Tom Allen Media Monday Notes and Quotes: Week 13 Purdue Boilermakers
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Image: Sarah miller, Hoosier Huddle
Written by Sammy Jacobs (@Hoosier_Huddle)
Indiana head coach Tom Allen took to the podium on Monday after the Hoosiers 24-21 loss in the Old Brass Spittoon game and ahead of the 2023 season finale against Purdue for the Old Oaken Bucket.
NOTES:
Injuries:
The following players were all ruled OUT prior to Saturday’s game. An updated availability report will be out Saturday at 10:00 am.
Noah Pierre
Omar Cooper Jr.
Cam Camper (Out for the Season)
Nic Toomer
Players of the Week:
Offense: None
Defense: None
Special Teams: None
Scout Team: Will Larkins, Connor Hole, Declan McMahon, Lincoln Murff
TOM ALLEN QUOTES:
Opening Statement
“Just want to begin by congratulating our soccer team. Big win last night and on to the Sweet 16, so great job and wish them nothing but great things moving forward.
I also want to recognize our players of the week that do a great job working hard for us. Defensive scout Connor Hole, offensive scout Will Larkins and Declan McMahon, and special teams scout Lincoln Murff.
Really, really excited about this week, a great, great opportunity for our program with the Old Oaken Bucket. So much tradition. So much has been put into this game for so many years and so much pride in the outcome representing our whole university and fan base and state of Indiana here as we battle for a very prestigious prize.
Big opportunity heading into West Lafayette to take on the Boilermakers.”
On Benching Philip Dunnam in the Second Half
“He chose to try to strip the football, which is something you do when you're the second or third defender at the point of attack, so obviously I think it happened about the 15-yard line, so should have had him on the ground, and then you battle to force them to kick a field goal.
Pretty big mistake there. Really kind of -- it's not what we teach and coach and inexcusable. Felt like Josh Sanguinetti has played well, so played him the rest of the way, and was definitely open and honest with Phillip about that. He needs to respond. We'll see how that goes this week.
Bottom line is that you've got to do things the right way, and if you don't, somebody is going to be there and take your job.”
On Teaching the Newcomers About the Old Oaken Bucket Rivalry
“We started yesterday for that very reason with 51 to 54 based on we've added a few additional walk-ons here in the last couple months. As our season started, to add more guys that weren't here a year ago.
So with all the new faces, Coach Deal, Mark Deal does a phenomenal job. His one word every single year is "bucket." It's been that way ever since I've been here. He is the most passionate person that I know regarding this game, the trophy that we play for.
There's been eight victories by the Deal family, most ever in the history of Indiana University football that have been a part of winning the bucket, between his dad and his brother and himself.
He does a great job. So we started yesterday. He gives the whole history of it, all the way back to the beginning, where it came from, the farm it came from, got pictures of that, just all the different parts of it, and then just kind of giving our guys an education of that, and he obviously puts his own flavor on which is very, very emotional and passionate.
Every single day this week we are going to have an alumni video speaker that is going to challenge our guys about the bucket, and then with a video, as well. So just constant every single day just to continue to educate our guys and make them understand how big this game is.”
On the End of Half Defense the Last Few Weeks
“It's absolutely what we emphasized yesterday. Obviously it's been pretty apparent in those last two games without question. Before the half and how you finish the game, had a chance to finish out the game with a win by just getting a stop by our defense here at this one.
The emphasis has been going back and evaluating the calls that we made in those situations, the execution of those calls, so first of all, making sure we're in the right call, and there's obviously things we go through, maybe you should have done this, should have done that, called this, called that.
Then we've got to make sure whatever we do call is that there's 100 percent execution of that call. No matter what they do, something we haven't seen before, something we have seen in the past, the concept that they ran on that last one was something they had done previously in the game.
So just still, it's always the little things too leading up to it. We have a chance to get a sack on that 3rd down that led up to the 4th and 3 conversion, which would have made it 4th and 10, which is a totally different call.
So it's a series of plays, series of efforts. We missed some tackles in that last drive. It's making sure we're getting our best players on the field and making sure the calls that we make, our guys execute at a very, very high level.
