The speculation appeared to become reality in week one when Southern Illinois passed for 411 yards and put up 40 points in Memorial Stadium.
But Wilson and several other coaches like to say that the greatest improvement comes between week one and week two. So, despite several coverage errors and missed tackles, the secondary had moments to be proud of in IU’s 36-22 win against Florida International last week — including the game-clinching 96-yard interception return from freshman defensive back Jameel Cook Jr.
Nevertheless, the truest trial of any progress with the young secondary might come Saturday when IU are hosts to Western Kentucky and star quarterback Brandon Doughty.
“They are going to get a big test this week,” Wilson said.
Doughty’s résumé can go toe-to-toe with the best quarterbacks in the country. IU fans are used to hearing about all the preseason acclaim placed on senior quarterback Nate Sudfeld, but praise for Doughty might go even deeper.
He finds his name on the watchlists for the Maxwell, O’Brien, Camp and Manning trophies.
His 11.2 attempts-per-touchdown ratio fell behind only Oregon’s Marcus Mariota and Ohio State’s J.T. Barrett last season — as good company as one could wish. His 4,830 yards and 49 touchdowns led the nation as well.
IU secondary coach Brandon Shelby said he went to see the Indianapolis Colts play once and was enamored by quarterback Andrew Luck. The way he saw things coming, where to get the ball and what adjustments to make, all blew Shelby away. He said he sees those traits in Doughty as well.
“This young man, he shows that on film,” Shelby said.
But IU likes to practice quite a bit in first team offense against first team defense drills, so the secondary is familiar with facing a quarterback with some of these skillsets.
“Fortunately for us, we’ve been seeing this from (Sudfeld) all fall camp and the first two weeks of the season,” secondary coach Noah Joseph said.
Joseph does not deny the talent of this secondary. He said he worries more about inconsistencies.
One area he said he believes needs improvement is game preparation.
Shelby and Joseph expect mistakes with these young players from time to time. Wilson said he preached not to be too hard on the defensive backs when they do slip up.
For example, Shelby pointed out that their hard work has even made some mistakes almost look good.
“The great thing about those young guys, what they don’t know, they don’t know,” he said. “So at the end of the day, them playing hard alleviates their mistakes.”
Take for instance Cook’s big interception for a touchdown last week. Shelby said Cook was supposed to be blitzing on that play. He didn’t do his stunt and messed up, but he played hard and made the play that sealed the victory.
Wilson has said he wants the defense playing aggressively but still ready for adjustments. He saw some of that against Florida International, and he said these players have a good look in their eyes.
“They are not the answer yet,” Wilson said. “We are going to have a lot of glitches with those young men. Again, it’s just young, and we’ll grow with those guys.”
