My Two Cents: We Get Another Indiana Game on Saturday, Which We Can't Take for Granted

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana has a football game on Saturday, an important Big Ten battle at Michigan State. That, in itself, is wonderful news.

Why so wonderful? Because it's a college football game and it's going to be played. That in itself is worth setting off fireworks for these days.

A quick glance across the college football landscape proves the point. The two best teams in the country, Alabama and Ohio State, aren't playing Saturday because of COVID outbreaks at LSU and Maryland, respectively, their two opponents this weekend. And the third-best team in college football, Clemson, just played two straight games without their star quarterback, who caught the virus. They lost one and should have lost another without Trevor Lawrence, the Heisman Trophy favorite.

There are 10 games this weekend that are either postponed or canceled because of COVID, and we're up over 50 now for the season.

All that means is that this season is a matter of survival, and when you're having a generational season like Indiana is, you do EVERYTHING to make sure it continues. Doing the right things on the field is one thing, but in we-hate-you 2020, it's even more about doing everything right off the field, too.

'We are on high alert this week, and we made another huge emphasis to our players in our last team meeting about masks, social distancing, taking care of themselves and washing hands,'' Indiana coach Tom Allen said Thursday. "It is really easy to get lulled into some of these things when you do them for a while. You get comfortable and complacent. You let down your guard, but there is no question that what has happened this week is another great reminder that this season is very fragile.

"I think we all know that. We have no idea what the future holds. We cannot take anything for granted in our preparation, or in the mitigation of risk. We're trying to keep our guys safe, keep our staff safe. We want to continue to play, but we know we can only control so much. The things that we can control, we need to do a great, great job of continuing to do that.''

Indiana's players have bought in, too. In a normal time, they'd all be the kings of Bloomington, and the parties would have been epic after the home wins over Penn State and Michigan. Instead, it was a game over, enjoy a few memorable moments in the locker, and head home alone.

That's the way it has to be.

"We continue to challenge our coaches to do a great job, their families do a great job with who they are around after the game,'' Allen said. "It takes discipline, sacrifice with all of the great things that we have going on here. We are not able to enjoy it in a way that we normally would with family and friends in close proximity. That is unfortunate, but it is reality.''

After the huge win on Saturday over Michigan, a team that Indiana had lost to 24 times in a row over a 33-year period, Indiana quarterback Michael Penix Jr. played so well that he was voted the best quarterback in the nation. When the game ended, there was no night on the town, no pizza out, no big gatherings. It was straight back home to his apartment, and a visit with his parents, who came up from Florida to watch the game. (No fans are allowed at Big Ten games, but family members can attend.)

Welcome to 2020.

It was the same for Tom Allen. After his obligations, he said a quick hello to family members – with a mask on and from a distance — and then went home alone with his wife, Tracy, They watched college football and had a quiet night together.

'Once I finished with all of the media, which took a while, I had no voice left and I was completely exhausted,'' Allen said. "I had some family members that were able to come to the game, so we stood 6-feet apart. I had my mask on talking to them, and I didn't even get a chance to hug them.

"I talked to them a little bit outside of the stadium, then my wife and I went home by ourselves and hung out, watched some college football, sat there and thanked the good Lord for an amazing opportunity. I thanked Him for these kids, their effort and all that we have done. We really sat back, relaxed and I enjoyed some quiet time together with my wife. We realized how blessed we are with what we are going through right now.''

Blessed for sure over how memorable these three weeks have been. This is an Indiana football season unlike any other, or at least in a long, long time. And through this pandemic, all we want is to get it to the finish line.

Don't we all want to see how this ends?

That's why we're grateful for another Saturday, this time in East Lansing when the Hoosiers and Spartans get together at Noon ET (TV: ABC). Indiana lost up there last year, and they want to change that this go-round. It's a new era.

We talked a lot last year about Indiana breaking through that line of demarcation in the Big Ten East. Since its inception, there have been the Haves (Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State and Michigan State, and the Have Nots (Indiana, Maryland and Rutgers).

Last year, Indiana finished ahead of MSU in the standings, but still lost head's up, 40-31 in a game that was much closer than that. So, crossing that line still matters. Still matters a lot.

Indiana is the better team now, even favored by a touchdown on the road, but the Hoosiers are still singularly focused. It's all about beating Michigan State on Saturday, and clearing that hurdle, too, just like they have with Penn State and Michigan.

That constant 1-0 mindset is in play. As Allen always says, this is the biggest game of the year because it's the next one. Sure, it's coach-speak, but it's also very true.

The first three wins don't change the scoreboard on Saturday. It's still 0-0 when it starts. And what follows — Ohio State next week in Columbus — doesn't matter either. Not yet, anyway.

"We have the Michigan State Spartans coming,'' Allen said, shaking off a question about muting the game plan a week ahead of the Ohio State game. "(Michigan State) has been ranked in the top-25 for 13 of the last 14 seasons. They won the Big Ten five years ago. They played in the College Football playoff five years ago. We'll give everything we have to win this game, and that's all that I am thinking about.''

One day at a time, no matter what. Keep 'em coming.

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