Phillips, Polk out; Thomas questionable

The hits just keep on coming.

While the Hoosiers continue to pick themselves up from a 42-20 blowout at home against Ball State last Saturday, IU football coach Bill Lynch continues to receive bad news.

In his weekly press conference Tuesday, Lynch said senior captain and cornerback Chris Phillips will miss the rest of the season.

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“You hate to see that happen,” Lynch said. “Particularly for Chris because he’s put a lot into this football program. ... This was his chance, and to see him go down that early in the season, you really hate to see that happen.”

ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg reported that Phillips tore his anterior cruciate ligament against the Cardinals.

If that were the only bad news, it would be enough to put the Hoosiers in a tough spot against Michigan State on Saturday.

But it isn’t.

Junior safety Nick Polk is out against the Spartans with a knee injury, while junior safety Austin Thomas is still questionable with a lower leg injury. Lynch said Thomas is “progressing” and the decision as to whether or not he will play will be made later in the week.

With the number of starting defensive backs possibly out against the Spartans, that leaves freshman cornerback Chris Adkins as the only healthy starter – and he was mentally roughed up when he severely injured Ball State receiver Dante Love. The hit was clean and had no malicious intent, and Love is expected to live a healthy life, but likely won’t ever play football.

“Obviously we lost some key players,” said senior linebacker Geno Johnson. “But we’ve got some young guys behind them that are going to step up and we all have faith in. As far as the defense, I don’t see us taking a step back at all.”

However, Lynch is not about to make any excuses and said it provides a great opportunity for some players to get a chance to make an impact.

“If you worry about all of those kind of things, you’re not doing your job in terms of getting your football team better,” Lynch said.

The injuries to the secondary came in a flurry in the second half on Saturday – Phillips’ knee buckled on a deep touchdown pass, while Polk was hurt early in the third quarter – and could not come at a worse time for the Hoosiers.

Playing the Spartans, IU will have to defend running back and Heisman Trophy candidate Javon Ringer. Through four games, Ringer leads the nation with 11 touchdowns and is second with 699 yards.

Last year – with a healthy defense – Ringer rushed for 203 yards against IU. Thomas was responsible for 22 tackles because Ringer and company evaded the Hoosiers’ front seven and kept reaching the secondary.

Without Phillips, Polk and possibly Thomas, the secondary would seem to be in complete disarray. Lynch said sophomore Richard Council will replace Phillips while senior Joe Kleinsmith is still penciled in as one of the safeties. He filled in for Thomas against Ball State.

“It’s my time to be a leader,” Kleinsmith said. “It’s my last year. I’ve got to go out on a winning note and fulfill my leadership role.”

Sophomore safety Jerimy Finch was passed on in favor of Kleinsmith and is a possible candidate to replace Polk. But Finch has played sparingly and has recorded only three tackles.

“I think it’s one of those weeks,” Lynch said, “where we have to get a lot of guys ready and play a lot of guys.”