Indiana Football's AJ Barner: 'We Need to Put Together Four Quarters of Football'
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Join Indiana tight end AJ Barner and defensive back Jaylin Williams on this week's Episode 6 of the Hoosier Roundtable Podcast.
Barner and Williams recap the Hoosiers' 35-21 loss to Nebraska and preview the homecoming matchup versus the undefeated No. 4-ranked Michigan on Saturday.
Read the transcript summary, or scroll down to view the full episode.
—On what was clicking in the second quarter...
BARNER: "I think it's really important with the offense we have to get that first first down, and that's what we were able to do. We kind of struggled all night to move the ball to start with, but once we were able to get something going, we were able to build off of it and finish in the red zone."
"We had a good second quarter and were confident about where we were at going into halftime, but as a tight end, just need to do a better job at getting open and making plays for the quarterback and blocking better for the run game...We need to put together four quarters of football, because we haven't done that yet this year, and when we do that, we're a very good football team."
—On getting off to a slow start on offense all season...
BARNER: "It's something that we talk about a good amount during the season. It's one thing to say it, but another thing to do it. I don't know if it's a focus to start the game or more energy, but we just need to go out there, start fast.
"I feel like with the tempo that we play at, the fast tempo, we need to start fast as well...I think putting ourselves in a better position on first down and making second down more manageable, not getting in third and longs and getting behind the chains."
—On losing to Nebraska...
WILLIAMS: "Any loss is a tough loss to swallow, and honestly, it's just us digging holes for ourselves early in the game. We started out kind of slow, and those come to bite you at the end of the game, especially going into Big Ten play. Most Big Ten games are going to be close. It's not about whose got the better athletes, but who's locked in during the whole course of the game."
—On Jaylin Lucas...
BARNER: "He was an early enrollee, so we saw it in the spring, and we saw it in fall camp too. I'm just happy for Jaylin because I know how hard he's worked and how deserving he is of those touches, and when we do get the ball to him, he's going to take advantage of it. He's a talented young player, and no moment's too big for him."
—On beating Michigan in 2020...
BARNER: "They came in our place as a ranked team, and we got on them early and kept that momentum going. I feel like this year's no different. They always have a good team, and we just need to come out ready to go.
WILLIAMS: "I remember I had a pick. Monster had a pick. Those are big plays for us because before that, they had big drives, so we needed to shut those drives down and make sure we secured the victory, and that's what we did."
—On the Michigan passing attack...
WILLIAMS: "They're fast. Eight, 14, they're fast receivers, but I've played against them before, so it's the same thing, just staying focused and making sure we're doing our job. The biggest thing for Michigan is you know they love to run the ball, so we just got to stop that run and be physical up front with them."
—On tackling well against the run...
WILLIAMS: "I think after that first game we had like 26 missed tackles, and Coach Allen really made it a big point of emphasis to wrap up and make sure we're tackling because that's one of the biggest keys in football, and that's our DNA."
Hoosier Roundtable Episode 6
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