Obviously we have not done that, and really it's been unbelievably frustrating and disappointing. But at the same time, we've got one more opportunity this year. We've got to make sure it doesn't happen this week.”
On the Changes in the Purdue Program Under Ryan Walters
“Well, different offensive system, different defensive system, so schematically quite a bit different. Obviously they've always thrown the ball well. They're running the ball really well lately.
Last two games in a row they've been over 300 yards rushing, which is very impressive. They've got two talented running backs and their O-line is being very effective in what they're doing. They've made adjustments throughout the season.
Very talented quarterback, which has been consistent since I've been here. Hudson Card is a very, very talented player. He can beat you with his legs, beat you with his arm. He's an elite football player in my opinion.
Then defensively the scheme obviously, Coach Walters being a defensive guy and bringing that system they ran at Illinois so well there, and they do a really good job in lot of those areas.
Definitely a lot of changes, a lot of changes in personnel, as well, and new team. Just but same bucket, and that's really what this is all about, is getting back the bucket.”
On Why it is Difficult to Sustain Success at IU
“I think there's a real reality that you have to adapt to the changes as a program, as a university, and sometimes those adaptations are slower than they need to be.
The bottom line is you can just see the trajectory of where we were going prior to the changes, and as things are right now -- so the bottom line is that the way the rosters are built now is different than it used to be, and the NIL piece is the biggest component that has made the biggest difference.
We have to embrace that in a full fledged way and a more aggressive way, and that is just bottom line being truthful. And that's the case for everybody. Everybody is in the same situation. Especially as you think moving forward with the new Big Ten we are about to get into adding four football teams that are very, very talented and very, very rich in both resources and what they expect to be able to do on game day.
Bottom line is we have to adapt to that. We have to step up to that. We have to make some obvious changes to that, and when you don't, you get run over. That's the bottom line is we've got to be able to -- just talking to Coach Dantonio, it's very obvious what's going on, and you have to be able to make those adjustments. To me, we have to step up in that area and we've got to do a great job of helping retain our current roster and going out and adding the pieces that are going to give you a chance, because at the end of the day, I learned this a long time ago, we're a lot smarter coaches when we've got the right players that fit with us and can help us and have the talent to be able to help us do elite things and do great things.
So we've got to be able to develop those guys here. That's the challenge, is you've got to be able to still bring guys in, develop them, and still be able to have the kind of team you have to have to be able to beat the quality of the teams we play each week.
Definitely more challenging than ever, but we at a place like this have to adapt to the new realize that we play by and the way that things are structured now.”
On How to Make these Adaptations Stick
“I feel like I want to be as aggressive as I can be with our alumni and boosters, and just being able to get in front of them and help them see the direction that these things are going and what we need to do to be able to help us make these changes because the bottom line is it's all in front of us.
We have to be able to adapt, and it's hard. There's no question, because it's different than it's been in the past, and sometimes it's a different way of doing things, and some people even like or agree with.
I think it's a matter of -- at the end of the day you've still got to build, and that's what I was talking to Coach Dantonio about. You've still got to build the best team. The best team wins on game day. And yes, you have to have the players to do that, but they also have to be a team that plays for each other and has -- it's still a team sport. We've got 125 guys on our roster. That's a lot of players, a lot of people coming together to be able to do that.
That component hasn't left us, but still, you have to do a great job of having the roster talent and the roster depth to be able to play a tough schedule every single week. You've got to come back and you've got to do it again and again and again and things happen in the course of a season, so that's why depth is such a big deal, and getting the right players here is the best deal, and we're doing the best we can to be able to continue to grow that.
I love our guys here, and like I said, we've got a lot of guys that I want to retain here that I feel like have a chance to keep developing, and you see some growth in some key spots on our team, and I want to continue to do that, but we've got to keep them here.
That's the other thing that people are trying to take your guys from you and take your players when they start to grow and have some success at places where they feel like they can do that because they can maybe out bid you for a guy.
The bottom line is that's all part of the new world we live in, which is totally different than it was a few years ago.”