Indiana Hoosiers

Indiana vs. Wake Forest preview

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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After an early bye week, Indiana is set to face Wake Forest at home on Saturday. The Hoosiers will be hoping to build off of their two commanding wins against Florida International and Ball State, but the Demon Deacons appear to be better than anticipated.

Wake Forest, with their first three wins, have already matched their win total from the previous season. They are currently in a rebuilding phase, much like the one Indiana went through, and have had difficulty finding their offensive rhythm. A soft offensive line with little discipline, coupled with a non-existent passing game makes Wake Forest seem like an easy win to even some of the worst teams of the ACC, but through perseverance and a solid team effort, somehow keeps grinding out wins.

Sep 17, 2016; Winston-Salem, NC, USA; Wake Forest Demon Deacons running back Matt Colburn (22) runs the ball during the second quarter against the Delaware Fightin Blue Hens at BB&T Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports

In their first game against a weak Tulane side, they managed to get a touchdown early in the second quarter to take a 7-3 lead, and that score would hold for the rest of the game. Despite their offensive deficiencies, they showed defensive prowess and a mental toughness to close out a game. While Clawson will undoubtedly expect more from his offense, a win is a win, especially in the early stages of the program’s resurrection.

Their next game was a much needed boost of confidence. In what proved to be a close matchup with Duke, freshman running back Cade Carney led the team with an impressive 107 yards on just 17 carries, and scoring all three of the team’s touchdowns in their 24-14 upset win. Unfortunately, Carney would suffered an MCL sprain, and will likely miss this week’s matchup with Indiana. Backup quarterback Kendall Hinton came off the bench to add 133 yards, however, threw one interception.

Early in their next game against Delaware, Hinton went out with a knee injury, and won’t be back for 2-4 weeks. Without two of their best weapons on offense in Hinton and Carney, Wake Forest would turn to quarterback John Wolford and running back Matt Colburn. Both proved to be effective as Wolford threw for 155 yards and a touchdown, while Colburn added 118 yards on the ground, including one touchdown. While they managed to beat Delaware in commanding fashion 38-21, the absence of Carney and Hinton may prove to be an interesting development in Bloomington on Saturday.

While their offense has looked hardly convincing, and now injury depleted, Tom Allen and the Indiana defense should be excited for the opportunity to continue on their impressive number of takeaways. Marcus Oliver, Rashard Fant, and Tegray Scales are all having standout performances, and should have little trouble shutting down the Forest offense. However, look for the standout performances to come from the defensive line in players like Nate Hoff and Ralph Green III due to Wake Forest’s poor offensive line.

Sep 10, 2016; Bloomington, IN, USA; Indiana Hoosiers defensive back Leon Thornton III (21) looks for a teammate under pressure from Ball State Cardinals defensive tackle Kevin Thurmon (62) the during the first half of the game at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports

On the offensive side, Richard Lagow is shaping up to be an effective replacement for Nate Sudfeld. He has already racked up over 500 yards and 4 touchdowns. Without Simmie Cobbs Jr., he will look to Nick Westbrook and Mitchell Paige to shoulder most of the receiving duties. Meanwhile, Devine Redding will be attempting to make this game his sixth straight with over 100 yards on the ground.

It would be unwise for Indiana to take Wake Forest lightly, considering last season’s matchup was only a seven point game, when their team was much weaker. It is too early to tell how this Indiana team stacks up with lasts, but one obvious improvement is their defense. Last year they gave up 24 points to the Demon Deacons, which Tom Allen would say is far too many.

This is the last of Indiana’s non-conference games, and they will be determined to go into Big Ten season undefeated. With home field advantage and a mostly healthy team, the most likely outcome would be an easy victory for the Hoosiers, but everyone still needs to stay focused and do their jobs.