Hoosiers Now

Bizarre Football History Between Indiana and Indiana State

Indiana State will serve as the second opponent of the 2023 football season for coach Tom Allen and the Indiana Hoosiers. The Sycamores play at the FCS level and are coached by Curt Mallory, son of former Indiana football coach Bill Mallory.

Daniel Olinger

Bizarre Football History Between Indiana and Indiana State
Bizarre Football History Between Indiana and Indiana State /
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BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — If you try to learn about the history of Indiana vs Indiana State football games, you'll get three wildly different answers. 

The official Indiana team website has the Hoosiers at 5-0 all-time against the Sycamores, with victories in the 2003, 2007, 2012, 2013 and 2014 seasons. Every website seemingly agrees on those five games all resulting in Indiana wins. 

However, if you check out Indiana State's team website, it claims ISU is 1-6 all time against IU, and beat Indiana 7-6 in 1963. The Indiana State website also lists a 1925 game that the Hoosiers won, and it's accidentally published on the team website as a scheduled loss for the Sycamores in 2025.

Winsipedia, the unofficial authority on college football head-to-head records, has IU up 6-0 in the all-time series against Indiana State. As the unbiased third party, Winsipedia also lists a victory in the 1925 season for Indiana, making it very likely to be a game that actually happened. 

Indiana State claims its 1963 victory over Indiana took place on May 14, and no location for the game is listed. This makes it incredibly likely that the claimed win for ISU was during an offseason practice or exhibition of sorts, and that Indiana truthfully leads the in-state series with a 6-0 record. 

All this to say — there's not a whole lot to preview with 2023 Indiana State, who the Hoosiers play Friday in their second game of the season (a Friday game that Tom Allen is very much not a fan of). 

Indiana State isn't just an FCS team, but a bad FCS team that lost 27-0 to Eastern Illinois in its first game of the season. IU should dominate in the same way they have in the six previous meetings — despite what the ISU team website might claim. 

Next up in our 2023 Indiana football opponent preview series, here's what you should know about the Indiana State Sycamores:

Players to Know on Indiana State's Offense

  • QB — Gavin Screws
  • QB — Evan Olaes
  • RB — Justin Dinka
  • RB — Korbin Allen
  • WR — Dakota Caton
  • WR — Harry Van Dyne

There aren't too many fiercely devoted Indiana State outlets out there reporting on the Sycamores' fall camp. All we really have to go off of is what ISU showed in its dismal 27-0 loss to Eastern Illinois.

Amongst its trio of returning quarterbacks, Indiana State chose Gavin Screws as its primary option. That didn't go great for the Sycamores, though, as the redshirt junior completed just 13-of-24 passes for 116 yards, zero touchdowns and two interceptions.

Evan Olaes also saw snaps at quarterback in week 1, and was utilized much more as a runner than he was as a passer. On the ground, he gained 59 yards on just nine carries for a pretty effective 6.6 yards per carry.

Olaes also attempted two passes. Which, uh, did not go great. 

Halfbacks Korbin Allen and Justin Dinka saw most of the typical carries for ISU in its season opener. Allen and Dinka weren't too explosive on the ground, though, as they ran for only 29 and 18 yards respectively. Dinka, however, is coming off an impressive 895 yard-season in 2022, in which he averaged 5.8 yards per attempt. 

And while the Sycamores did lose their top wide receiver from 2022 in Dante Hendrix, they return Dakota Caton and Harry Van Dyne, who combined for nine receptions and 95 yards against Eastern Illinois. 

While Screws and Olaes took the quarterback snaps in week 1, a name to know is Cade Chambers, who was named the 2022 MVFC Freshman of the Year after throwing for 938 yards and eight touchdowns in his sporadic playing time last season. Indiana State rotated among the trio as starting quarterbacks last season, and Chambers started in the 2022 season finale against Missouri State. 

Indiana obviously has its own quarterback dilemma at the moment. Tayven Jackson is going to start for the Hoosiers, while Brendan Sorsby is expected to make an appearance once more. There are a lot of different guys on both teams that could take snaps at quarterback this Saturday, and none of them to date are all that proven. 

Players to Know on Indiana State's Defense

  • DL — JuJu Williams
  • LB — Geoffrey Brown
  • LB — Garrett Ollendieck
  • DB — Maddix Blackwell
  • DB — Rylan Cole
  • DB — Micah Hauser

According to Indiana State defensive lineman JuJu Williams, the Sycamores play a base 4-3 defense, nothing out of the ordinary. 

Williams is perhaps the most dangerous player on the Indiana State roster and the one with the greatest chance of making an NFL team. He transferred to the Sycamores in 2022 after three seasons with Middle Tennessee State at the FBS level. Williams only played in four games last season before suffering a season-ending injury, but in that brief time he still racked up 2.0 sacks, the fourth-highest mark on the team. 

Along with the running back Dinka, linebacker Geoffrey Brown and defensive back Rylan Cole were the only other players on the Indiana State roster to be named to the 2023 MVFC Preseason All-Conference team. Behind Brown and Cole, linebacker Garrett Olendieck and defensive back Maddix Blackwell finished with the third and fourth most tackles on the team. Defensive back Micah Hauser was a relative unknown commodity during the 2022 season, but led the Sycamores in solo tackles against Eastern Illinois with six to his name.

The Bottom Line

There's really only three ways Indiana State could have any chance against Indiana:

  1. Jackson and Sorsby continue to play poor football, and the Indiana offense is stuck in the mud all day.
  2. Returning almost all of its players from the 2022 season, a veteran Indiana State squad frustrates an Indiana team relying heavily on first-year transfers, who probably are still little lacking in total chemistry and cohesion.
  3. The Indiana State head coach is Curt Mallory — the son of Indiana's all-time winningest football coach, Bill Mallory. This is the first game Curt will coach against his Dad's former team, which could result in extra motivation for the Sycamores. A whiff of destiny fills the air as the Hoosiers are upset by the son of perhaps their greatest coach.

In all likelihood, Indiana is definitely winning this game. Indiana State went 2-9 in 2022 and already started its 2023 season with a thud. It's what makes ISU a perfect second week opponent for the Hoosiers following the 23-3 loss to Ohio State.

But crazier things have happened than Indiana State coming into Memorial Stadium and pulling off an upset. And for the Sycamores, it would mark their first actual win over IU that wasn't just a random 7-6 scrimmage in May 1963.

Related Stories on Indiana Football

  • GAME STORY FROM IU VS OHIO STATE: The Indiana football team lost to No. 3 Ohio State 23-3 in Bloomington on Saturday in the 2023 season opener. Coach Tom Allen and the Hoosiers had their moments, and even held it to a one-score game through the third quarter, but ultimately, the team was doomed by bad quarterback play from Tayven Jackson and Brendan Sorsby. CLICK HERE
  • COLUMN: Indiana hadn't allowed 23 points or fewer against Ohio State since the 1993 season, but that's what the transfer-heavy unit did Saturday. Indiana also proved to have talented skill position players, but this could all go to waste if head coach Tom Allen and offensive coordinator Walt Bell can't solve Indiana's quarterback dilemma. CLICK HERE
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Daniel Olinger
DANIEL OLINGER

Daniel Olinger is a Sports Illustrated/FanNation reporter for HoosiersNow.com. He graduated from Northwestern University with degrees in both journalism and economics. 

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