Suddenly, Hoosiers have pessimism
By CHRIS GOFF
ISL Correspondent
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The Hoosiers suffered more than just a defeat Saturday. They authored something their fans had been dreading ever since – well, pretty much since Indiana began playing college football over a century ago. But especially since this season began with such high hopes.
The inevitable letdown. A reason for despair.
Saturday’s embarrassing 41-35 defeat against Navy isn’t a season-ender and one big question – can Nate Sudfeld become a truly elite quarterback? – continues to give them positive answers.
Yet what occurred at full-ish Memorial Stadium, paired with what unfolded in other Big Ten games, at least makes you shake your head and wonder this: If the Hoosiers defend at a similar level the rest of the way, disaster could be possible.
The perennially poor defense looked atrocious all night and the potent offense fought an uphill battle despite touchdown after touchdown, rendering a few mistakes as fatal as they too often were last season. The play calling was questionable, players admitted they weren’t having fun, and the time of possession was a wipe-out.
Somehow, the Hoosiers had a chance late in the fourth quarter after Ted Bolser caught a 15-yard touchdown pass from Sudfeld, who played all but the first two series. The Hoosiers then attempted an onside kick, deciding victory was only possible if the defense stayed on the sideline, but just missed having a man in the right area to recover a perfectly executed hop from Mitch Ewald.
Coach Kevin Wilson made a careless decision that resulted in an early deficit. Trailing just 7-0 with 9 minutes left in the first quarter, why go for it on fourth-and-1 from your 34-yard line? That gave Navy prime field position which they turned into a two-score lead, an advantage maintained most of the way. The one big thing, of course, was a Hoosier defense that yielded 6.9 yards per snap.
It was that type of day, the team’s worst since a 62-14 sorrow-filled loss to Wisconsin on Nov. 10, and one that reveals how suddenly momentum can shift in college football.
Nine days ago in this same stadium, the Hoosiers were cheered wildly. Now it seemed like they had 47,013 frowning at them.
The discouragement was even vocalized by one Hoosiers player, Greg Heban, and it’s why Indiana football followers aren’t the only ones who have some doubts now. The players have some, too, because the schedule only gets tougher in the Big Ten.
All it takes is one look around the conference to understand that.
A year ago, the Fighting Illini were losing nine straight and looked pathetic. Now they’re 2-0, coming off a 45-17 home win Saturday over the mighty Cincinnati program.
Penn State is yet another example of a school that seemed to be trending south, but has opened with spunk. They reached for the hammer Saturday in seizing a 45-7 home win over Eastern Michigan, with a freshman quarterback looking awfully good.
Minnesota was generally thought of as a team the Hoosiers were capable of beating, but they fixed some problems Saturday, winning 44-21 on the road against New Mexico State.
The irony of those examples won’t be lost on Indiana fans, and they need no reminder of the rigors of college football life. It was just last week that the team looked genuinely different as the Hoosiers swarmed to the ball on defense and looked ready for prime time in bullying a team they should beat.
In the hush of the Hoosiers’ postgame interviews following Saturday’s ugly loss to the Midshipmen, one player said toughness and tenacity are the biggest problem areas.
Wilson repeatedly urges his players to act with force and aggression, and even he seemed to second guess his approach in preparing his team in the weeks leading up to this one. The adjustments were not made. The message failed to get through.
However, this is where Wilson – and everybody – must tip their cap to the Midshipmen, for their ability to soundly run their system and stick to what they do no matter who opposes them. This is a team that’s beaten 20 BCS foes since 2003 – Wilson calls the program tremendous – and often seemed to be a robotic machine. They might not play in a flashy league and appear on national television every week, a point coach Ken Niumatalolo surely concedes, but no one can say they don’t have a pedigree.
The postgame environment Saturday was nothing but respectful. Niumatalolo told reporters he was proud of Navy’s accomplishment, beating Indiana twice in two seasons, but it wasn’t like he was boldly celebrating the Midshipmen’s superiority.
“If we played a seven-game series it would probably go to game seven,” said the sixth-year helmsman, coaching two days after his mother’s passing. “That’s a good team. It went back and forth just like last year. We were lucky to come out with the win. Props to them and their program. There’s no doubt in my mind that Indiana is going to win a lot of football games this year.”
Surely, there will be optimists who point to the fact that all the Hoosiers did Saturday was lose to a funky team, one that rarely passes and is hard to prepare for without much game tape in early September. Seeing the big picture only through the small window of this contest itself, it’s easy to concede that point.
Yet looking through the wider lens of the schedule and weighing the successes of Bowling Green, Missouri, Penn State, Minnesota and even Illinois – whose place in the Big Ten basement previously seemed so secure – it seems irresponsible to simply overlook what unfolded at Memorial Stadium as unrelated to the big picture.
The Hoosiers are working back from some awfully hard times.
Now, with a little bit of gloom, maybe those hard times aren’t over just yet.
Follow Chris Goff on Twitter: chrisgoff_ISL.
