The Hoosiers fell just short to Wisconsin 31-28 at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington. Indiana continued to struggle rushing the ball, especially in the first half. Redshirt-freshman Darius Willis found no open holes on his 6 carries for only 6 net yards. He left in the game in the second quarter with what appeared to be an injury to his right leg. Bryan Payton picked it up in the second half with 48 rushing yards. “I think sometimes in games you are going to have half like that but you just have to go in a at half and make adjustments and that’s what we did.”
Ben Chappell for the most part had a solid game. 25-35, 3TD but 2 INT. And that’s where the Hoosiers probably lost the game. Inside the redzone from about the 9 yard-line, Indiana elected to pass the ball. Chappell had pressure coming from his blind side and was hit immediately as he attempted a pass. The ball was floating and picked off at the 5. Indiana cannot commit these turnovers, and especially not in the redzone. It is a huge missed opportunity that possibly was the difference in this game. The mindset is right for this team. Chappell said “We believed the whole game if we could just get a break or two here, we knew we could move it on them, we were throwing it very well, so we just wanted to get the ball as much as we could.”
Will Patterson led the defense with 10 tackles, followed by Nick Polk with 9. Donnell Jones in a CB for a depleted secondary had a couple of knock downs to go with 6 tackles. The secondary struggled allowing the Wisconsin receivers wide open down the field. If it wasn’t for some bad drops, the defense may have got beat even more heavily on those plays. The defense is beat up injury wise, but somebody has to step up and take advantage of the situation. Donnell Jones, and Colin Taylor have certainly taken advantage of their playing time.
WR Terrance Turner caught his first TD pass early in the 4th quarter to bring the Hoosiers within 3. “It’s kind of bitter sweet; I would take the win any day. But it was good to get it and get the monkey off my back. A lot of people were always bringing it up like last week but I was able to look past it and get the touchdown today.”
The Hoosiers chances now to head to a bowl game are now very much eliminated. They face Penn State on the road next week, which was the one game everyone believed was a sure loss coming into the season. The following week will be interesting. IU won’t have anything to play for but pride. They will want to finish the year on the right note to set the tone for next week. They may also have the possibility to keep rival Purdue from becoming bowl-eligible. Purdue currently has 4 wins so if they win next week at home against Michigan State, the Boilers will come to Bloomington looking for their 6th win.
It was another tough loss for Indiana. Their 3rd straight, and 6th in the last 7 games. The team continues to improve and is certainly on the upswing for years to come. Coach Lynch was also very happy to see the team was 3 for 3 on 4th downs, including the gutsy call by Coach to have Burgess run the ball on 4th and goal from the 2. Another tough loss for this team, but there’s no question it was their most complete game of the season. Change a couple of plays, and Indiana comes out with the victory…but can’t you say that about the last few weeks? (Michigan, Northwestern, Iowa)