Indiana’s offense needs to step it up

Indiana’s offense needs to do better.

For the first time since I can remember, Indiana has a capable defense. In fact, they have proved to be more than capable. Other than a 72 yard touchdown pass to Stanley Morgan Jr., they did a great job of stopping Tommy Armstrong and the Nebraska offense.

Ohio State put up 38 on the Hoosier defense the previous week, but multiple scoring drives were gifted to them from turnovers and a special teams mistake. Heisman hopeful JT Barrett was held to less than 100 passing yards – an incredible feat.

Hats off to Tom Allen. The difference between defenses in the last two seasons is incredible. He has won over his group, who now truly believe in his system and are over-performing because of it. On the flip side, Kevin Wilson will expect more from his offense.

After watching Nate Sudfeld break program records, as well as Jordan Howard steamroll some of the nation’s top defenses, we as Hoosier fans were spoiled. After they make their way to the NFL, we learn that it will be Cisco Community College transfer, Richard Lagow, commanding the offense.

So far, Lagow has proved to be a decent replacement, but lacks a certain poise that we saw with Sudfeld. For the second straight game, he has failed to throw for over 200 yards, which simply isn’t enough when trying to upset a top 10 opponent.

Since his five interception game against Wake Forest, he has had a problem with turnovers. His Interception that was returned for a touchdown late in the first quarter against Nebraska put them in a deep hole, and then his second at the end of the game sealed the deal. If Lagow is going to turn the ball over, he better start putting up more yardage and points to make up for it.

On the bright side, he still is showing flashes of brilliance against top ranked defenses. Lagow is experiencing a much faster game than he was used to at Cisco, and will naturally take some time to adjust. A much easier stretch of coming games will help his confidence, and he will continue to improve as a player.

Devine Redding is having a few rough games. After having an impressive streak of 100+ rushing games, he has only had 1 in the last 4, the 1 being 100 yards on the dot. Indiana has lost the rushing game drastically in the last two weeks, and it is hurting the passing game. When teams don’t need to stack the box to stop the run, it makes it more difficult for receivers to find room.

The loss of Dan Feeney and Dimitri Camiel has clearly created some problems. They are arguably the strongest offensive linemen that Indiana possess, and it has caused problems in the run game. Both have been out since the Wake Forest game, and they have been missed dearly. The return of both will surely help get Redding his yards back, and provide Lagow with a little more time in the pocket.

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Losses to Ohio State and Nebraska don’t look bad. In fact, the way they lost may even improve analyst’s opinion on Indiana’s quality, but as a Hoosier fan, it is still disappointing. Both games were in reach and with just a few mistakes cut out, could have easily gone the other way.

There is no need to panic. At this point in the season, most expected Indiana to be a 3-3 team anyway, but at least they are losing in style, giving hope that they can string together a few wins. Although they are facing a hot Northwestern team next week, who are coming off back-to-back wins against Iowa and Michigan State. Though beating Michigan State becomes less of an accomplishment with each passing week.

Northwestern’s offense has caught fire of late. They have a balanced attack with quarterback Clayton Thorson and running back Justin Jackson, who have both racked up some impressive stats. The key to victory will be Lagow and the offense, however. Look for them to have a bounce-back game and put some big points up on the board.