Now he has to clean up a program that has been struggling since the final days of the Bill Mallory regime.

Unlike predecessor Gerry DiNardo, Hoeppner is a hard-nosed and disciplined leader who demands the most out of his players. While at Miami (Ohio) he tutored Ben Roethlisberger and put together a creative offense, but the first thing he established was an atmosphere where players all met their responsibilities and then went beyond.

Defense will be at the core of whatever Hoeppner can achieve with the Hoosiers. Hoeppner installed a zone-blitzing scheme during spring practice and if all goes well, the Hoosiers will be causing headaches for opponents with that innovative game plan. Hoeppner wants to create turnovers and he believes that zone blitzing is the best way to go about it.

Blake Powers appears to have the best chance of opening the season behind center. Powers played in five games last year behind the departed Matt LoVecchio and completed 9-of-22 passes in limited action. Powers is big (6-5 and 210) and has a powerful arm.

Graeme McFarland and Kellen Lewis will battle Powers for the job during the summer. The Hoosiers took a hit at quarterback in late June when Grant Gregory announced he was transferring and Mike Vlahogeorge announced he was giving up football.

Hoeppner is hoping Chris Taylor can become the go-to running back. Taylor gained just 329 yards last year, but he moved into the marquee role when BenJarvus Green-Ellis transferred to Ole Miss.

The Hoosiers are also trying to rebuild at the WR position because Courtney Roby has moved on. Jakheen Gilmore has good size and speed and appears to have the inside track at becoming the go-to WR position. He caught 23 passes last year and is not averse to going over the middle.

The offensive line should be fairly proficient since the unit returns four starters. Center Chris Mangiero may be the best of the bunch because he tough, smart and nasty. He missed a good part of last season with a broken foot.

On the defensive side, look for DE Victor Adeyanju and OLB Kyle Killion to become the leaders. Adeyanju had four sacks last year and has a quick first step. Kenny Kendal is another productive defensive end who had 5.5 sacks a year ago.

Killion is good enough that he could probably start for any other Big Ten team. Killion moves extremely well and recorded 107 tackles, 16.6 TFL, two interceptions and two forced fumbles last year.

Hoeppner needs the secondary to step up to make the zone blitz effective. Tracy Porter and Buster Larkins should be solid players. Porter had three interceptions before a shoulder injury sidelines him while Larkins is a fine cover man.

Hoeppner is not in Bloomington for a quick fix. He can turn around the attitude and provide effective game plans, but the Hoosiers don't have the talent to match up with most Big Ten teams.

KEY EARLY-SEASON GAME: vs. Kentucky, Sept. 17 -- The Hoosiers should be able to handle Central Michigan and Nicholls State in the first two games of the season. If they can get a third win in their border war with Kentucky, head coach Terry Hoeppner will have taken his first baby step towards making the Hoosiers competitive.

THE HOOSIERS WILL GO 5-6 IF: The zone-blitz defense proves to be an effective weapon and QB Blake Powers turns out to be an effective leader. Solid defense and accurate passing are two of the basics of any solid team and head coach Terry Hoeppner needs both of those elements.

THE HOOSIERS WILL GO 2-9 IF: They can't hold on to the ball and have a difficult time forcing turnovers. Indiana can't matchup with most Big Ten opponents in talent, so they have to be able to out scheme and outthink them. It's a difficult assignment.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "I don't know if I'm more excited or more relieved. I think Indiana is a great situation for me and I'm looking forward to coming in and showing that I can play quarterback at this level." - Kellen Lewis after signing with Indiana. He was pursued by Florida, Maryland and North Carolina State, but he decided to go with Hoeppner and the Hoosiers.

HEAD COACH: Terry Hoeppner, 1st year at Indiana, 48-24 overall

MOST IMPORTANT PLAYER: OLB Kyle Killion -- Smart, tough and aggressive, Killion is the center piece of the defense. New head coach Terry Hoeppner knows how to put an effective defense together and Killion had 107 tackles and 16.5 TFL a year ago. He is good enough to start for teams like Michigan or Ohio State.

BREAKOUT STAR: QB Blake Powers -- Hoeppner demonstrated at Miami (Ohio) that he knows how to develop a quarterback. Powers may not be the next Ben Roethlisberger, but he does have size, strength and a good arm. He should become fairly effective this season.

NEWCOMER TO WATCH: LB Matt Lewis -- This Daytona Beach, Florida product is big and strong and could move into the starting lineup before long. Lewis has great instincts and had 43 TFL as a high school senior last year.

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP: Offense -- QB Blake Powers, RB Chris Taylor

WR Jahkeen Gilmore, WR Ryan Skelton, WR Marcus Thigpen, TE Chris Rudanovic, OLT Isaac Sowells, OLG Adam Hines, C Chris Mangiero, ORG Brandon Hatcher, ORT Justin Frye.

Defense -- DE Victor Adeyanju, DT Russ Richardson, DT Greg Brown, DE Kenny Kendal, OLB Jake Powers, MLB John Pannozzo, OLB Kyle Killion, CB Buster Larkins, CB Tracy Porter, SS Aaron Mitchell, FS Will Lumpkin.

ROSTER REPORT: C Chris Mangiero should be healthy after missing half of the 2004 season with a foot injury. ... QB Grant Gregory transferred out of the program in June while QB Mike Vlahogeorge gave up football. As a result of those moves, freshman Kellen Lewis will have a chance to challenge Blake Powers and Graeme McFarland at quarterback.