Team meeting sparks Hoosiers

After a 58-0 loss to Michigan last weekend, coach Cam Cameron said he should be held responsible for the Hoosiers' poor performance. But after IU's 51-43 win against Minnesota, the players feel otherwise.\n"Everybody blames Cam, but he can't play the game," junior quarterback Antwaan Randle El said. "He knows football. He does everything right that needs to be done."\nEven if that means stepping back and letting the players take control. That is just what Cameron did last week after the complete meltdown at Michigan. \n"At times the head coach needs to shut up," Cameron said.\nWith that in mind, the captains gathered the team Oct. 15 to get things moving in the right direction.\n"(Cameron) kind of let us take over the team as captains and let us lead and everybody else follow," Randle El said. "At some point, the captains had to come and not ask the team what they want, but come up with something like, it's going to be our way or you don't have to be here."\nThe captains asked the team to take more pride in their work on the field and do their jobs.\n"I think we began winning that game on Sunday," senior defensive tackle and co-captain Paul Mandina said. "What that created was more of a unified team and people being accountable for themselves and accountable for their actions."\nThe Hoosiers (3-4, 2-2) have also begun to turn to, rather than turning to outside sources for inspiration. In front of the Homecoming crowd of about 30,000 at Memorial Stadium, Randle El said the players knew they had to rely on one another.\nBoth the offense and defense responded to the meeting. Randle El surpassed his previous school record for total yardage in a game with 473 yards, including 210 on the ground. Junior running back Levron Williams ran for 134 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries.\nSenior receiver and co-captain Versie Gaddis had 155 yards on six catches. Gaddis scored the Hoosiers' first touchdown with an over-the-shoulder grab in the end zone on a 24-yard pass from Randle El.\nGaddis' play helped create more holes for Randle El on the ground. Overall, the Golden Gophers were off-balance for much of the game. \n"The passing game had a lot to do with us running the option," Randle El said. "They kind of got confused. They didn't know what we were going to do. Once you get them off-balance, you can basically do anything you want."\nThe defense didn't post the numbers the offense did, but the defense finally made the plays they hadn't made all year. Junior cornerback Sharrod Wallace intercepted a Travis Cole pass in the fourth quarter in Hoosier territory. The play led to a 35-yard touchdown run by Williams.\nOn the Gophers' next offensive play, junior linebacker Justin Smith blitzed and blindsided Cole, who fumbled the ball. Mandina recovered the ball at the Minnesota 29-yard line. Randle El then ran from a yard out to all but end the game.\n"Plays like that can determine the outcome of a ball game," Mandina said.\nThe defense was inspired by a speech former Hoosier standout Adewale Ogunleye gave the night before the game. Ogunleye spoke about his experience with the Miami Dolphins, which boasts one of the best defenses in the NFL.\nOgunleye told the defense to have confidence. His speech, along with the Michigan loss, led the defense to turn things around.\nWith the Hoosiers two games under .500 before Saturday's game, IU knew it would have to play as a team and win.\n"We kind of played off each other, and that's what we love to do," Randle El said. "If we would have lost, it would have been devastating to us. I think we as captains came together."\nMinnesota coach Glen Mason said he was impressed with IU's ability to turn things around after the loss to the Wolverines.\n"For them to regroup says a lot about Cam Cameron and his coaching staff and the type of young men they have in their program," Mason said.