Column: Defense is holding the Hoosiers back

The series of events wasn’t supposed to unfold like this.

Not against the nation’s eighth-ranked team that treats every contest this season like a sacred handful of hours due to its ineligibility from participating in post-season competition.

The duel between Ohio State Coach Urban Meyer’s Buckeyes and IU Coach Kevin Wilson’s Hoosiers was supposed to be through at halftime.

It wasn’t.

The Buckeyes, considered by some to be the Big Ten Conference’s best team by a landslide, were supposed to suffocate a scrappy Indiana squad, which had its eyes on a monumental upset.

They didn’t.

The Hoosiers sent another round of unmistakable shockwaves throughout the Big Ten Conference, nearly knocking off Ohio State in an eventual 52-49 loss Saturday evening at Memorial Stadium.

This loss had the same visceral feeling as last week’s loss to Michigan State in which the Hoosiers were one big play, penalty or turnover away from claiming a signature victory that has eluded Indiana’s beleaguered program for the better part of the past decade.

Each time the momentum appeared to be headed in Indiana’s direction, the Buckeyes intervened.

Buckeyes quarterback Braxton Miller displayed why he might be a front-runner for the Heisman Trophy in years to come, accounting for more than 60 percent of Ohio State’s offense of the night.

He aided his team with one clutch play after another, ensuring Indiana would never take control of the hotly contested ball game.

When Miller’s number wasn’t called, running back Carlos Hyde’s was. The 6-foot, 232-pound workhorse back gouged the Hoosier rushing defense, racking up 156 yards on just 22 carries.

It’s fitting that Indiana’s downfall was a complete lack of ability to stop the rushing attack.

Saturday’s loss marked the second game this season in which the Hoosiers allowed more than 300 rushing yards, with the other coming at the hands of Northwestern two weeks ago.

Let that figure sink in for a moment.

Then consider how vastly different the Hoosiers’ fortunes would have been not only against Ohio State but against Michigan State and Northwestern had they fielded any semblance of an effective defense.

Too often Indiana’s defensive line was pushed around by Ohio State’s offensive line like the younger kids on the playground.  

Too often Indiana’s linebackers and defensive backs were burned in space by faster, more athletic receivers.

The writing was on the wall for most of the evening.

Three of the Buckeyes’ scoring plays covered 60 yards, 67 yards and 46 yards.
What’s most terrifying about the Hoosier defense is the lack of improvement from week to week.

Poor tackling, missed assignments and mental lapses continue to plague a defense that will be the defining unit of a team that possesses the potential to become bowl-eligible.

I stress the word potential.

Wilson’s offense has certainly reached its potential and beyond, as was evident by the 49 points hung on the Buckeyes.

But until his defense catches up, heartbreaking losses will continue to bludgeon Wilson’s program.

Had there been a handful of defensive stops here and there, Indiana might have been 5-1 at this juncture.

If only.

­— ckillore@indiana.edu