History says that, in nine tries, Indiana has never defeated Penn State.

The only problem is, this is a season in which things haven't exactly gone according to history -- and both teams are aware of that.

So when Indiana (3-6, 1-5 Big Ten) hosts the Penn State football team (2-7, 0-6) tomorrow at 12:10 p.m. in Memorial Stadium, the Hoosiers will have not only the better record and home field advantage, but also a mind to alter the course of history.

"To be frank, they have a better record," senior quarterback Zack Mills said, "so they're probably licking their chops."

Factoring into the historical reasons to lick their chops for tomorrow's game, which will be televised regionally on ESPN Plus, is the more immediate motivator -- last year, the Hoosiers were embarrassed in Beaver Stadium, as a then 2-8 football team trounced them, 52-7.

"We know that they'll have motivation from last year, from the score that was like, 51-7 last year," guard Charles Rush said. "So there will be a lot of motivation coming back; they have a lot of the same players coming back from last year."

The thing about Indiana is, it might have what Rush calls a "standard defense," but it has an offense capable of doing some pretty snazzy things.

There's a running back, BenJarvus Green-Ellis, who ran all over Penn State last year, and a solid receiving corps, highlighted by Courtney Roby, who is third in the conference in receiving yards.

And although Indiana has only three wins this season, that tally includes two huge upsets -- the defeat of then-No. 24 Oregon in September and a victory over then-No. 24 Minnesota two weeks ago.

"One of the things they did that we weren't able to do, they beat Minnesota," Rush said. "So we know they're a capable unit."

With Penn State's defense being one of only three in the country that has not allowed more than 21 points in a game, the question isn't so much how capable Indiana is of scoring, it's how capable the Nittany Lions are of scoring.

The plan for the offense, as explained by Penn State coach Joe Paterno at his weekly press conference, is to have Mills at quarterback and utility player Michael Robinson exclusively at wide receiver, but to throw in freshman quarterback Anthony Morelli at an undisclosed point in the game for experience. Beyond that, however, it's up to the offense to -- as the team always terms it -- "execute."

"People don't know which offense is gonna show up," Robinson said. "Guys go out there, some people run routes, make blocks, throw the football, but you're not sure they'll catch the pass or make the block."

As prior games this season have clearly indicated, if the offense can't perform, a solid defensive effort won't prevent the opponent from winning -- and, in this case, refashion past precedent. And it's the prospect of that sort of refashioning -- especially after last week, when Northwestern won for the first time in Beaver Stadium -- that genuinely repulses this team.

"I don't think that ... Penn State should ever be on the level of Northwestern or Indiana," cornerback Alan Zemaitis said. "I don't care if either hears what I gotta say, that should never happen -- ever. Every time we go against Northwestern or Indiana, they should be W's."