The Hoosiers are coming off a 41-24 loss in their Big Ten opener at Wisconsin, but don't tell freshman WR James Hardy that Indiana didn't belong on the same field as the Badgers.

"There's no way they were 17 points better than us -- we just did it to ourselves too many times," Hardy said.

Hardy was referring to Indiana's 12 penalties for 50 yards. Combine those miscues with poor field position and that explains the circumstances of the defeat.

The Hoosiers did a solid job in stopping the run, holding Wisconsin to 103 yards for the game. Considering the presence of outstanding Badger RB Brian Calhoun, that was a significant development for an Indiana run defense that ranks 96th in the country and allows 188.8 yards per game.

Indiana will try to build off that defensive performance against Illinois this week. Both teams need a win in this game since the schedule gets much harder from this point forward. The Hoosiers face Iowa, Ohio State, Michigan State and Minnesota in the four games that follow Illinois.

Indiana defensive coordinator Joe Palcic believes the Hoosiers did a good job in defending the run against Wisconsin, but he did not go as far as to say his team had turned the corner in that area.

"No loss is positive," said Palcic. "You can take things from it and learn positive things from it. You can take the negative things and try to fix them every week. That's what we're going to do and get back after it."

Indiana should be playing with a bit of fire in this game, because they had a huge lead against Illinois a year before squandering it in a 28-22 defeat at Champaign. The Hoosiers will try to ride the passing of Blake Powers, who has completed 73-of-134 passes for 962 yards with a 14-to-5 TD/interception ratio against the Illini. The Illini are quite vulnerable on defense and Powers could be in for a big day.

SCOUTING THE OFFENSE: Indiana will probably have to rely on its passing game. The running game was excellent in the Sept. 17 win over Kentucky, but has been dormant in the other three games. Blake Powers has a strong arm and he has an outstanding target in freshman James Hardy, who had an 88-yard TD reception in the 41-24 loss to Wisconsin.

SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: The run defense is coming off an excellent performance because it held Wisconsin's Brian Calhoun to 101 yards in 26 carries. The defense will get similarly tested this week vs. Illini RB Pierre Thomas, who has some explosive qualities and is averaging 5.3 yards per carry. LBs John Panozzo and Kyle Killion have combined for 55 tackles and 8.5 TFL.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "When you're starting at the 5-yard line and inside your own 20 numerous times, that's bad enough. But then when you get good field position and you squander it, that's a bad situation." -- Indiana head coach Terry Hoeppner

THIS WEEK'S GAME: vs. Illinois, Oct. 1 -- Look for a dominating performance in this game. Head coach Terry Hoeppner knows that a team is often judged by how it does after a disappointing loss and the Hoosiers qualify after a 17-point defeat at Wisconsin. The Hoosiers have been much more consistent than Illinois to this point and they are looking for revenge after last year's 28-22 defeat at Illinois

PLAYERS TO WATCH: QB Blake Powers -- He is the center of the Indiana offense and has been solid to this point. While he could be more accurate -- he is hitting 54.5 percent of his throws -- his 14-to-5 TD/interception ratio gives Hoeppner quite a bit of confidence.

WR James Hardy -- The freshman is an outstanding route runner and has fine speed. He caught seven passes for 157 yards at Wisconsin and has 24-423-5 for the season. Hardy does not lack for confidence. He burned the Badgers with an 83-yard TD catch in the first quarter on a play that Badger CB Brett Bell ended up on the turf. "He didn't just fall down on purpose," Hardy said. "I made him."

LB John Panozzo -- He has a team-high 29 tackles, with 5.5 TFL and three sacks. He has good range and is very good at wrapping up his tackles.

RB Chris Taylor -- He has 55 carries for 289 yards with three TDs thus far. Taylor struggled against Wisconsin -- 10 carries for 35 yards -- and needs to bounce back vs. Illinois.

ROSTER REPORT: Defensive back Buster Larkins (Achilles) is expected to miss the remainder of the season.