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Indiana-Southern Illinois Notebook: Hoosiers confident despite narrow victory


KelleyHoosh
  • Without nine players, most notably Darius Latham and Tegray Scales, the defense looked lost against FCS opponent Southern Illinois.

Indiana had an underwhelming start to Kevin Wilson’s fifth season as head coach.

 

It started before the game even began when the Hoosiers announced just prior to kickoff that they had suspended nine players for the game citing they had not lived up to their responsibilities to the program. Six of the players were on the defensive side of the ball including starters DT Darius Latham and LB Tegray Scales.

 

It continued when the defense looked lost against Football Championship Subdivision opponent Southern Illinois. The Salukis led the Hoosiers 32-21 at the half and it looked as if the Hoosiers would suffer an embarrassing defeat until they scored 17 unanswered points on their way to a 48-47 victory.

 

After the game, BtownBanners got the chance to speak with Nate Sudfeld, Ricky Jones, Marcus Oliver and Jordan Howard who all shined in the come-from-behind victory. While fans are feeling disheartened after a game they feel should have never been so close, the players and coaches are happy with the outcome.

 

“Fortunate to win but at the same time I think I told the team afterwards I was kind of concerned, like don’t take victory for granted,'' Wilson said. "For what you did and the circumstances you were in, and to make some plays at the end, to get the victory is encouraging.”

 

IU was able to avoid the loss thanks to settling down in the second half. Wilson stressed the need to slow down.

 

“It (halftime) was kind of frantic,'' Wilson said. "Before we went out I just stopped everybody. As a matter of fact I had a strength coach give them a win-one-for-the-Gupper speech, and I just said, let me say something real quick: Would you just slow down, play one play, take a deep breath, can’t change what happened and what are you doing next.”

 

While Indiana is satisfied with avoiding the loss, everyone was in agreement that steps to improve must be made.

 

“You make your most improvement from game one to game two, there are no negatives if you learn,'' Sudfeld said. "I think we will improve very much.''

 

Oliver added that the defense will improve too.

 

“We just need to do our jobs better and more consistently,'' he said. "We are playing physically and have to keep that up.”

 

Wilson elaborated on what he thinks the defense must do to improve on a performance that allowed 659 offensive yards.

 

“We didn’t get stops,” Wilson said, “if we can eliminate those big plays, I think you’ll see a much better defensive performance. Now we have to really start progressing.”

 

While the overall Indiana effort left a bit to be desired, one of the bright spots was the play of Howard and Jones. Howard carried the ball 20 times for 145 yards and three touchdowns.

 

Howard thanked his new program and said he felt it was important for him to have a game like he had today to repay the team for taking him on board.

 

“We got out to a fast start and I got into a rhythm,'' said Howard, a junior tailback who rushed for nearly 1,600 yards at UAB last season. "I have great chemistry with the team. The offensive line got a great push and the wide receivers had solid downfield blocks.”

 

Jones feels his performance has been a long time coming.

 

“I’ve been waiting for this for a long time, since my freshman year,'' said Jones, a redshirt junior. "I feel like I had an opportunity and capitalized on it.”

 

Jones did capitalize on it, to the tune of six catches for 186 yards, including one reception for 71 yards, and a touchdown. Coming into this season, Jones had a total of three catches in his Indiana career.

 

The team is confident that improvements will be made thanks to the great bond the team shares.

 

“It should speak for itself how tight we are and how we hold each other accountable,'' Oliver said "Since I’ve been here I feel like this is the closest we have ever been as a team. You want to be here. We are always around each other. It’s a family for real.”

 

Wilson has taken notice of how close the team has become as well.

 

“We got a tight knit group here and they’re going to take care of business,'' Wilson said "I have a lot of respect for the way they handle their business and I believe in them greatly.”

 

Adding Nate Sudfeld back to the offense has made a difference for the team in terms of on field chemistry.

 

“I feel like Sudfeld was hitting all his targets today,'' Jones said. "He played really well today. I feel like everyone touched the ball today.''

 

Sudfeld feels he gained some confidence for himself after today’s win.

 

“That was a good football team and they gave us their best shot,'' said the senior quarterback from Modesto, Calif. "It felt good to get that hit right off the bat. But the body felt really good, I didn’t feel very rusty and I felt like I was really in the flow of the game.”

 

The senior has settled into his role as a leader on the team and thanks to his experience can give input. Wilson said he admired how demanding Sudfeld was on the sidelines.

 

“I know what I like a lot more now and I was not afraid to tell the coaches what routes I wanted to get out there,'' Sudfeld said. "I have a great working relationship with coach Wilson and coach Johns. The pass protection was also unbelievable, I didn’t really get sacked all game.”

 

While Sudfeld has found comfort in his role, Oliver felt a sense of urgency during Saturday's game.

 

“My thought process out there was, they’re not going to get this, we aren’t going to lose,'' Oliver said. "We can’t go out there doubting ourselves.”

 

The Hoosiers are confident in themselves, and that is necessary for them to succeed moving forward. Confidence, however, will be hard to come by among a fan base that saw an average FCS school dominate in the trenches. It is critical that Indiana prepares for its next game against Florida International and has a better showing, or the 2015 season could prove to be a long one for the IU faithful.

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Ain't no doubt, if we are going to do anything this year. the improvement from game 1 to game 2, had better be revolutionary on the defensive side. I'm not expecting a shut down defense, but I am expecting one to show up. That being said, our secondary is liable to be burned all year. Hopefully the off the field issues are squared away, and that group will be back, and that Dutra will recover quickly.

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Another great article! Like all that has been said, the defense has to improve or this will be another disappointing season. I think we will see a better defense next week, so I'm excited. Go Hoosiers!

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Another great article! Like all that has been said, the defense has to improve or this will be another disappointing season. I think we will see a better defense next week, so I'm excited. Go Hoosiers!


I literally don't think we could see a worse defense next week so there's always that.

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I literally don't think we could see a worse defense next week so there's always that.


Oh, don't test them.

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