Game Wrap and Reaction: No. 5 Ohio State 54 Indiana 7
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Image: Sarah Miller, Hoosier Huddle
Written by Sammy Jacobs (@Hoosier_Huddle)
Opponent: Ohio State Buckeyes
Location: Saturday, October 23, 2021
Why They Played: The Hoosiers and Buckeyes
What The Game Meant: The Hoosiers were three touchdown underdogs, but it was a worst case senerio for IU. Not only did they get blown out, quarterback Jack Tuttle got banged up.
Top Offensive Performers
Peyton Hendershot, TE, Indiana- Hendershot became Indiana’s all time leader for tight end receptions on Saturday night. In all he had five catches for 35 yards and a touchdown.
C.J. Stroud, QB, Ohio State- Stroud has hit his stride after a slow start to the season. He completed 75-percent of his passes for 266 yards and four touchdowns
Treveyon Henderson, RB, Ohio State- Henderson didn’t run the ball 10 times, but he gained 81 yards and scored twice and added a 14-yard reception to the stat column as well.
Top Defensive Performers
Micah McFadden, LB, Indiana- It is hard to fault McFadden for the defensive performance yesterday. He finished with six tackles, three tackles for loss and had a sack.
The Defense, Ohio State- No single Ohio State defender had more than 4 tackles, which speaks volumes about the talent and depth of the unit. The Ohio State defense accounted for 14 tackles for loss, five sacks and held IU to 128 total yards.
Special Team Performance
Nothing went right for the Hoosiers on Saturday night and the special teams unit was not immune to that. IU returned just two kickoffs for a long return of 17 yards and continued to get nothing from the punt return game as Ty Fryfogle had one chance at a return that went for no gain.
The punt unit didn’t fair much better as James Evans was benched early in favor of Jared Smolar. That move backfired as the snap went off the hands of a leaping Smolar and he was tackled in the end zone for a safety. Evans recovered decently, but the unit still let up a 20-yard return.
I have said it before and I will say it again. The Hoosiers need to be productive on special teams to take the next step forward. IU cannot afford to have two units in critical failure.
Key Stat(s)
19-5
The Ohio State Buckeyes offense had 19 explosion plays (runs over 10 yards and passes over 15 yards) compared to the Hoosiers 5. It’s an obvious reason they won, but it’s a different stat then just putting up 54-7 or 539-128.
Turning Point
The game changed when Jack Tuttle went out with an injury. It may not have prevented a loss, but the IU offense totally shut down after the injury.
I Knew it Was Over When…
A poor snap went over the head of Jared Smolar and he was tackled for a safety to give Ohio State a 23-7 lead.
Players of the Game
Micah McFadden, IU- McFadden was probably the brightest spot on a very dismal night for the Hoosiers.
C.J. Stroud, OSU- Ohio State looks like the class of the Big Ten again as they continue to get better as the season rolls along.
What I took away from the game
The Hoosiers just needed to get out of this game healthy and they couldn’t do that as Jack Tuttle ended up with his foot in an X-ray machine and probably an MRI tube. They just needed to show some fight and outside of the first drive, they didn’t. They just needed to show some signs of life to give fans hope they can win four of the next five and qualify for a bowl. They didn’t.
The Hoosiers did not do much of anything on Saturday night and what started as a season of optimism and hope has turned into a nightmare throwback to 2002 or 2008.
The Hoosiers were 21-point underdogs, so it wasn’t a surprise to see them get blown out, but it was to see them fold up shop like they did and that falls on the coaching staff.
The offensive line could not get in front of defenders as they allowed 14 tackles for loss and another quarterback get knocked out of a game.
The Hoosiers coaching staff did not trust freshman backup Donaven McCulley to throw more than three passes and even put in walk-on Grant Gremel in for second quarter snaps. How is it possible that the backup quarterback is not ready to run the offense after knowing for three weeks he would be the backup.
After torching the Buckeyes through the air last year, IU receivers had three catches, yes three, on nine targets last night. There are three four-star freshman receivers on the bench, last night was a great opportunity for them to get in against an extremely talented defense. Game reps are worth their weight in gold. It’s how you develop program depth. The Hoosier staff is somehow planning for the future while also stunting the growth of their players.
You can call it a step back, a disappointment or the same old Hoosiers, but it comes down to one thing, the talent on the offensive side of the ball has not been developed, and one could even say has regressed, under the current staff.
The Hoosiers have five games left, they need four wins to avoid missing a bowl game for the first time since 2018. Will the team lean on their ‘LEO’ foundation that everyone just eight weeks ago was all about or is this team exactly what it is now, an injured, underperforming group who will need to reevaluate the offensive philosophy and coaching the Sunday after the Bucket Game? Time will tell and that begins Saturday at Maryland.