Initial Thoughts: Indiana Has to Step Up Against Unbeaten Nebraska

Dominating in the Trenches

One of the best ways to be successful on the road is to dominate on the ground and control the lines of scrimmage. While there has been some valid concern about parts of Indiana’s attack this season, the rushing attack has been a consistent force.

Against FBS competition through week five, the Indiana Hoosiers are second in the country in yards per rush (6.4 yards per carry) and seventh nationally with 241.8 rushing yards per game.

In Big Ten play, the success on the ground has really ramped up with both Lee Beebe Jr. and Turbo Richard looking dominant. Beebe Jr. had 203 yards on the ground against Northwestern as the Hoosiers ran for 271 yards total.

Turbo Richard dodged a major injury against the Northwestern Wildcats and was clearly healthy against Rutgers, leading the charge with 204 yards as IU racked up 329 yards against the Scarlet Knights on Saturday night.

Nebraska’s defensive front has improved and is allowing only 3.3 yards per carry, good for 28th nationally. IU should feel fairly confident about finding success on the ground on Saturday, though. Maryland ran for 141 yards and averaged 5.6 yards per carry with runs of 56, 13, 10 and 11 yards.

As we’ve come to expect from IU’s defense, they continue to be dominant against the run as well. The Hoosiers are top ten nationally in both yards per carry against (2.4) and opponent rushing yards per game (77.3).

The Cornhuskers have a mobile quarterback who just ran for more than 100 yards against Maryland, so Indiana will have to do a better job corralling Anthony Colandrea than it did Northwestern’s Aidan Chiles. Controlling the lines of scrimmage could be an important first ingredient to passing this tough road test.

Finding Rhythm in the Passing Game

Can Nebraska limit the damage done by star receivers Nick Marsh and Charlie Becker. On Saturday night in New Jersey, Josh Hoover played his best game as a member of the Indiana Hoosiers.

The senior was extremely sharp, throwing for 251 yards and four touchdowns and starting the game 10/10 as IU took control of the proceedings. His two primary targets were, as expected, the duo of Marsh and Becker, and both racked up more than 100 yards.

The Nebraska Cornhuskers have a fierce pass rush and improved secondary, but Chris Durr just had 149 yards on seven receptions for the Maryland Terrapins, and Michigan State’s toothless passing attack managed 218 yards through the air with three receivers reaching 40 yards.

If Josh Hoover is given time by IU’s offensive line, there should be success for Nick Marsh, Charlie Becker and the emerging Davion Chandler. That will be particularly true if Indiana can continue to dominate on the ground and force the Nebraska defense to try and deal with a balanced attack.

Playing a Clean Game

Nebraska’s Memorial Stadium will be filled to the brim with fired-up Cornhusker fans, and emotions will be high for both sides.

As is expected under head coach Curt Cignetti, IU has done a fantastic job of limiting penalties and turnovers. In fact, the Hoosiers have only turned the ball over one time (and that was on special teams) through five games, and they are fourth in the country in fewest penalties per game (3.8) and sixth in penalty yards per game (30.8).

The same cannot be said for Nebraska. Matt Rhule’s team is 129th nationally with 80.5 penalty yards per contest on 9.8 penalties per game (133rd). If this game is tight and those penalty yard trends hold, it could be a big advantage for the Hoosiers.

Add us as a preferred source on Google