Matthew Bedford, Caleb Jones to Swap Sides on Indiana's Offensive Line
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Indiana's offensive line is the one part of the Hoosiers' offense that will undergo the most changes from last season to this year.
There's many new faces — experienced and young — and the returnees are going to see themselves in new positions.
Offensive line coach Darren Hiller said that this upcoming week will be big for the lineman in terms of vying for playing time. The Hoosiers are transitioning into full pads and will play their first inter-sqaud preseason game this weekend, so it's an opportunity for Hiller to start to form his front five.
Two players who will surely be starters are going to swap positions this season.
Sophomore Matthew Bedford will be moving to right tackle and redshirt junior Caleb Jones will be moving to left tackle.
Both are very comfortable with the move. Jones is all too familiar with it as he was shifted around in both positions last season.
"In terms of playing on both sides last season, I think that is just a result of Coach Hiller having a lot of faith in me and playing both sides," Jones said.
When Jones came to Indiana, he started out as the left tackle, so he's comfortable with moving back to that for this season.
"He (coach Hiller) moved me a lot from left to right in practice and put me in a lot of situations and scenarios that would prepare me to play both sides," Jones said.
As for Bedford, he feels that playing on the right side feels more natural to him.
Because Bedford played most of last season at left tackle, he thinks it has made the transition much easier.
"Being able to play last year and get adjusted to speed of the game has helped," Bedford said. "I am able to see the field in a different way because I have had that experience on the left side."
Bedford said how he is talking to Jones to get tips on some of the stuff Jones did last year when he was at right tackle.
One of the major priorities for playing on the right side is protecting the blindside of Michael Penix Jr., who is a left-handed quarterback.
It's a responsibility Bedford isn't taking lightly.
"I take it very seriously," Bedford said. "If I do my job wrong, he gets hurt. So, very huge responsibility for that."
No matter which pieces are surrounding both Bedford and Jones, they feel like they have a strong unit around them.
They'll look to build off the success they had a season ago, where they helped the Indiana offense match a school record with nine 30-point games and set the program record with 3,931 passing yards.
"I don't think there's been any issue with the chemistry," Hiller said. "I think we've got some talent in the room and the kids work extremely hard, and they are motivated."
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