Hoosiers Lost in 'Playoff Mode' and Bowl Hopes are Dashed: What Now?

Written by Ethan Roberts

The Indiana Hoosiers fell in overtime 48-45 to Illinois Saturday afternoon. With the Hoosiers falling to 3-7 with an inability to reach a bowl game, it marks the third consecutive year with such an outcome and his fifth instance in his seven-year campaign. 

Head coach Tom Allen said that the focus is on the final two games of the season. He said the team has a lot of things to work on.

"You need to lean heavily on who we are," Allen said. "No matter what happens we stay together and fight together we'll come back next week and compete our tails off. We'll definitely continue to fight because that's what this team is all about."

With the season being effectively over, players like quarterback Brendan Sorsby are looking to end the season with success against two rival squads: Michigan State and Purdue.

"You know, still two trophy games, last two rivalry games," Sorsby said. "We got to go beat them and I'm confident in this team and I think we will."

Sorsby finished the game completing 66 percent of his passes and tallied 289 passing yards and 3 touchdown passes. He also threw an interception.

Donaven McCulley had a career day. He tallied 11 catches for 137 yards and 2 touchdowns. He said that the team must look to continue to build on momentum heading into the last couple of games.

"You just got to keep going, like okay, the season don't stop," McCulley said. "So, you can stop working hard, doing everything right or you can keep doing things right. So, we just got to keep going, keep attacking, and try to finish out the season, two more."

He also said that he didn't want to take any moments for granted this season and referenced the two trophy games coming up. 

So, where do the Hoosiers go from here? Does coach Allen have the tools in his bag to turn the team around heading into an offseason that is filled with question marks? Has the answer at quarterback finally been settled with a promising performance from the redshirt freshman?

Stay tuned for updates throughout next week when the Hoosiers take on Michigan State.