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Tom Allen’s defense will have a friendly face in the middle of it in 2017.
It won’t be linebacker Marcus Oliver, who announced his intentions to leave Indiana early for the NFL.
Instead, it’ll be Tegray Scales.
The junior linebacker announced on a video that he’ll be returning to school for his senior year:
An announcement from @Tegray_Scales8 ????https://t.co/XRaumdLLrA
— Indiana Football (@HoosierFootball) January 9, 2017
After the Oliver news, Scales’ return was a big lift for IU. The linebacker was a Sports Illustrated second-team All-American after leading the Hoosiers to a major defensive turnaround.
The second-team All-B1G selection racked up a team-high 126 tackles and he led FBS with a whopping 23.5 tackles for loss. He also racked up recorded sacks and an interception that he returned for a touchdown in the season opener.
Scales’ breakout season will likely make him a preseason first-team All-B1G selection.
With Scales and lockdown corner Rashard Fant both returning to Bloomington for another season, Allen will have two key cornerstones to build on the defensive side.
Connor O'Gara is the senior national columnist for Saturday Tradition. He's a member of the Football Writers Association of America. After spending his entire life living in B1G country, he moved to the South in 2015.