Analysis: The significance of a 4-0 start

The last time Indiana was 4-0 in football, Operation Desert Storm was just beginning as the United States and the UK sent troops to Kuwait.

Some of the popular films were Home Alone, Ghost, Pretty Woman and The Hunt for Red October.

A gallon of gas cost $1.34.

And it had only been three years since Indiana had last won a national championship in basketball.

The point is being 4-0 is significant for the Hoosiers. And after hanging on to beat Wake Forest 31-24 Saturday afternoon in Winston-Salem, N.C., Indiana is 4-0 for the first time since 1990.

And 4-0 is a significant milestone for Indiana football. Now the Hoosiers just have to take care of business from this point on and IU fans will have the opportunity to watch their team play football beyond Dec. 1 for just the third time in more than 20 years.

Quick quiz: What are the two years since 1994 where Indiana has played football beyond Dec. 1? The answer: 2001 and 2007. The 2007 season was the Insight Bowl. The 2001 season was when the IU-Kentucky game was postponed because of 9-11 and played in the first week of December. That game was also noteworthy because it was Cam Cameron’s final game at IU.

But I digress.

For as long as I can remember everyone has always had the same formula for Indiana football. Win your four non-conference games and find a way to win at least two Big Ten games and you’ll go to a bowl game.

Take a look at IU’s final eight games of the regular season and it appears there are two or three games that IU should be favored in. Rutgers, Maryland and Purdue, you would think any way, would be games that IU could win.

And there are other games where the Hoosiers should have a chance to pull off an upset.

But once again, none of it matters at all if Indiana isn’t 4-0 heading into next week’s game against top-ranked Ohio State.

Saturday, from my birds-eye view from the radio booth at BB&T Field in Winston-Salem, I thought Indiana looked particularly impressive for three quarters against Wake Forest. The fourth quarter I felt that the IU defense had a couple of miscues, the IU offense got ultra conservative and Wake Forest made a couple of big plays, none bigger than recovering the onsides kick.

But I keep going back to one thing that is different about this Indiana football team compared to the other 17 seasons in which I’ve covered the Hoosiers.

This team finds a way to win instead of finding a way to lose.

No one is going to pretend that any of the four Indiana wins to date have been a thing of beauty. But no one is also going to argue that in year’s past Indiana would have found a way to lose at least one of these games and maybe more.

But this Indiana team just keeps winning.

Jordan Howard continues to be a beast. Nate Sudfeld continues to make enough plays. And the defense has done enough good things. Six sacks and constant pressure Saturday were something we haven’t seen a lot of out of IU for a long time.

And the Hoosiers just keep winning.

Now Indiana plays Ohio State Saturday at Memorial Stadium in a great situation for the Hoosiers to be in. Lose and everyone expected you to lose. In fact, I’ll be surprised at how many people will go out on a limb and pick the upset this weekend. But win and the momentum in this football program would be as high as it has been in decades.

The most important thing I think most Indiana fans are hoping for next Saturday is that the Hoosiers can be competitive. Hang around, have a chance in the second half, and most of all don’t let it be a blowout. If those things happen I think most Indiana fans would be pleased.

And it wouldn’t hurt if GameDay decided to come to Bloomington either but I’m not holding my breath there.