Indiana University Athletics
QUOTED: Indiana at Illinois
11/8/2017 5:00:00 PM | Football
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The Indiana football team will head to Champaign, Ill., this Saturday to take on the Illinois Fighting Illini. Kickoff is set for noon ET on BTN.
Each week we will compile five quotes and storylines recapping the previous game and previewing the upcoming one.
"We had our seniors all come down and stand before the team and understand what is at stake, a sense of urgency at this stage of the season in our final three Big Ten games," said head coach Tom Allen.
During Sunday's team meeting, Allen brought all his seniors to the front of the room, emphasizing what is at stake. He said he wanted all the players to look those seniors in the eye and understand what these final three contests, starting with Illinois this Saturday, mean not only to that class but the rest of the squad. Allen and his players know how special this group of seniors is, and he is using that as a motivating factor with the rest of the team.
"I spent three years with Coach (Lovie) Smith at Chicago," said offensive coordinator Mike DeBord. "…System-wise, I've seen a lot of things he did as an (NFL) head coach, and he has carried that on to Illinois."
When Indiana's offense goes against Illinois' defense this Saturday, it will be a matchup that features two coaches who spent time together on the same NFL coaching staff. DeBord, who spent five years as an assistant coach in the NFL, was the tight ends coach from 2010-12 for then head coach Lovie Smith and the Chicago Bears. DeBord has taken notice that Smith's defensive philosophy with the Fighting Illini is quite similar to his NFL days as a head coach and defensive coordinator.
DeBord, a big advocate of protecting the football, will go against Smith's defense this Saturday, which is fourth in the Big Ten and 31st nationally in forcing turnovers with 16.
"He grew just from the day he became a linebacker…I knew mentally he was going to be there," said senior linebacker Tegray Scales about his teammate Chris Covington. "The film and stuff he watches is incredible. He's physically there, so he has all the tools."
Despite losing Marcus Oliver following the 2016 campaign, Allen, Scales and the rest of the Indiana defense felt confident in the man they had to replace him. He showed signs during the 2016 campaign that he would be ready to make the jump this year. For example, the former quarterback had a six-tackle game (all solo) at Michigan last year with a sack and forced fumble.
Following a strong offseason, where he earned the Iron Hoosier Award as the linebacker's MVP during 2017 summer workouts, Covington has impressed and his teammates, like Scales, have taken notice. He is second on the team with 8.5 tackles for loss and is third with 66 stops. He has 37 solos (4th), 1.5 sacks, one fumble recovery, three pass breakups (3rd) and five quarterback hurries (1st). He owns at least seven tackles in six of the Hoosiers nine games.
"This is another Big Ten program," said redshirt junior wide receiver Simmie Cobbs Jr. on Illinois. "You can't doubt any team. They have great athletes. I am looking forward to it."
Cobbs and the rest of the Hoosiers know that every Saturday in the Big Ten is going to bring a challenge, and that is exactly how they are viewing this weekend's matchup. Speaking of challenges, Cobbs, a native of Illinois, has brought on many challenges to Big Ten defenses this year and is looking forward to facing some of the strong athletes Illinois has on its defense. He is the lone receiver in the Big Ten and one of five in the country with three 10-plus catch games in 2017.
"Obviously we are going to take it week-by-week," said fifth-year senior safety Chase Dutra. "But we need every one of them…Our main focus is to get better every single day. Continue to fight, continue to learn."
Dutra, who leads the Hoosiers with 59 total tackles in conference games only (4th in the Big Ten), has emerged as a key contributor to the IU defense this season. On top of that, his leadership has become noticeable as he has shown how much he expects not only out of himself, but his teammates as well. Following Saturday's loss to Wisconsin, Dutra said that he 'wants dogs on his side.' He said he knows he has those dogs with him and looks forward to competing with them these next three weeks as IU takes it one game at a time.
Each week we will compile five quotes and storylines recapping the previous game and previewing the upcoming one.
"We had our seniors all come down and stand before the team and understand what is at stake, a sense of urgency at this stage of the season in our final three Big Ten games," said head coach Tom Allen.
During Sunday's team meeting, Allen brought all his seniors to the front of the room, emphasizing what is at stake. He said he wanted all the players to look those seniors in the eye and understand what these final three contests, starting with Illinois this Saturday, mean not only to that class but the rest of the squad. Allen and his players know how special this group of seniors is, and he is using that as a motivating factor with the rest of the team.
"I spent three years with Coach (Lovie) Smith at Chicago," said offensive coordinator Mike DeBord. "…System-wise, I've seen a lot of things he did as an (NFL) head coach, and he has carried that on to Illinois."
When Indiana's offense goes against Illinois' defense this Saturday, it will be a matchup that features two coaches who spent time together on the same NFL coaching staff. DeBord, who spent five years as an assistant coach in the NFL, was the tight ends coach from 2010-12 for then head coach Lovie Smith and the Chicago Bears. DeBord has taken notice that Smith's defensive philosophy with the Fighting Illini is quite similar to his NFL days as a head coach and defensive coordinator.
DeBord, a big advocate of protecting the football, will go against Smith's defense this Saturday, which is fourth in the Big Ten and 31st nationally in forcing turnovers with 16.
"He grew just from the day he became a linebacker…I knew mentally he was going to be there," said senior linebacker Tegray Scales about his teammate Chris Covington. "The film and stuff he watches is incredible. He's physically there, so he has all the tools."
Despite losing Marcus Oliver following the 2016 campaign, Allen, Scales and the rest of the Indiana defense felt confident in the man they had to replace him. He showed signs during the 2016 campaign that he would be ready to make the jump this year. For example, the former quarterback had a six-tackle game (all solo) at Michigan last year with a sack and forced fumble.
Following a strong offseason, where he earned the Iron Hoosier Award as the linebacker's MVP during 2017 summer workouts, Covington has impressed and his teammates, like Scales, have taken notice. He is second on the team with 8.5 tackles for loss and is third with 66 stops. He has 37 solos (4th), 1.5 sacks, one fumble recovery, three pass breakups (3rd) and five quarterback hurries (1st). He owns at least seven tackles in six of the Hoosiers nine games.
"This is another Big Ten program," said redshirt junior wide receiver Simmie Cobbs Jr. on Illinois. "You can't doubt any team. They have great athletes. I am looking forward to it."
Cobbs and the rest of the Hoosiers know that every Saturday in the Big Ten is going to bring a challenge, and that is exactly how they are viewing this weekend's matchup. Speaking of challenges, Cobbs, a native of Illinois, has brought on many challenges to Big Ten defenses this year and is looking forward to facing some of the strong athletes Illinois has on its defense. He is the lone receiver in the Big Ten and one of five in the country with three 10-plus catch games in 2017.
"Obviously we are going to take it week-by-week," said fifth-year senior safety Chase Dutra. "But we need every one of them…Our main focus is to get better every single day. Continue to fight, continue to learn."
Dutra, who leads the Hoosiers with 59 total tackles in conference games only (4th in the Big Ten), has emerged as a key contributor to the IU defense this season. On top of that, his leadership has become noticeable as he has shown how much he expects not only out of himself, but his teammates as well. Following Saturday's loss to Wisconsin, Dutra said that he 'wants dogs on his side.' He said he knows he has those dogs with him and looks forward to competing with them these next three weeks as IU takes it one game at a time.
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