Indiana University Athletics
Postgame Quotes: Indiana at Penn State
9/30/2017 10:47:00 PM | Football
Postgame Quotes
Indiana at No. 4/4 Penn State
September 30, 2017
Indiana Head Coach Tom Allen
TOM ALLEN: I don't have the stats in front of me, but I don't really need them. Just very frustrating and disappointing to give away what we gave away in the first half. The turnovers, poor special teams play is inexcusable. One of our objectives is to protect the football and we didn't do that today and you play this talented of a team on the road, you're not going to beat them. For us to be in it in the third quarter after playing so poorly as an offense, a special teams unit, and a defense at some key times, I thought that we had our chances still in the third quarter and didn't take advantage of them. I'm proud of our defense. I thought the kids played really hard, just talking to their staff afterwards.
[Saquon] Barkley is a special, special player and we kept him in check, pretty much, and we gave up some big plays which is disappointing, but our kids fought hard. We just kept giving them opportunities. Five turnovers, you had four, and the fifth was the running into the kicker, the penalty that gave them the first down and they ended up scoring off of that. You can't do that and beat a really good football team. That's very disappointing, from my perspective, but proud of how hard our kids played, just didn't play well enough. That's on me, that's on us and we're going to get that fixed.
Q. As well as the special teams have played over the past few weeks, was today just one of those days?
TA: I guess. I mean, I have no answer. It's so disappointing. We're protecting the football. The opening kickoff is just inexcusable. Yeah, he's a great player, but nobody touched him, so, we'll get that fixed. When you have a team like this, you cannot give them those opportunities and we did. It really, really hurts because we have so many guys who care so much. It's a good lesson in life. You can care all you want, but you better execute, and if you don't, teams like this will make you pay. Hats off to them for making plays.
Q. Do you have an early read on J-Shun Harris' injury?
TA: I don't. I'll have to get with our trainers and get a final analysis. We've got a few guys you know, obviously, left guys at home for some injuries. Got a few more hurt today, so pretty early in the season to have this many guys dinged up, so we'll find out his status here shortly.
Q. After that 28-point first quarter deficit, were you proud of your team's response?
TA: There's no doubt, they're fighters now. They didn't quit. They didn't pack it in. We made them earn it and they had to resort to throwing little trick plays at the end to try to get points for whatever. Yeah, I'm proud of our guys. This was not an effort issue. This was not a 'want to' issue. This was about execution and special teams. I'm going to put it on special teams. The offense didn't come to play in the second half. We've got to get that right, but special teams was really disappointing. I'm going to take a lot of pride in that and when it's right, its right, and when it's wrong, it's wrong. It was wrong and I didn't like it so it's going to get fixed.
Q. What are you seeing from Richard Lagow right now? He doesn't seem like he's taking that next step.
TA: No, he hasn't. So, we're going to play the quarterback that gives us the best chance to win. We'll go back and watch the film and whoever that is, we'll make that decision. It's about winning football games and executing at critical times. That's what we've got to be able to do. We've got to move the football and score points and we're not scoring points in the two big games we've had to do it in, the conference games. Yeah, we've had two good teams to play, but that doesn't diminish the fact that we've got to move the football. So, whoever gives us the best chance to move it and score points, that's going to be the guy.
Q. How do you think Peyton Ramsey responded facing his first Big Ten atmosphere?
TA: He did some good things, obviously the pick was costly, but we'll go back and evaluate everything, but he did some positive things. He got some first downs, moved the ball, moved the chains, but it was a tough environment. It kind of felt like what we had the stuff (noise) set up in practice. It sounded just like practice, just deafening on those third downs, but that's how it is and he'll get better and better at that, the more experience he gets.
Q. We're talking about Tegray [Scales] and the three sacks.
TA: He played amazingly. Unbelievable. He's a special player. He's an All-American. He really is, and I love that kid. He's as good a kid as he is a player, if not better, so I'm proud to have him on our team, proud of the man that he's become. He's a special, special player. He played really, really well, and to me he embodies what we're all about. That's what hurts for me is for guys like that. They deserve a better chance then that. An opportunity to win the game in the end. It's hard as well as he played. That's part of it.
Q. How big were those plays that [Jonathan] Crawford made?
TA: He came up and did some great things. The kick was huge and the key stops and break ups. He's a good one. He really is. We just need more guys. There's a drop off that hurts us, so the guys can't play every single snap. Saquon [Barkley] has been a difficult discussion. Crawford did some good things.
