#2. Despite being voted last in the Big Ten East media preseason poll, it’s not bringing down Indiana’s confidence, if anything, it’s motivation.
With Tom Allen’s worst season as a head coach last season and Indiana football’s worst season since 2011, the Hoosiers were picked to finish last in the competitive Big Ten East by the media in the preseason polls.
Indiana is now back to being doubted by every program and every media member, as they have been in every season before 2021. While losing 13 of their 22 starters from 2021, being considered as one of the worst teams in the Big Ten would put a lot of doubt in most players, and coaching staffs, but not the Hoosiers. Tom Allen, who has the opportunity to move into the top five for most wins in Indiana football program history with six or more wins, had this to say about the expectations for next season:
"“I get it, we earned it. That’s part of the process you go through. I feel like our team understands that we’ve got a chip on our shoulder and something to prove.”"