Indiana football: Five takeaways from the Hoosiers at Big Ten Media Days

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - JULY 26: Head coach Tom Allen of the Indiana Hoosiers speaks during the 2022 Big Ten Conference Football Media Days at Lucas Oil Stadium on July 26, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - JULY 26: Head coach Tom Allen of the Indiana Hoosiers speaks during the 2022 Big Ten Conference Football Media Days at Lucas Oil Stadium on July 26, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – JULY 26: Cam Jones of the Indiana Hoosiers speaks during the 2022 Big Ten Conference Football Media Days at Lucas Oil Stadium on July 26, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – JULY 26: Cam Jones of the Indiana Hoosiers speaks during the 2022 Big Ten Conference Football Media Days at Lucas Oil Stadium on July 26, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)

#4. Cam Jones returning to lead the Hoosiers defense for his super senior year as he attempts to fill the void left by Micah McFadden.

In just 10 games last season, Cam Jones finished with 60 tackles, which ranked third among all players on the Hoosiers’ defensive unit, behind now two NFL rookie defensive players, Micah McFadden (NY Giants) and Raheem Layne (LA Chargers). Coach Tom Allen said in his first appearance in front of the media how Jones will be a three-time captain this upcoming season.

Every season, Tom Allen has each of his players come up with one word that the players will stick by and motivate them every day as the season approaches and throughout the tough Big Ten season. Jones had this to say about his one word:

"“My one word was “WORK” and I chose “WORK” because I had to realize that sometimes people don’t care about how I feel, you just got to go to work. You just got to go to work every single day, no matter how you feel, no matter what people think, it’s all about how you attack the day.”"

Jones was also asked about his decision to come back after having some injuries. One of his reasons was based on last season’s disappointing season and not leaving Bloomington on that sour note. Another huge factor in his decision to come back was Coach Tom Allen and how much he trusts him:

"“I trust in him (Tom Allen), I believe in him. I was telling someone earlier, if Coach Allen told me to go run into a brick wall, I know there’s a reason, I’m 110% into that brick wall.”"