What Worked and What Didn't in Indiana's 35-21 Loss at Nebraska

Written by Andrew Walker

The Indiana Hoosiers suffered a 35-21 loss to the Nebraska Cornhuskers on Saturday night. The optimism from a season-opening win against Illinois is all but gone. We take a deeper look into what worked and what didn’t in a disheartening IU loss.

 What worked

Jaylin Lucas

Walt Bell and Tom Allen finally got the ball to Jaylin Lucas at the end of the second quarter. Lucas spearheaded a touchdown drive with 39 yards on the ground, including a 34-yard run. Lucas would not get a touch the rest of the game, yet finished as IU’s leading rusher.

Defensive Pressure on Blitzes

IU had eight tackles for loss and four sacks as a defense. When they blitzed, it was usually effective When IU didn’t blitz Nebraska had enough time to pick the Hoosiers apart.

What Didn’t Work

Slow start

Again, Indiana found themselves down significantly to start off the game. Did they tie it up before half, sure. But when it comes to making a statement and setting the tone for the game, Indiana just hasn’t been able to pull it off in any game this season. The Hoosiers did end up making some significant plays as the quarters went on, but sometimes getting off to a hot start is enough to put the game away early on.

Rushing offense

Less than 100 yards rushing on the game is not exactly the balance offensive attack that a Big Ten team would like to have. 3.4 yards per carry for every rushing player is not the level of consistency Indiana would like to have to complement Bazelak’s efforts through the air. Jaylin Lucas was able to break off a 34-yard run, but other than that bright spot, Indiana’s rushing attack hasn’t been too potent.

Connor Bazelak

Is it time to look elsewhere at quarterback? Maybe. Missouri transfer Connor Bazelak struggled again on Saturday night. He completed just 22-of-44 passes for 223 yards with a touchdown and a tough luck interception. Bazelak missed several open receivers with over throws and while he was pressured at times, he did have a clean pocket for most of the night. IU cannot survive with subpar quarterback play again in 2022. 

Defensive Rotations

With the game on the line the Hoosiers did not have their ‘A’ squad on the field in the secondary. Instead a back breaking 71-yard touchdown pass on third-and-11 came against freshman Phillp Dunham, who committed a cardinal sin in a tie game in the fourth quarter. If IU is going to get beat, at least get beat with your best players on the field.

Deep Pass Defense

Nebraska averaged 15 yards per completion. Martin Oliver scored on a 34-yard touchdown pass and Trey Palmer on a 71-yard pass. A week after getting burnt by Cincinnati, the Hoosiers suffered a similar fate on Saturday.