Q. You seemed to break up some bigger runs today. What does that say about your offensive line coming into Penn State and blocking as well as they did?
TA: We'll go back and watch and see. I think we have a chance to be a good football team. I don't care who you are. If you give up 20 points against this team, it's going to be a rough day at the office. We didn't quit. We kept fighting. There are definitely positives. I'm a pretty realistic person about things and I saw enough to know that there are things that happened that are fixable for sure. My biggest concern is to just keep them healthy. I'm just concerned about that this early on in the season. That's a legit concern, and the best thing to me is just to get things cleaned up and consistently run the football, execute, score more points and making sure that we don't give away games and give away points, which is what we did in the first half. It makes it really hard.
Q. To circle back to the injuries with the two guys that didn't travel, Marcelino [Ball] and A'Shon [Riggins]. Are those long-term deals or do you expect them back this week or what's the prognosis of that?
TA: I don't know. I hope so. It definitely now is (getting better) with a week into it. It's a few-week process to know for sure. I don't expect him back next week, but we'll see from there. The guys are doing a great job of taking care of him. We'll get him back as soon as we can and get him healthy. Other guys got to rise up.
Indiana Players
Peyton Ramsey | QB | So./Fr.
Q. This is your first big test in a BIG 10 environment, how do you think you responded in the 2nd quarter?
PR: Getting thrown into the mix with a big crowd, it's a good experience, definitely. We went out and got some first downs, went down and scored a touchdown, and kind of got some confidence, and we just stalled from there. So, we have to be better, especially against a top-five team in the country.
Q. What was your mentality when you were trying to chip away at that lead?
PR: Nothing really changed. You just have to act like it's 0-0 and go down and get points. I think that was our whole mindset, just chipping away, and keep doing what we do, and try and go down and get points.
Q. Is it frustrating for the offense to watch the defense get a couple three-and-outs in a row and then kind of have the drive stop?
PR: It is frustrating for us. When they are going out there, and they are playing very well, and then we come out and stall. It is kind of frustrating for us at times.
Tegray Scales | LB | Sr./Sr.
Q. You had three sacks, what was really working in the pass-rush game today?
TS: Just playing fast. Our D-line was able to flush them out and I had to use my abilities to go track him down, and that is what I did.
Q. This is the second year in-a-row you guys limited Barkley on the ground, how tough is it to gameplan for him on the ground as well as those backfield passes?
TS: He is the top, if not one of the top, players in the country. I think our coaches did a great job game planning, and our defense brought in a whole week. I think we did what we had to do to limit him.
Q. What you gave up on special teams today, how tough is that especially when you played pretty well on defense?
TS: It's extremely tough, especially going against a top team in the country. I think that all three phases were huge, but giving that up (Barkley's touchdown) on special teams. I don't think you can beat any team, by giving up touchdowns and things like that, or have been able to come back.
Simmie Cobbs Jr. | WR | Sr./Jr.
Q. Zero points in the second half, what went wrong for you guys out there?
SC: We had a gameplan, and we were trying to stick to it. We left some plays out there on the field, and we just didn't make enough of them.
Q. How do you think Peyton handled his first tough BIG 10 road environment?
SC: I think he went out there and handled business like we expect all of our quarterbacks to do. I am glad he got it out of the way.
Q. How frustrating is it on a day where the defense steps up, you guys did good things offensively at times, but special teams just buried you early?
SC: It's difficult as a team when you come in and everyone is stoked and ready to go and you just have a couple mental mistakes like turning the ball over. It just sets you back and you can't have those kind of mistakes, especially not playing against the #4 team in the country.
Chase Dutra | S | 5th/Sr.
Q. What did you see on that opening kick-off?
CD: We went with the deep-right kick, and they pretty much just sealed us all in and they had a nice wall set up. We just busted on a bad one, it was disappointing, we didn't do our jobs, and it's as simple as that.
Q. Special teams has been so good the past couple of weeks, is it just one of those days where everything goes wrong?
CD: It was just really disappointing overall. We had a bad day on special teams. We didn't execute our jobs all-around on any of our special teams, I think. We just got to learn from these mistakes and get better.
Q. Another year of holding Saquon Barkley in check, at least on the ground. How complicated is it to game plan? Because he can catch passes, he can run the ball, he threw the ball today…
CD: Obviously everyone in the country knows he is a versatile back. He can run, catch, he is on kick-off return, he even threw one today. Obviously, it's hard to game plan for him, but I think our coaches did a great job the last two years trying to get in the right schemes and positions to shut them down, and obviously we did that in the run game.
