COLUMBUS, Ohio – It was another week and another missed opportunity for IU as the Hoosiers dropped to 4-2 overall and 1-2 in the Big Ten after falling 49-26 to No. 3 Ohio State on Saturday.
Led by sophomore quarterback Dwayne Haskins’ 455 passing yards and six touchdowns, the Buckeyes were able to overcome a slow start to put away the Hoosiers.
Here are three takeaways from IU’s second loss of the season.
IU’s receiving corps can match with any team in the Big Ten.
With sophomore Whop Philyor and redshirt senior Luke Timian both sidelined with injuries, IU needed the rest of its receivers to step up. Redshirt junior Nick Westbrook and redshirt senior J-Shun Harris answered the call, as both eclipsed 100 receiving yards in the game. Westbrook collected 109 yards on five catches, and found the end zone on a 19-yard touchdown in the second quarter that gave IU a short-lived 17-14 lead.
Harris became redshirt sophomore quarterback Peyton Ramsey’s most reliable target, as he pulled in eight catches for 104 yards. Highlighted by an incredible one-handed grab in the second quarter, Harris set career highs in both receptions and receiving yards against the Buckeyes.
After not seeing a lot of time at receiver during the first few weeks of the season, Harris has been one of the more productive receivers during Big Ten play, totaling 200 receiving yards and a touchdown against conference foes.
“My mindset has always been to practice like I’m starting because you never know when your opportunity is going to come,” Harris said. “The opportunity has been there the past few weeks.”
Missed opportunities came back to haunt the offense.
With IU down 35-26 with a little less than three minutes remaining in the third quarter, redshirt freshman Bryant Fitzgerald intercepted Haskins, giving IU the ball at the Ohio State 49-yard-line. Even with the great field position, the Hoosiers were unable to put a drive together and wound up punting after going three-and-out.
Just minutes later, it was déjà vu, as the Hoosier offense began its drive at the Ohio State 33 after a poor punt. This time, IU was unable to move the ball at all and the drive ended with a missed 51-yard field goal attempt from redshirt junior Logan Justus.
After that, the Ohio State offense found its footing again and put away the Hoosiers with two fourth-quarter touchdowns, leaving IU to rue its missed chances.
“You have to put all of your energy right in there to make that game changing play,” IU Coach Tom Allen said. “That was our window of opportunity and we just couldn’t take advantage of it.”
The IU defense was good, but not good enough.
Ohio State's offense is one of the most balanced and potent in the nation.
Despite giving up 49 points, the Hoosiers held their own against Haskins and company, forcing three turnovers and limiting Ohio State’s effectiveness on the ground. A year after the Buckeyes torched IU for nearly 300 rushing yards, the Hoosiers limited Ohio State to 154 yards on the ground.
“I don’t think we backed down at all,” redshirt senior defensive end Nile Sykes said. “There were just a few times that we beat ourselves.”
Despite all of the good the IU defense did, its performance will be overshadowed by one blown assignment.
On the opening drive of the third quarter, Haskins hit receiver Parris Campbell along the sideline and with no one within 20 yards of him, Campbell strolled into the end zone untouched, giving Ohio State a 15-point lead.
“I wanted to call timeout as soon as I saw it happen,” Allen said. “I knew it was a touchdown. They caught us, we made a mistake and against teams like this, they make you pay.”
