
(06:13):
had a chance to meet him, met him a couple
of times out and around, got to know him during
the Big Ten meetings. So congratulate him, you know, on
the big win a couple of weeks ago to make
him the most the winningest coach in the Big Ten
and Iowa. It's a tough place to play, Kennick Stadium,
(06:33):
they sailed out almost every Saturday. It's loud, and so
we're gonna play well. This will be a challenge, a
more difficult challenge than the last one, for sure, and
the sooner our guys realized that the better.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
Great.
Speaker 4 (06:52):
You talk about your history with coach Farns, but I'm
curious if you have any history with Kennick. Obviously it's
a place that is very difficul to go, one of
the tougher environments in the conference, and kind of has
been I think, particularly for you know, sort of teams that,
as you talk about, need that refocusing quickly after a
big win.
Speaker 5 (07:10):
Yeah, I do not, Yes, Yeah, Kurt, Brian Haynes seems
to be really mixing up his personnel at the front seven.
Do you feel like you guys are more versatile there
this year and seem to make a difference on Saturday
in terms of Illinois. Didn't really know what you guys
are doing, couldn't diagnose things, but you feel like that's.
Speaker 2 (07:29):
He always Brian always mixes things up pretty good, find
ways to get to quarterback, create TFLs. I don't think
anything has changed in that regard. That was probably more
about the one on one matchups. But look, I mean,
you know, we have some egregious mistakes in the back end,
particularly it's safety. We have about five of them in
that game, and we only got exposed once because of them.
(07:51):
And if we don't clean those up, we're gonna get fractured.
And you can't put that stuff on tape. Yeah, two questions.
Speaker 3 (08:03):
One with I think his name is we Jim the returner.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
He's everything like thirty five a kickoff, like thirty three
for punt return.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
How big a concern is is?
Speaker 2 (08:11):
Yeah, a great returner, great returner, and they've always done
a good job on kickoff return and he took that
first one against Rutgers. He was about five yards deep
and was really untouched. And he's an excellent punt returner.
He's in the thirties on kickoff return and punt return.
(08:33):
So we're gonna have to do a great job there,
be prepared and give a great effort and tackle in space,
defeat blocks.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
And then I had to fall up.
Speaker 4 (08:42):
Just what are you getting from from Amari?
Speaker 1 (08:44):
And what do you need to get from him? Amari Ferrell?
Speaker 2 (08:48):
Uh yeah, I mean all three of those guys, We
just need him to do what they're supposed to do consistently.
You know, prepare a little better, see what's going on,
make make the proper adjustments, communicate quicker, and be where
they're supposed to be. I mean, you can't play Tampa
two coverage and with the safety it's supposed to be
on the right and he's on the left, and nobody's
(09:10):
on number two to the field, you know, and that's
not necessarily him. Okay. Uh So all three of those
guys are older guys. They're all capable of playing great football,
and they have in spurts, but we need more consistency, Kurt.
Speaker 6 (09:25):
Obviously, towards the end of last year you had some
issues going on the road and dealing with the loud
environments with the silent counts. I guess how much time
do you spend in the off season trying to fix
those issues and what did that process look like?
Speaker 2 (09:37):
Yeah, well we went to something different last year in
the College Football Playoff. We didn't use the silent We
really didn't have a problem here, and then in the
off season you spend time on it, and obviously it'll
be a big point of emphais this week in practice.
I'm not going to tell you what we're.
Speaker 3 (09:51):
Going to do.
Speaker 7 (09:55):
Isaiah Jones having a really strong year.
Speaker 6 (09:57):
Where have you kind of seen him, you know of
all from last year to now and just what's kind
of allowed him to play at that higher level more
often this year.
Speaker 2 (10:05):
Yeah, I think what you're seeing there is just another
year of maturity.
Speaker 8 (10:09):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (10:09):
You know, he was on the team before I got hired,
had a back issue, so missed a law of the
season before got to play last year quite a bit.
And uh, he's just uh, you know, the natural progression
of reps accumulating bigger, stronger, faster, older, wiser, you know
that kind of thing.
Speaker 7 (10:31):
Which Iver brought any guy from the portal I think
from South Dakota. Quarterback Gronowski kind of struggled early on,
but it looks like he's a pretty good athlete and
make some plays with his legs in his arm. What
have you seen from him especially recently, Like he played
better against Rutgers.