Indiana at No. 4/4 Penn State
September 30, 2017
Indiana Head Coach Tom Allen
TOM ALLEN: I don't have the stats in front of me, but I don't really need them. Just very frustrating and disappointing to give away what we gave away in the first half. The turnovers, poor special teams play is inexcusable. One of our objectives is to protect the football and we didn't do that today and you play this talented of a team on the road, you're not going to beat them. For us to be in it in the third quarter after playing so poorly as an offense, a special teams unit, and a defense at some key times, I thought that we had our chances still in the third quarter and didn't take advantage of them. I'm proud of our defense. I thought the kids played really hard, just talking to their staff afterwards.
[Saquon] Barkley is a special, special player and we kept him in check, pretty much, and we gave up some big plays which is disappointing, but our kids fought hard. We just kept giving them opportunities. Five turnovers, you had four, and the fifth was the running into the kicker, the penalty that gave them the first down and they ended up scoring off of that. You can't do that and beat a really good football team. That's very disappointing, from my perspective, but proud of how hard our kids played, just didn't play well enough. That's on me, that's on us and we're going to get that fixed.
Q. As well as the special teams have played over the past few weeks, was today just one of those days?
TA: I guess. I mean, I have no answer. It's so disappointing. We're protecting the football. The opening kickoff is just inexcusable. Yeah, he's a great player, but nobody touched him, so, we'll get that fixed. When you have a team like this, you cannot give them those opportunities and we did. It really, really hurts because we have so many guys who care so much. It's a good lesson in life. You can care all you want, but you better execute, and if you don't, teams like this will make you pay. Hats off to them for making plays.
Q. Do you have an early read on J-Shun Harris' injury?
TA: I don't. I'll have to get with our trainers and get a final analysis. We've got a few guys you know, obviously, left guys at home for some injuries. Got a few more hurt today, so pretty early in the season to have this many guys dinged up, so we'll find out his status here shortly.
Q. After that 28-point first quarter deficit, were you proud of your team's response?
TA: There's no doubt, they're fighters now. They didn't quit. They didn't pack it in. We made them earn it and they had to resort to throwing little trick plays at the end to try to get points for whatever. Yeah, I'm proud of our guys. This was not an effort issue. This was not a 'want to' issue. This was about execution and special teams. I'm going to put it on special teams. The offense didn't come to play in the second half. We've got to get that right, but special teams was really disappointing. I'm going to take a lot of pride in that and when it's right, its right, and when it's wrong, it's wrong. It was wrong and I didn't like it so it's going to get fixed.
Q. What are you seeing from Richard Lagow right now? He doesn't seem like he's taking that next step.
TA: No, he hasn't. So, we're going to play the quarterback that gives us the best chance to win. We'll go back and watch the film and whoever that is, we'll make that decision. It's about winning football games and executing at critical times. That's what we've got to be able to do. We've got to move the football and score points and we're not scoring points in the two big games we've had to do it in, the conference games. Yeah, we've had two good teams to play, but that doesn't diminish the fact that we've got to move the football. So, whoever gives us the best chance to move it and score points, that's going to be the guy.
Q. How do you think Peyton Ramsey responded facing his first Big Ten atmosphere?
TA: He did some good things, obviously the pick was costly, but we'll go back and evaluate everything, but he did some positive things. He got some first downs, moved the ball, moved the chains, but it was a tough environment. It kind of felt like what we had the stuff (noise) set up in practice. It sounded just like practice, just deafening on those third downs, but that's how it is and he'll get better and better at that, the more experience he gets.
Q. We're talking about Tegray [Scales] and the three sacks.
TA: He played amazingly. Unbelievable. He's a special player. He's an All-American. He really is, and I love that kid. He's as good a kid as he is a player, if not better, so I'm proud to have him on our team, proud of the man that he's become. He's a special, special player. He played really, really well, and to me he embodies what we're all about. That's what hurts for me is for guys like that. They deserve a better chance then that. An opportunity to win the game in the end. It's hard as well as he played. That's part of it.
Q. How big were those plays that [Jonathan] Crawford made?
TA: He came up and did some great things. The kick was huge and the key stops and break ups. He's a good one. He really is. We just need more guys. There's a drop off that hurts us, so the guys can't play every single snap. Saquon [Barkley] has been a difficult discussion. Crawford did some good things.
Q. You seemed to break up some bigger runs today. What does that say about your offensive line coming into Penn State and blocking as well as they did?
