‘This is on me’: Allen Takes Blame for 2-20 Conference Play Stretch

Written by: Ethan Roberts (@usaEthanRoberts)

Bloomington, In. -- The Hoosiers watched the clock strike zero today for their fifth consecutive conference loss dating back to Thanksgiving of last season. Head coach Tom Allen now possesses a 2-20 conference play record in the last three seasons and stares down the barrel of his third consecutive season missing a bowl game.

“Not a good situation to be in. Not a good place to be, without question,” Allen said. “But it falls on me. I’m the one in charge. I’m the one responsible. This is on me.”

He said they need to execute better offensively to score more points and prevent special team blunders to rectify their Big Ten record.

The Hoosier offense tallied 279 yards of offense and were 2-11 on third down conversions. They also had 5 penalties on the day.

“It’s definitely a challenging time,” Allen said. “That was a tough loss for sure, one that we knew we needed to get. Just frustrating that we have those kinds of mistakes. It’s not that they were necessarily forced, just things that we’ve got to be able to be better at.”

He complimented Rutgers’ run game—which they had 276 yards, three less rushing yards than the Hoosiers had of total offense.

With worries of the season slipping away, Allen preached the idea of standing strong together in the face of adversity.

“I just think that you rely on the character of your guys and your coaches and just be able to stand strong in the face of adversity, self-inflicted or not, however it comes, wherever it comes from,” Allen said. “Just to be able to continue to battle and continue to feel the accountability of just being able to come back every day and just keep working for the people around you and the people that you play for.”

Allen said that he doesn’t feel like the season is slipping away but mentions the tough reality of having multiple losses in a row at this stage in the season.

Gavin Wimsatt, Rutgers quarterback, only threw for 39 yards on the day, but ran for 143 yards and tallied 3 touchdowns. Teams have found multiple ways to beat the Hoosiers, but coach Allen remains steadfast in changing momentum.

“It’s all of us together, and we’re all locked arms, and we’re all in this together,” Allen said. “It’s what we are. It’s what we do. You just continue to teach how to handle challenging times and how to handle a chance to put the stake in the ground and change momentum, which is what we need to do.”

The Hoosiers currently sit at 2-5 and have a road test against the top-25 ranked Penn State Nittany Lions Oct. 28.

What do the Hoosiers have to do to turn the ship around? Has the ship already sunk? Allen suggests there is time to stick together as a team and turn the season around.

“We’ve obviously got another opportunity next week, which is what we’re facing, on the road again, but at the same time, it’s about us right now being able to band together and continue to battle,” Allen said. “That’s what we’re going to do. We’re just going to lock arms and fight.”