Trey Wedig: “This Week is the Most Important Week Because It’s the Next Week”
/Written By: Ben Gillard (@benjgillard)
The offensive line has been phenomenal throughout this season. Part of this has been due to the stellar play of Tackle Trey Wedig. The Wisconsin transfer followed his former O-Line Coach Bob Bostad from the Badgers to the Hoosiers this offseason. When asked about the transition, Wedig said, “I don’t know if it changed a whole lot; I had Coach Bostad at Wisconsin and I had Coach Bostad here, and you know he didn’t change a whole lot.”
Wedig is likely glad that Coach Bostad didn’t change much at Indiana, as he credits Bostad for much of the O-Line’s success this season, saying, “He [Bostad] means a lot to this group. He really gets us going and gives us the kick in the ass we need when we need it.”
In addition to getting the O-Line motivated, Coach Bostad was also critical in making sure all five linemen were on the same page coming into the season. “Lots of reps; we would get a lot of reps on air, in the meeting rooms; we would make sure that we’re all on the same page. He’s a big reps guy for things like that.” Wedig said of his experience in camp.
In addition to the chemistry built in the film room in the spring, Wedig credits Center Mike Katic with helping to build up the camaraderie among the unit, saying, “I think Mike Katic really helped with that,he got us all together, he helped organized some O-Line dinners, and you know, he really got the O-Line close together.” Wedig went on to highlight the important role Katic plays as the leader of the O-Line, saying, “It helps a lot, Mike; he knows the lay of the land, and he gets everyone right; if someone’s not doing something right, he’ll call you out on it.”
The chemistry and leadership of the offensive line were on full display last Saturday against Washington. With starting QB Kurtis Rourke out with a thumb injury, it was up to the O-Line and the run game to step up, and step up they did, rushing for 188 yards and 2 touchdowns in the Hoosiers 31-17 win over the Huskies.
When asked about the success the Hoosiers had running the ball on Saturday, Wedig said, “Yeah, I like running the ball. It's fun. But I think the key to success was that all five of us were playing hard and playing as physical as we could. We were on target, and that made it possible to do that.”
The Hoosiers have a chance to make history this Saturday by becoming the first Indiana team ever to go 9-0. However, the team is “preparing like they would for any road game.” As Wedig says, “It’s always in the back of the mind, but Coach Cignetti always opens up his meeting with, ‘This week is the most important week because it’s the next one.’ So you’ve just gotta keep that mindset; this week is the most important week because it’s the next one.”