Indiana's Defense Holds on for Dear Life in 33-31 Shootout Win Over Western Kentucky

Written by Evan Orris

The Indiana defense narrowly escaped from the high-powered Western Kentucky offense in their 33-31 win over the Hilltoppers.

Last week’s C-USA Co-Offensive Player of the Week, Bailey Zappe, started the game off going 0-3 and having to punt on the Hilltopper’s first drive. From there, Zappe showed why he led the nation in passing yards per game. The gunslinger shredded the Hoosiers’ defense for 365 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions. He finished the game with a QBR of 85.8.

Zappe was too comfortable in the pocket. The quick passing attempt allowed him to get the ball out before any IU defender was able to get to him.  The front seven ended the game with just one quarterback hit and no tackles for losses or sacks. However, when it was a one-score game early in the fourth quarter, the defense was able to deliver a crucial stop to force a punt. The offense then scored to make it a two-possession game and secure the victory.

“There are two kinds of offense you don’t ever want to play, it’s triple-option, and a team like this that goes super fast and throws the ball all over the park,” Head coach Tom Allen said.  “It makes it really challenging but guys have to step up. … I thought we got some timely stops.  Didn’t get the takeaways we needed to get to win the game, but our guys bowed up and stopped them when they had to.”

The defense did not just escape on the field but also in the locker room. Cornerback Tiawan Mullen was injured twice in the fourth quarter of the game. Both times, he got up and continued to play. However, he looked banged up and was clearly playing through some pain.

On the other hand, safety Devon “Monster” Matthews returned from injury and started for the Hoosiers. Matthews racked up eight tackles and a tackle for loss in his return. One of those tackles was a bone-crushing third-down tackle that forced a punt.

Despite the high- scoring affair, coach Allen was happy with the result on the field. The only thing that mattered to him was bouncing back from a 1-2 start with a win.

"There's only one stat that matters," Allen said, "we had more points than the other team. It was a great team win – offense, defense, and special teams.