1. Of course we have to start with Phillips. I thought it was pretty clear that the staff wanted to limit his throws and they designed a game plan that did that. Certainly with only getting to see seven throws, we didn’t learn too much about him, either good or bad. Of the seven throws he did make, most were reasonably executed. I thought his pocket presence was fine. He avoided the rush a few times, but also missed a pretty obvious blitz and got a little panicky on that throw to the flat that was ruled incomplete. Of course he looked like he still had decent speed on a couple nice running plays. All-in-all a solid debut, but the run game made it very easy for him. Any QB we’ve had in the last 20 years would have been able to QB today and get a 30-40 point win. He was the right quarterback for today.
2. You have to love the way our defense played. The DB’s really sat on those short routes for most of the day. That’s just a nice job of game-planning. Of course we had a few breakdowns here-and-there, but when you look at what Indiana had done to other teams, you have to say we produced a pretty strong effort. Their QB’s were certainly nowhere near as sharp as other games, but I think our defense gets some of the credit for that too.
3. If someone ever asked you “show me one play that defines Indiana football”; you would show them the James White touchdown run at the end of the half. We’re simply trying to run out the clock and all they have to do is tackle White at any time before he gains 20 yards. Instead, they crap their pants and give up a touchdown. That play was essentially the ball game. Side note… we scored with 14 seconds left in the half… marvelous clock management by Bielema, per usual.
4. While it was obvious that our o-line blocked great today, I also felt that it should be noted that our downfield blocking was amazing. Every time a guy broke free, it seemed like there were receivers in the second level knocking guys down too. I thought the Peterson “hold” was a ridiculous call. He basically engulfed the guy and pancaked him. The “mysterious flag on a long run” was a disturbing trend.
5. I know there are some on here who say “I never boo college kids”. To me, today was an example of where college kids 100% deserved a cascade of loud boos. Indiana threw in the towel mid-way through the third quarter. They weren’t even making an attempt to stop us defensively. Quitting is simply inexcusable and deserving of being booed. Just a pathetic effort by them.
6. Darius Latham… I hope you had a great view of this game from your position on the sideline. You’re a real good player. If you go Indiana, you will likely be able to anchor a defense that somehow manages to hold our running game under 400 yards. It’s time for you to make a logical decision. There’s still time and room.
7. I think some credit today has to go to Matt Canada. Say what you will about Indiana’s horrible effort, but Canada had everything working today. The first quarter was as crisp as can be. Just a real nice game plan.
8. We really need to stop punting from the 32-yard-line. I don’t care if we down the punt on the 2, it’s just bad percentage football. We had been holding Indiana all day up to that point. Why are we worried about giving them the ball at the 32? Give French a shot or even throw a bomb. Anything but a punt.
9. I also give kudos to Bielema. This has been a crazy year and he got us back to the Big Ten Title game. I still don’t know if we’re any good; but we at least showed that we can hold it together in the face of adversity. Being able to think about the fact that we’re 4 quarters from a third straight Rose Bowl for the next month is going to feel pretty good.
10. Obviously after a tough loss to MSU and bye week, today felt great. However, there was a part of me that wishes Indiana gave of some sort of a challenge, so we could have learned more about Phillips. We really go into the game with OSU most of the same questions. I worry that Ohio State will play our receivers in man coverage, but 9 in the box and say “beat us by the pass”. Then again, Matt Schabert beat OSU that way, so there’s always hope.
2. You have to love the way our defense played. The DB’s really sat on those short routes for most of the day. That’s just a nice job of game-planning. Of course we had a few breakdowns here-and-there, but when you look at what Indiana had done to other teams, you have to say we produced a pretty strong effort. Their QB’s were certainly nowhere near as sharp as other games, but I think our defense gets some of the credit for that too.
3. If someone ever asked you “show me one play that defines Indiana football”; you would show them the James White touchdown run at the end of the half. We’re simply trying to run out the clock and all they have to do is tackle White at any time before he gains 20 yards. Instead, they crap their pants and give up a touchdown. That play was essentially the ball game. Side note… we scored with 14 seconds left in the half… marvelous clock management by Bielema, per usual.
4. While it was obvious that our o-line blocked great today, I also felt that it should be noted that our downfield blocking was amazing. Every time a guy broke free, it seemed like there were receivers in the second level knocking guys down too. I thought the Peterson “hold” was a ridiculous call. He basically engulfed the guy and pancaked him. The “mysterious flag on a long run” was a disturbing trend.
5. I know there are some on here who say “I never boo college kids”. To me, today was an example of where college kids 100% deserved a cascade of loud boos. Indiana threw in the towel mid-way through the third quarter. They weren’t even making an attempt to stop us defensively. Quitting is simply inexcusable and deserving of being booed. Just a pathetic effort by them.
6. Darius Latham… I hope you had a great view of this game from your position on the sideline. You’re a real good player. If you go Indiana, you will likely be able to anchor a defense that somehow manages to hold our running game under 400 yards. It’s time for you to make a logical decision. There’s still time and room.
7. I think some credit today has to go to Matt Canada. Say what you will about Indiana’s horrible effort, but Canada had everything working today. The first quarter was as crisp as can be. Just a real nice game plan.
8. We really need to stop punting from the 32-yard-line. I don’t care if we down the punt on the 2, it’s just bad percentage football. We had been holding Indiana all day up to that point. Why are we worried about giving them the ball at the 32? Give French a shot or even throw a bomb. Anything but a punt.
9. I also give kudos to Bielema. This has been a crazy year and he got us back to the Big Ten Title game. I still don’t know if we’re any good; but we at least showed that we can hold it together in the face of adversity. Being able to think about the fact that we’re 4 quarters from a third straight Rose Bowl for the next month is going to feel pretty good.
10. Obviously after a tough loss to MSU and bye week, today felt great. However, there was a part of me that wishes Indiana gave of some sort of a challenge, so we could have learned more about Phillips. We really go into the game with OSU most of the same questions. I worry that Ohio State will play our receivers in man coverage, but 9 in the box and say “beat us by the pass”. Then again, Matt Schabert beat OSU that way, so there’s always hope.