Speaker 2 (10:43):
Yeah, we won a lot of football games.
Speaker 3 (10:46):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
You know that guy has He's a great competitor. He's
a big guy, he's got good mobility. They'll run him
design runs and then there's somewhere he could give it
or run it. And you know they've got a good
play action out of pocket game and in the pocket,
and you know he can make the throws he's got
a strong arm. They've built the offense around the quarterback.
There's some new design there. And one thing I'm going
(11:10):
to say about Iowa, and you guys all know this,
they've been in a big ten a while, is I
mean they've been running basically the same defense for a
long time now. There's tweaks, and they've always played great defense,
and they've got great special teams, and they've always been
able to run the ball really well. And this quarterback,
(11:33):
you know, has been a guy that finds a way
to get it done. But the thing about Iowa in general,
they will they will not beat themselves. You will have
to beat them. Okay, they're not going to beat themselves.
And they play really well at home.
Speaker 8 (11:48):
Coach, you talked about the secondary.
Speaker 6 (11:50):
I'm curious you called them day to day a few
weeks ago.
Speaker 8 (11:52):
Where's Byron Baldwin at in his return timetable for you guys?
Speaker 2 (11:56):
Yeah, well, I know more today.
Speaker 8 (12:00):
Joe just getting off to good starts. He got too
off to a decent start last week. How do you
get off to that good start to silence that crowd?
Speaker 2 (12:10):
Yeah, well that always helps, But you know, you got
to play the first play of the last play, which
is I was proud of the way we approached every
play last week, the mental intensity and the urgency we had.
Regardless of the score, We've traditionally gotten off to good starts.
He never really one hundred percent, So it's a reflection
(12:31):
of preparation, I think, and so hopefully get off to
a good start and then play well throughout and finish good.
That's always the goal.
Speaker 3 (12:43):
The receivers and playmakers, especially against Illinois, we're getting the
ball from Fernando and moving it in big chunks after
the catch. How beneficial is it to not just like,
you know, get the ten to fifteen twenty extra yards
after the catch.
Speaker 2 (12:54):
No, it's huge. And a lot of those were on
ourpos where he's not holding the ball very long and
you know you're only throwing it if you get.
Speaker 3 (13:01):
The right look.
Speaker 2 (13:02):
And those guys broke tackles and you know they had
an injury or two in the back. They had one
guy ejected and had an injury coming in. Uh, And
you know our guys did a nice job out there.
Now I'd like see him block every play too, Okay,
because we played the second half and our h's I
don't think they've blocked in by the whole second half.
Speaker 8 (13:24):
Real last one?
Speaker 3 (13:25):
Have you left coach on Saturday?
Speaker 2 (13:27):
You've had a writing on your left hand instead attacking
green and then three names in red.
Speaker 3 (13:31):
What's the significance of that?
Speaker 2 (13:32):
It's a secret, all right, So there's sig.
Speaker 1 (13:41):
I think it was about eight minutes, not not very
long at all. That's what he does. He's very succinct.
But I also think that, you know, it's just that
that confidence that he has in his team and in
what they're doing without being overly confident, and how every
it could always be better, It could always be better,
(14:02):
And that is something that I really do appreciate about
his approach. Now, when you look at this Iowa team,
historically they're known for defense, not putting up big numbers offensively.
Against Rutgers last week they scored more than usual. And
the real matchup in this one, to me, is going
(14:25):
to be Indiana's ability to stop the run, which they've
been really really good and better with each passing week.
Of being able to stop the run force teams to
be one dimensional as that offense continues to roll, and
being able to do that at Iowa is going to
(14:45):
be is going to be important. You want them to
shut down. You want Indiana to be able to shut
down the run, be smart and disciplined with their eyes
at the second level so they're not peeking into the
backfield and giving up some That's something that has cropped
up a few times. It did against ODU, it did
(15:05):
against Kansas State. They played with a lot of tempo,
and something that Illinois had a little bit of success
with was playing with tempo at times. That ain't Iowa.
