Injuries plague the Indiana Offense as they Prepare for Michigan

Written by Matt Smith

The Indiana offense prepares for their biggest test of the season as Michigan comes to town. The Hoosiers are coming off of a heartbreaking loss to Nebraska where the offense was shut down during the second half.

Similar to other games played this season, the Hoosiers took a couple series to settle in, but began to figure out the Nebraska defense in the second half, but couldn’t get over their halftime adjustments. 

DJ Matthews and Cam Camper were both out during the game as well as half of the offensive line.

A key freshman for the Hoosiers is Jaylin Lucas who showed flashes of how special of a player he can be during the game. Lucas however, has a very small build.

“We’re all very aware that Jaylin is a very good player,” Walt Bell said during his Monday morning press conference. “We’ve got other good tailbacks…but as he grows and develops, he’s definitely going to become a larger piece of what we do.”

The offensive coaches have seen his ability in open space and how shifty he can be. He also needs to develop with his pass blocking and running between the tackles according to Bell. 

As far as the injuries, Bell said that he had been there before with previous jobs at Maryland, and it is something that every coach has to deal with. They need to place their players in the best possible scenario to get open and make plays.

During the game against Nebraska, and in other games as well, the screens to the running backs have been a big part of the passing game.

Screens are also another way to get Connor Bazelak comfortable in the pocket.

“There’s no substitute for easy completions,” Bell said. “We need to continue to complete easy throws.”

Nebraska had struggled against the run in their previous weeks, but the Hoosiers only ran the ball 18 times compared to 44 passing attempts. 

Bell credits this to Nebraska stacking the box for much of the game, and having more people up front to commit to stopping the run. 

Nebraska stacking the box meant man coverage for much of the game, and it seemed the Hoosiers didn’t adjust enough.

“Obviously it wasn’t good enough, we didn’t win the game, we didn’t score one more point than they did,” Bell said. “Whether it be drops, whether it be not putting the ball in the hands, there were some issues there, and ultimately at the end of the day it wasn’t good enough.

As far as the offensive line, Carpenter and Katic playing different positions seemed to work well enough. However the line is subject to change with the injury report and wanting to have more competition throughout the week. 

The Indiana Hoosiers’ bowl chances took a big hit with the loss to Nebraska, and will need to get back to work this week and prepare for what will be one of the biggest upsets in Hoosiers history and they host number 4 Michigan for homecoming.