And he has taken them willingly.
He took the blame for not going for it on fourth down in the fourth quarter. He admitted he needed to call a better game. And when talking about allowing the comeback, he put that on himself, too.
“It’s my responsibility to create the environment and culture that we win games,” Wilson said. “We consistently win games and we close out and finish games, and we didn’t do that.”
When a fifth-year coach such as Wilson opens Big Ten play with three losses, it isn’t uncommon for fans to become frustrated. No matter how small or how large a percentage of wins, there have been those that stand impatiently waiting for Wilson to turn things around.
Yet he thinks the program is showing signs of turning around. There might have been recent losses, but two of those losses have come down to the wire.
“I kind of like it, because we’re 4-and-3 and we’re mad,” Wilson said.
Now, the Hoosiers have to try to bounce back from these woes and play at Michigan State, a team that hasn’t lost since Nov. 8, 2014.
Advice from a former player has aided in Wilson’s approach to moving on from the loss.
“If you keep emphasizing the hurt, you’re going to suffer,” the player told Wilson. “If you learn from the lesson, you grow.”
Because this isn’t just another game, it is the battle for the Old Brass Spittoon. The rivalry provides added significance, especially considering IU is losing the series 44-15-2 and hasn’t won since 2006.
Though the team said it needs to focus on next week, move on from the 55-52 loss to Rutgers and maintain good spirits, there are lessons to be learned from the game in the X’s and O’s.
“We’re not sugarcoating anything, but we have things that need to be fixed,” Wilson said.
Wilson has said time and time again he believes this is a winning team but a team that has to win games. He does not view six wins and a bowl berth as the goal. He said the goal is winning as many games as possible. Winning teams should be bowl teams, he said.
The Spartans are second in the Big Ten in sacks and first in turnover margin, and they send out a quarterback in Connor Cook that Wilson referred to as one of the premier quarterbacks in the country.
“They are who they are, and they’ve had one of the best defenses in the nation the last however many years for a reason,” senior quarterback Nate Sudfeld said. “Because they are good at what they do.”
