We continue our Bucknuts.com series with our Big Ten football preview for 2009. Here is a look at Ohio State’s Oct. 3 game at Indiana:

Indiana

* Date, Time: Sat., Oct. 3, 7 p.m. (Big Ten Network; This will be OSU’s first-ever prime time appearance on Big Ten Network.)

* Location: Memorial Stadium; Bloomington, Ind.

* Last Year: 3-9. Big Ten: 1-7/11th.

* Coach: Bill Lynch (third year at IU, 10-15; 17th year overall, 91-82-3).

* Returning Starters: 16. Offense (7): WR Terrance Turner, TE Troy Wagner, LT Rodger Saffold, LG Justin Pagan, RG Pete Saxon, RG Cody Faulkner, RT Mike Stark. Defense (8): DE Jammie Kirlew, DT Deonte Mack, DE Greg Middleton, LB Will Patterson, LB Matt Mayberry, FS Nick Polk, SS Austin Thomas, CB Chris Adkins. Specialists (1): P Chris Hagerup.

* Big Ten Championships: 2, last shared title in 1967.

* Rose Bowls: 1, 1967

* BCS Bids: None

* Last Bowl Appearance: 2007, Insight

* National Championships: None

* Series Vs. Ohio State: Ohio State leads the all-time series 65-12-5, including 23-2-1 in Bloomington. This will be the teams’ first meeting since 2006, when OSU took a 44-3 win in Columbus. Ohio State has won 14 games in a row in the series, dating to a 1990 tie (27-27) at Bloomington. OSU has also won seven in a row in Bloomington. OSU’s only losses in Bloomington were in 1904 (8-0) and 1988 (41-7).

* Schedule: Sept. 3, Eastern Kentucky; Sept. 12, Western Michigan; Sept. 19, at Akron; Sept. 26, at Michigan; Oct. 3, Ohio State; Oct. 10, at Virginia; Oct. 17, Illinois; Oct. 24, at Northwestern; Oct. 31, at Iowa; Nov. 7, Wisconsin; Nov. 14, at Penn State; Nov. 21, Purdue.

* Outlook: Bill Lynch was the toast of Bloomington and the state of Indiana as he guided IU to a 7-6 mark and an Insight Bowl bid – the school’s first postseason appearance in 14 years – in 2007.

But order was restored in the universe in 2008 as a spate of injuries helped drive Indiana back to the Big Ten basement after a disappointing 3-9 finish. Only a midseason upset of Northwestern (21-19) kept the Hoosiers from going winless in conference play.

Still, there is some optimism around the IU program. The football team moved into a new training facility and the school has provided a bit of a facelift at Memorial Stadium as well.

“Our football players, they see a commitment, that football is important at Indiana,” Lynch said. “The gameday experience is going to be different. That's a motivation to our players, and it's something that not only our current players but certainly in the recruiting process that is so important to us.

“All kids are looking for that wow factor. They can see it with the facility but they're going to experience it when they come to a game this fall.”

Lynch welcomes back a veteran team with 16 returning starters. Thirty-five of his scholarship players are either juniors or seniors.

“We have guys that have played a lot of football and understand what it takes, and they certainly have brought the young guys along through our winter program, spring practice, and I know this summer they've worked on their own,” Lynch said. “I think that's really key. I think any good football team goes the way your leadership and your upperclassmen play, particularly your seniors. We're looking forward to big years from all those guys.”

The Indiana offense will have a new look in 2009 as the spread seques into more of a pistol look. In the pistol, the tailback lines up behind the quarterback in a shotgun formation.

“The spread is more of a lateral running game,” Lynch said. “We wanted to be able to run some power football where we could have some different blocking schemes up front instead of being kind of a total zone team.”

Lynch expected to have dual threat senior Kellen Lewis back at quarterback, but he was dismissed from the team due to repeated rules violations in the spring. Accordingly, the Hoosiers turn to junior Ben Chappell. He is a big guy at 6-3, 235 pounds who has a strong arm. Chappell played some last year as Lewis was hurt, in the dog house or repping at wide receiver. But he must improve on his completion percentage (just 52.3 percent last year) if the Hoosiers are going to develop consistency on offense.

“Ben is a great leader, an outstanding student and he's got some experience,” Lynch said. “He started and played the entire game last year when we beat a very good Northwestern team. So he's had experience and has proven himself as a winner in the Big Ten.”

Chappell talked about the switch to the pistol attack.

“I think the pistol is really going to help us,” Chappell said. “I think it is geared toward our strengths. There is some play action in there where we can throw it down the field. You still have the speed aspects. I think it will help our running game.”

Chappell talked about having a bounceback season and what he hopes to see from the Hoosiers this fall.

“After last year, we really had to recalculate where we were as a team,” Chappell said. “We decided we aren’t going to let what happened last year happen again. We know we have to buy into what the coaches want us to do.”