TA: We'll go back and watch and see. I think we have a chance to be a good football team. I don't care who you are. If you give up 20 points against this team, it's going to be a rough day at the office. We didn't quit. We kept fighting. There are definitely positives. I'm a pretty realistic person about things and I saw enough to know that there are things that happened that are fixable for sure. My biggest concern is to just keep them healthy. I'm just concerned about that this early on in the season. That's a legit concern, and the best thing to me is just to get things cleaned up and consistently run the football, execute, score more points and making sure that we don't give away games and give away points, which is what we did in the first half. It makes it really hard.
Q. To circle back to the injuries with the two guys that didn't travel, Marcelino [Ball] and A'Shon [Riggins]. Are those long-term deals or do you expect them back this week or what's the prognosis of that?
TA: I don't know. I hope so. It definitely now is (getting better) with a week into it. It's a few-week process to know for sure. I don't expect him back next week, but we'll see from there. The guys are doing a great job of taking care of him. We'll get him back as soon as we can and get him healthy. Other guys got to rise up.
Indiana Players
Peyton Ramsey | QB | So./Fr.
Q. This is your first big test in a BIG 10 environment, how do you think you responded in the 2nd quarter?
PR: Getting thrown into the mix with a big crowd, it's a good experience, definitely. We went out and got some first downs, went down and scored a touchdown, and kind of got some confidence, and we just stalled from there. So, we have to be better, especially against a top-five team in the country.
Q. What was your mentality when you were trying to chip away at that lead?
PR: Nothing really changed. You just have to act like it's 0-0 and go down and get points. I think that was our whole mindset, just chipping away, and keep doing what we do, and try and go down and get points.
Q. Is it frustrating for the offense to watch the defense get a couple three-and-outs in a row and then kind of have the drive stop?
PR: It is frustrating for us. When they are going out there, and they are playing very well, and then we come out and stall. It is kind of frustrating for us at times.
Tegray Scales | LB | Sr./Sr.
Q. You had three sacks, what was really working in the pass-rush game today?
TS: Just playing fast. Our D-line was able to flush them out and I had to use my abilities to go track him down, and that is what I did.
Q. This is the second year in-a-row you guys limited Barkley on the ground, how tough is it to gameplan for him on the ground as well as those backfield passes?
TS: He is the top, if not one of the top, players in the country. I think our coaches did a great job game planning, and our defense brought in a whole week. I think we did what we had to do to limit him.
Q. What you gave up on special teams today, how tough is that especially when you played pretty well on defense?
TS: It's extremely tough, especially going against a top team in the country. I think that all three phases were huge, but giving that up (Barkley's touchdown) on special teams. I don't think you can beat any team, by giving up touchdowns and things like that, or have been able to come back.
Simmie Cobbs Jr. | WR | Sr./Jr.
Q. Zero points in the second half, what went wrong for you guys out there?
SC: We had a gameplan, and we were trying to stick to it. We left some plays out there on the field, and we just didn't make enough of them.
Q. How do you think Peyton handled his first tough BIG 10 road environment?
SC: I think he went out there and handled business like we expect all of our quarterbacks to do. I am glad he got it out of the way.
Q. How frustrating is it on a day where the defense steps up, you guys did good things offensively at times, but special teams just buried you early?
SC: It's difficult as a team when you come in and everyone is stoked and ready to go and you just have a couple mental mistakes like turning the ball over. It just sets you back and you can't have those kind of mistakes, especially not playing against the #4 team in the country.
Chase Dutra | S | 5th/Sr.
Q. What did you see on that opening kick-off?
CD: We went with the deep-right kick, and they pretty much just sealed us all in and they had a nice wall set up. We just busted on a bad one, it was disappointing, we didn't do our jobs, and it's as simple as that.
Q. Special teams has been so good the past couple of weeks, is it just one of those days where everything goes wrong?
CD: It was just really disappointing overall. We had a bad day on special teams. We didn't execute our jobs all-around on any of our special teams, I think. We just got to learn from these mistakes and get better.
Q. Another year of holding Saquon Barkley in check, at least on the ground. How complicated is it to game plan? Because he can catch passes, he can run the ball, he threw the ball today…
CD: Obviously everyone in the country knows he is a versatile back. He can run, catch, he is on kick-off return, he even threw one today. Obviously, it's hard to game plan for him, but I think our coaches did a great job the last two years trying to get in the right schemes and positions to shut them down, and obviously we did that in the run game.
Players Mentioned
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