Indiana ran the ball effectively in its season opener against Old Dominion.

Behind three talented running backs – Roman Hemby, Kaelon Black and Lee Beebe got at least 11 carries each and all three picked up at least 4.8 yards per carry – the Hoosiers rolled through the Monarchs’ defensive front, piling up 309 rushing yards. That was ninth in the country in Week 1.

“All those guys did a heck of a job breaking tackles,” said Kennesaw State’s Jerry Mack, the head coach of IU’s next opponent and a former NFL running backs coach. “They really imposed their will up front on ODU.”

As good as IU was on the ground overall, however, there was a glaring hole in its rushing performance: The Hoosiers struggled mightily to punch the ball into the end zone, getting stuffed repeatedly near the goal lin

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