Tom Allen has a simple one-word motto for this year's Indiana football team: breakthrough.

The Hoosiers have come close to scoring upsets against several high-profile opponents the past two seasons. They made back-to-back bowl games for the first time in a quarter century but lost both in heartbreaking fashion, too.

Allen is hoping to stop coming close and to start getting over the hump. He experienced his own breakthrough in December, when Indiana shockingly fired Kevin Wilson days after the season finale and promoted Allen to his first college head-coaching job. He is busy putting his own stamp on the program, though the 2017 recruiting class doesn't reflect that in a large way.

That's because most of the signees already were well on board before the coaching change. Wilson, Allen and the Hoosiers had a vision for this class that they think they achieved: adding size and strength, especially on the defensive front.

"That was a huge priority," Allen said. "We came out of last year's class and felt like we did a poor job of addressing those needs. So we set out from the very beginning to address that."

Eight of Indiana's signees are linemen, and the emphasis on bulk is personified by Juan Harris, whom the school lists at 6-foot-3 and a scale-terrifying 370 pounds.

"He's a very large human being," Allen said. "We really see him as a dominant inside guy on the D-line. He's so powerful and strong. There's nothing like having a big ol' hoss in there to eat up gaps and force double-teams."

While the focus on the trenches predated Allen's promotion, it also points toward a possible new way forward.

Allen wants to continue the excellent balance Indiana had on offense under Wilson. But he wants that attack to get tougher as well. The Hoosiers had the second-worst red-zone conversion rate in the FBS last season and struggled on short-yardage downs. New offensive coordinator Mike DeBord arrived from Tennessee to oversee the improvements in physicality.

Allen's touch also can be seen in the late addition of Nick Tronti, a dual-threat quarterback from Florida. Indiana's previous two starting quarterbacks, Nate Sudfeld and incumbent Richard Lagow, were big and tall but not especially mobile.

"He’s a guy that fits what I envision for that position," Allen said of Tronti. "I want a quarterback who can extend plays. He doesn’t have to be a dual-threat guy as long as he can make a guy miss and make the defense account for him."

The Hoosiers have definitely experienced a recent uptick that's reflected in the NFL. Former Indiana standouts include current Atlanta Falcons running back Tevin Coleman, who'll play in Sunday's Super Bowl; Chicago Bears tailback Jordan Howard, who made the Pro Bowl; and offensive lineman Jason Spriggs, who started for the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game. Two time All-AmericanDan Feeney turned heads at the Senior Bowl and should be another high-round draft choice.

That and the back-to-back bowl games have raised the program's profile. Now Allen wants to go even higher. He wants a breakthrough.

"There's no question we have a ton of momentum right now, both on the field and in recruiting," he said. "And it’s got to continue to grow."