COLUMN: Indiana football’s season might be crumbling before its eyes

Simply when there’s a sliver of hope — some potential of success inside attain — it’s all gone inside an immediate. That’s the epitome of Indiana soccer. 

As Indiana’s 35-21 loss to Nebraska on Saturday developed, there was just one query I might ask myself: What on the earth did I simply watch? 

[ INSTANT RECAP: Indiana loses 35-21 to Nebraska on Saturday night]

For a great whereas, it didn’t appear like a soccer sport. No matter you need to name it, Nebraska gained, and Indiana didn’t. 

There are a number of apparent issues about Indiana that have to be addressed. The largest is these issues have been obvious all season, but nothing has modified. 

The Hoosiers appear to have a scarcity of preparation and self-discipline. Indiana’s first play of the sport was almost a delay of sport, which was bailed out by a timeout name. I perceive highway environments could be robust, however they need to at the least be capable of snap the ball. 

Additionally signaling a scarcity of self-discipline was Indiana’s 11 penalties for 92 whole yards. Whereas one way or the other lower than Nebraska’s 12 for 111 yards, the Hoosiers can’t anticipate to beat extra obstacles in a sport once they can hardly stand their floor.  

[ COLUMN: Keys for Indiana football to earn a bounce-back victory over Nebraska]

In previewing the matchup with Nebraska, I highlighted some key areas Indiana wanted to excel in to get a win. Let’s go to these matters and see how they carried out. I’m positive the outcomes will shock you. 

Come to play early 

As beforehand talked about, the Hoosiers didn’t even snap the ball on their first play. They trailed 7-0 on the finish of the primary quarter and trailed 21-7 at halftime. Not a great begin to say the least. 

Set up the run sport 

Nebraska entered the competition permitting 233.5 speeding yards per sport, which is fifth-to-last in Division I. Indiana completed with a complete of 67 speeding yards on 23 makes an attempt, a measly 2.9 yards per try. If the rest must be stated, Indiana’s lead rusher of the night time, freshman Jaylin Lucas, didn’t contact the ball within the second half. 

Forestall the deep ball 

The Hoosiers allowed 4 passing performs of 20 or extra yards, two of them leading to touchdowns. A type of touchdowns was a 71-yard bomb, transformed on a third-and-nine by Nebraska. It was a greater efficiency than final week at Cincinnati, however that isn’t saying a lot. 

Capitalize within the pink zone 

Indiana scored 100% of the time within the pink zone — that’s good. What wasn’t so good was that it reached the pink zone simply twice. 

General, dropping to Nebraska isn’t a great signal for Indiana’s 2022 season. It may not be time to sound the alarm simply but, however boy is it shut. 

Views can change so simply, and that rings true about Indiana soccer. A pair days in the past, a win over Nebraska was anticipated and a bowl sport was the first aim.  

Now, there’s a great likelihood the Hoosiers are underdogs of their last seven contests. Getting a couple of win throughout the remainder of the 12 months may very well be thought-about a hit. 

There may be nonetheless hope for Indiana to cling onto, however that might require some main adjustments on the sphere. Head coach Tom Allen’s largest take a look at is forward of him in stopping a season collapse, and it could decide his favorability with the fan base.