That's not how they roll. And so being able to
shut down the run, stop the grind, try to force
Iowa to become one dimensional is going to be really
(15:27):
really critical. Offensively, Indiana's offensive line has to control that
line of scrimmage. Indiana, which has done a great job
of running the ball, needs to continue to take that
next step. You know, are you going to get three
hundred more yards on the ground. Probably not, That is
(15:48):
something that is unusual. But you do have an Indiana
offense that is very, very has been consistent in being
able to get these runs thanks to the depth of
(16:08):
their running back room. Lee BB obviously is out, but
you're talking about Roman Hemby and Kaylon Black and Kobe
Martin these guys are showing great burst at the line
of scrimmage, can take any carry the distance. And you're
talking about guys where no matter who is in the
(16:31):
on the field at any one time, you're not seeing
a drop off, and I think that that is really
critical as well. Meanwhile, Indiana's passing game has been great
with Fernando Mendoza. I mean, here's a guy that has
thrown ten touchdown passes in the last two weeks. He
completes like three out of every four of his passes,
(16:54):
has learned to deal with and and and over. You've
seen this growth over the four games of the year
this year of just getting comfortable in a clean pocket.
At his previous stop at col he was pressured a lot,
had run for his life a lot, and you could
see in the first couple of games that he was
a little uncomfortable, a little jittery in a quiet pocket.
(17:20):
Over the past couple of games, he's had that quiet
pocket and he's been able to learn how to be
comfortable and go through his progressions and not rush, not
get sped up. Iowa is going to try to be
very disruptive and it's going to be really important for
Indiana to keep that clean pocket there. But when you
(17:41):
have the weapons that he has Elijah Sarratt and E. J.
Williams and Omar Cooper and you know, just that group
of skill position guys, you have so many options that
really stresses a defense as long as that quarterback has
that opportunity to go through his progressions. We've seen for
Nando Mendoza get better at that week after week after week.
(18:03):
And I think Indiana is going to be able to
move the ball a little bit on an Iowa defense
that isn't the rock solid, hardcore defense that they've had
in the past. It's a little bit more generous this year.
Not not terribly generous, but you know, a little bit
more generous. And I like the way Indiana has been
moving the ball. I think, especially if the Hoosiers get
(18:25):
out to an early lead, it's gonna be real tough
for this Iowa team to come back. Now, all of
that said, I am not at a point in covering
this program, in watching this program, and I think you're
a lot of you listening are probably the exact same way.
You're not comfortable with the idea of Indiana just you know,
(18:47):
going to Iowa picking up a win and moving on.
We're not there yet. It's too new. It's just too new.
And I think back to last year's Michigan State game
where indiannafl behind ten to nothing right off the bat,
and then I think the Hoosier scored something like forty
eight unanswered points and just dominated. The whole point of
(19:11):
it is is Indiana is going to have I know,
their favorite I know all these things point to to
the Hoosiers coming home with a victory. But what you
really what I'm really focused on is just seeing consistency
and seeing even some improvement from last week's game against Illinois.
I feel like Iowa's game against Rutgers exposed some of
(19:32):
the weaknesses of the Hawkeyes, and being able to come
out and really exploit those weaknesses and those exposures is
going to be really important. Getting off to a quick start,
quieting that Iowa crowd and turning the Hawkeyes one dimensional
is going to be incredibly important, and so should be
(19:55):
a fun day at Kinnick Stadium. I think it's a
three thirty Eastern time kickoff for the Hoosiers have every
opportunity in the world to move to five at zero
and to take that next step, improving everybody that not
only are they a contender, but that they are a
team that's going to be reckoned with for the foreseeable future.
(20:16):
That's really important, and that next step will be beating
Iowa on the road. We'll see if they could do it.
What's all the time we have on the Peaks podcast
this week, I want to thank you for listening, and
I want to remind you to visit peaks dot com
for the very best and IU football and basketball coverage
You're going to find anywhere nobody covers who's you're recruiting
better than Jeff rab John's, Matt Weaver, Trevor Andershock, and
Jared Kelly. So come be a part of a thriving
(20:37):
and excited community at peaks dot com. Folks, you are
not going to be disappointed. Folks are out of time.
But for now and for Jeff, Matt, Trevor, and Jared,
I'm ken bike off saying thanks for listening. Everybody,
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