Trust Has Been Key in Throwing a Young Secondary into the Fire

Devon Matthews and the IU freshmen DB’s have been fantastic in 2018 image: Sammy Jacobs Hoosier Huddle

Written by: TJ Inman (@TJHoosierHuddle)

You can never have too much talent at defensive back. As more and more teams embrace three, four and five receiver sets, having a deep secondary is essential. The Indiana Hoosiers coaching staff is very cognizant of that fact and they have emphasized the secondary in the past couple of recruiting classes. Despite a couple of unexpected defections, there is a young and talented crop of defensive backs in Bloomington and the Hoosiers are reaping the benefits on the field.

Through five games, IU is ranked 30th in pass defense and 24th (S&P+) in passing completion rate. They surrendered 157 passing yards in the opener to Florida International, 106 passing yards to Virginia, 143 to Ball State, 219 yards against Michigan State and 193 last week at Rutgers. IU has played a number of sophomores and freshmen that are growing each week. Guys like Juwan Burgess, Raheem Layne, Jamar Johnson, Jaylin Williams, Bryant Fitzgerald and Devon Matthews were all prized recruits and have begun their IU careers by working hard, developing their confidence and using their talent to contribute.

“I think you always have to be very cautious to throw those guys into the fire,” defensive coach Kasey Teegardin said. “But with the talent they have and the confidence they portray themselves with, we are ready to throw them in there. They have proved to us, I think that’s the biggest thing, I trust them.”

True freshman Jaylin Williams spoke recently about his adjustment to the college game and how the defensive backs have helped each other as a group. “There have been a lot of learning experiences with the older guys really helping me get through the plays and get through the college experience. It’s very different from high school. In high school, you can just go out and play, but here you have to know your opponent and know what to do. Andre Brown and A’Shon Riggins tell me to take everything serious, take nothing off. We are really close, we are a real brotherhood. We are all good friends and we just hold each other accountable and push each other to the highest effort we can give.”

Indiana has faced a few dangerous passing games but they will have their biggest test to date this Saturday as they travel to Columbus to play the Ohio State Buckeyes. Quarterback Dwayne Haskins has thrown for nearly 1,500 yards with 19 touchdowns and only two interceptions and he is completing more than 70% of his passes. Ohio State has a number of very good receivers and they will test the Hoosiers young secondary both horizontally and vertically. While Saturday is going to be a stiff test for this group, it will aid in their continued development and a strong bunch of defensive backs is going to be critical in upcoming games against teams like Iowa, Minnesota, Maryland and Purdue. The Hoosiers are marching towards bowl eligibility and if they are to get there, the defensive backs will have to continue playing their stellar play.