Indiana Football Notebook: Final thoughts, takeaways from week seven

The Indiana football program fell 52-7 to Michigan on Saturday afternoon, dropping to 2-4 on the season.

Following a bye week, there were a lot of questions surrounding the program. But, Saturday’s loss may have added even more questions for Indiana.

There were some key takeaways from Saturday’s performance, so let’s dive in.

Seven weeks in and still no clear starting quarterback

After a quick three-and-out on the starting possession, Tayven Jackson led the Indiana football offense down the field in what appeared to be the most efficient drive of the season. Jackson was 6-of-8 for 52 yards. Five of the six completions were to different receivers.

But it was an interception on the Michigan 11-yard line that halted the drive. Then, Jackson was pulled for Brendan Sorsby. Sorsby played for the next five drives before Jackson returned at the 8:28 mark in the third quarter.

Tom Allen said postgame that a quarterback rotation was the plan all along.

“Yeah that was the plan. We were going to play Tayven the first two series then play Brendan the third and fourth series and that’s what we did,” Allen said postgame. “Then just kinda see who had the hot hand and see who was playing best.”

Jackson finished finished 7-of-13 for 52 yards and two interceptions and one lost fumble. Sorsby was 6-of-14 for 44 yards and one lost fumble.

Offense couldn’t sustain early offensive success under Rod Carey

The biggest talking point heading into this week was what the offense would look like under new offensive coordinator Rod Carey. Well, it didn’t look much different.

Indiana’s yardage by quarter was: 141, 25, 15, 51.

Indiana’s yards per play per quarter were: 6.4, 2.8, 0.9, 3.6.

The Indiana football offense finished with 232 yards and an average of just 3.7 yards per play.

“We gotta find who’s going to be that person. It’s going to be important to get that guy to protect the football and run the offense to the highest level possible,” Allen said. ” … I don’t think today either one protected the ball very well. There was no question you’d like to see sustained drives. There’s no question we will make a decision on who needs to be the guy. Wanted to use this as an opportunity who would step up and take it. Hope one of them would’ve done that and that was the goal for today, to feel good about who’s going to take over at that spot … didn’t feel like the last couple weeks we’ve played good enough.”

Indiana punted after two straight three-and-outs on the first two possessions of the second half. Then it was an 11-play rive for just 26 yards that ended in a turnover on downs. That was followed by a two-play drive resulting in an interception. And then a final possession that was 13-plays for 51 yards and another turnover of downs.

“I’m not really sure”: Indiana lost in all areas

Indiana has struggled in nearly every area over the last three weeks, and with no real letup in the schedule, fighting for one or two more wins is going to be a struggle.

Indiana has been outscored 96-24 in the last two Big Ten games.

Following IU’s loss on Saturday, pass rusher Lanell Carr was asked what the hardest part is of the recent lull for Indiana. He responded with a simple, “I’m not really sure.”

I think that shows you where Indiana’s at. There is very little confidence from almost everyone on the roster. That seems to include the coaching staff. With no gimmie games left, Indiana football needs to find some way to put a bandaid on what looks to be another big blemish on Tom Allen’s resume.

Other Quick Hits:

• Donaven McCulley’s touchdown pass was the longest of the season for an Indiana passer, at 44 yards. It was the lone bright spot for the offense on Saturday
• Are we going to see Dexter Williams soon? He was finally listed as questionable before the game instead of out, echoing what Tom Allen said earlier in the week about Williams being closer to a return. We’ll see if anything changes on that front.
• Indiana’s strong defensive start went to the side. After three early sacks an holding Michigan to 17 total yards in the first quarter, it was a tough final three quarters. Indiana’s inability to stay on the field for more than a three-and-out continues to hurt Indiana’s defense game after game.
• Jaylin Lucas finally utilized in the passing game again. After his 10-catch game against Louisville, he totaled just four catches for two yards in the two games following. On Saturday, Lucas had five catches — on six targets — for 56 yards and the lone touchdown.
• Indiana is 2-19 in the last 21 Big Ten games, with an average loss of 23.9 points.

Game Highlights:

SEE ALSO: Indiana football still looking for answers at quarterback as QB rotation continued against Michigan

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