Tuesday, August 31, 2010

IU's Good Football Men Start With Chappell, Replogle



Indiana needed a few good football men, and who better to lead the way than quarterback Ben Chappell and linebacker Tyler Replogle. They have been elected season captains entering Thursday night’s season opener against Towson.

Chappell is poised for a big-time senior season. He’s on the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award Watch List, plus is a nominee for the AFCA Good Works Team and the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award. He ranks among the top-20 returning quarterbacks nationally in completions per game (22.33), passing yards (2,941), passing yards per game (245.08) and total offense (2,932 yards). Those totals all lead the Big Ten.

He’s in IU’s top 10 for career completions (59.9 percent, first), passing yards (3,956, 10th), passing touchdowns (21, 9th) and total offnse (4,022, 10th).

Replogle is the Big Ten’s sixth-leading returning tackler at 7.3. He finished with 80 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and two sacks.

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Today we’re going to help you get to IU football games without resorting to road rage, photon torpedoes or becoming a Purdue fan.

For instance, did you know IU will send messages on traffic information to ticket holders via letters, emails and a Twitter page www.Twitter.com/IUTraffic)? Plus, information is available at IUHoosiers.com

This is important because of the potential traffic headaches caused by the widening of the 45/46 Bypass.

The No. 1 thing to do is get to the game early. Traffic will circle the stadium in clockwise rotation, so brace yourself for one-way traffic (north-bound) on Dunn Steet and Fee Lance, and plus the 45/46 Bypass (west-bound from Fee Lane to Walnut Street.

The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) also will alter traffic signals at SR 37 and SR 67 from Indianapolis to ease traffic problems. Finally, Indot will measure average travel time from Indianapolis using a new detection technology.

The bottom line -– it needs to be easy to get to IU football games. If it’s not, people won’t come and in these economically bad times, that’s potentially disastrous.


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You might think of Lee Corso as a funny college football TV analyst with a habit of putting on mascot heads, but did you know he was actor Burt Reynold’s roommate at Florida State, plus a multiple letter winner in football and baseball for the Seminoles.

Oh, yes. He coached a little football for Indiana and while he didn’t deliver a consistent winner (he did guide the Hoosiers to a 1979 Holiday Bowl victory over previously unbeaten Brigham Young) he did produce perhaps the most hilarious coach’s show ever. One of the most memorable moments was when the show began with Corso lying motionless in a coffin. He then popped up and said, “We ain’t dead yet.”

Anyway, we know this because it was part of the bio after Corso was named the winner of the National College Football Awards Association 2010 Contributions to College Football Award. It recognized contributions to college football and a lifetime of achievement and integrity.

Other award winners include TV announcer Keith Jackson, Nebraska coach Tom Osborne, Florida State coach Bobby Bowden, Georgia coach Vince Dooley and Texas coach Darrell Royal.

Corso joined ESPN in 1987 after a 28-year coaching career. In 2001 The Sporting News magazine named him as the 17th most influential person in college football.

He also was the head coach of Louisville, Northern Illinois and the Orlando Renegades of the U.S. Football League.

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