At tailback, senior Demetrius McCray (5-11, 200) and redshirt freshman Darius Willis (6-0, 219) provide a nice power and speed combo. McCray rushed for 214 yards last year.

IU moved its top returning receiver, Ray Fisher, to boost the secondary. There is some promise here, though, with junior Terrance Turner (29 catches last year), sophomores Tandon Doss and Damarlo Belcher (25 catches). Doss goes 6-3 and Belcher is 6-5. Senior Troy Wagner (6-5, 261) returns as the starter at tight end.

The Hoosiers used nine different starters and seven different lineups last year due to injuries. Five starters return, led by senior four-year starters Rodger Saffold (6-5, 306) at left tackle and Pete Saxon (6-6, 310) at center.

“We know in the Big Ten you've got to be good up front if you're going win,” Lynch said. “We have now a situation with our offensive line that we have 84 returning starts in our offensive line, which is quite a few in college football today. The thing that's important, a year ago we did not have a fourth- or fifth-year offensive lineman in our program. We were playing with some kids.

“We had some injuries throughout the year, like everyone did, but gave some other kids an opportunity. So when they came back in the spring they thought of themselves as starters and had a great spring, and all those guys are back.”

The Hoosiers could end up with a decent defensive line, provided that senior Greg Middleton (6-3, 275) gets back to the form he showed in 2007 (16 sacks). He only had four sacks in 2008. Senior Jammie Kirlew (6-3, 264) earned first-team All-Big Ten honors from the media last year after making 10-1/2 sacks, himself.

“On the defensive line, we have two defensive ends: Jammie Kirlew and Greg Middleton, that combined have career 36-1/2 sacks, which I think is the most returning tandem in the country,” Lynch said. “So some guys that have been good pass rushers and certainly been a force in the Big Ten, they're both returning.”

The linebacker corps should actually be a strong point for the Hoosiers with seniors Will Patterson and Matt Mayberry due back at OLB and MLB, respectively. Junior Tyler Replogle, an Ohio native, draws in at the vacant OLB spot.

Injuries put the IU secondary into a state of flux last year. Senior Nick Polk is back at safety and sophomore Chris Adkins returns at corner. Fisher moves over from wide receiver to corner. The hope is that senior Austin Thomas or junior Jerimy Finch, a Florida transfer, can fill the other safety spot.

“I think it's a unique group that whatever they can do to help the football team they're going to do, and I think Ray Fisher is a perfect example,” Lynch said. “Here's a guy that threw up some big numbers as a wideout, but in all honesty he was one that came into our defensive coaches at the end of the season and talked about moving over to defense and playing corner. So it certainly wasn't something we had to twist his arm to do.”

Sophomore Chris Hagerup is back after averaging 42.4 yards per punt as a freshman. Freshman Mitch Ewald takes over as the kicker.

Indiana was supposed to play South Florida in a home game this year. But USF pulled out to start a series with Florida State. IU spun out of that by signing for an Oct. 10 game at Virginia. But that left the Hoosiers with just six home games.

IU opens against Division I-AA Eastern Kentucky for a Thursday night game (Sept. 3) and then hosts MAC contender Western Michigan. IU then visits Akron for the second-ever game at the Zips’ new home on-campus stadium. Winning those three games will be critical to IU’s hopes of getting to a second bowl in three years.

* Steve Helwagen Says: This game took on a new tenor when the Big Ten Network made it a prime time game. Otherwise, it probably was going to be a bit of a yawner. Now the Indiana fans – and OSU fans, who will number at least half the crowd -- will have an all day build.

I can guarantee you that the traffic in and around Bloomington will be a mess that night, so if you’re going plan to go early and stay late. Compounding matters is the fact the Bloomington hotels charge an arm and a leg and they also expect a two-night stay on IU football weekends. Good luck with all of that.

Indiana was really bad last year. There’s no way I can get around saying that. Coming off a great year and a bowl bid, there was hope they could sustain it. But injuries and others issues – mostly involving Lewis’ fall from grace – left Indiana looking up at the rest of the conference.

Hopes are high that IU can contend for a bowl game again in 2009. With a nice collection of veterans, it is possible that the Hoosiers could take a few steps forward this year.

I think back to 1996, when Ohio State went to Indiana just needing a win to clinch the Big Ten title. Indiana fought the Buckeyes hard that day and made OSU earn its Rose Bowl bid with a 27-17 win. I kind of see the same thing here. This could be a game that remains interesting for three quarters before OSU shows its class and puts IU away.

We mention above how OSU has won 14 straight in the series with Indiana. The last 11 of those have been by double digits, dating to a 23-17 OSU win in 1993 in Columbus. That’s how lopsided this series has been.

I think the jury is out on Lynch. The Hoosiers had that great year in 2007 coming off the untimely passing of coach Terry Hoeppner to cancer. But last year looked like so many Indiana seasons I have seen in my lifetime. He needs to probably get IU back into the bowl picture either this year or next (when Chappell would be a senior) or his seat could get real hot real quick.

Next Up: Wisconsin