Bottom Line for IU Offense...Be More Efficient
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Image: Zach Greene, Hoosier Huddle
Written by Matt Smith
Indiana’s offense has been a story line all season as they have been struggling throughout the first three games. The Hoosiers offense turned the ball over four times during the game against Cincinnati which ultimately led to ten points for the Bearcats.
Michael Penix threw three interceptions during the game, making it six total on the year so far. One of those pics was thrown in the red zone and the other two were thrown at the end of the half and to clinch the game for the Bearcats.
However, offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan said it wasn’t all bad.
“Little bit inconsistent, the completion percentage was not where we wanted it to be,” Sheridan said. “I thought he made some spectacular plays, and I thought he pressed and turned the ball over too much.”
Sheridan also said that the offense needs to be more “efficient,” as in they need to complete the ball at a higher rate.
This week the wide receivers will be working hard to practice completing the contested throws.
“We can’t turn the ball over, Michael knows that,” Sheridan said. “He pressed and tried to make some plays when he didn’t need to.”
One highlight of the game last weekend was the play of Peyton Hendershot. One thing that helps struggling quarterbacks is the play of the tight end and Hendershot is doing his best to do that.
“I think he had an awesome offseason, he prepares really hard, practices really hard, so it is no surprise that he is playing well,” Sheridan said.
According to Sheridan, the tight end can provide a comfort level for the quarterback, giving Penix a chance for some easy throws and have some big targets over the middle of the field.
Turnovers have been something that Sheridan saw a lot during camp this fall, and said it was something that worried him.
“We need to do a better job,” Sheridan said. “I’ve seen progress in practice and we need to do better.”
Everybody collectively on the offense needs to help in completing the ball better, tight ends, wide outs, and running backs, according to Sheridan.
“The pass rushers that we go against, the defenses that we face, they’re challenging,” Sheridan said. “So we gotta make sure that we have a variety of plays to make sure we have some easy completions for the quarterback, I thought we made progress in that, but not good enough to win.”