Sudfeld Strong In Return From Injury
10/17/2015 10:20:00 PM | Football
By: Sam Beishuizen | Twitter
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Nate Sudfeld's two weeks dealing with a nagging ankle injury didn't appear to have slowed him down much.
His team's result, however, didn't necessarily reflect the senior quarterback's play.
Sudfeld posted one of his career-best games in a 55-52 loss to Rutgers on Saturday in his first game action in nearly six quarters. He completed 32-of-42 attempts for a career-high 464 passing yards. He also tied a career-high with four passing touchdowns and added a fifth score on the ground.
"He played awesome," redshirt junior receiver Ricky Jones said. "He was hitting everything. I saw it in warmups (that) he was playing pretty well. He also had a great week of practice. It just transferred to the field."
Sudfeld participating was in question leading into Saturday's game. He was limited in practice the last two weeks after suffering an ankle injury in the third quarter of Indiana's Oct. 3 loss to Ohio State.
Sudfeld nearly played last weekend against Penn State after being medically cleared before head coach Kevin Wilson decided it would be best to keep him out. He returned to being nearly full-go in practice in the days leading up to Saturday's game against Rutgers and it was determined pre-game that he was healthy enough to play.
"It's still a work in progress and I'm still getting better," Sudfeld said. "Throughout the week, I was just feeling more confident that I could play. Really, it was Coach Wilson's call."
Once on the field, Sudfeld's injury was hardly noticeable from an onlooker's perspective.
His throws were sharp, especially in the first half where he completed 21-of-27 passes for 301 yards and two touchdowns. When Rutgers did manage to hit Sudfeld, he got up quickly without signs of being hurt and moved on to the next play without delay.
"I thought Nate played really well," redshirt junior receiver Mitchell Paige said. "He's throwing great balls. I thought he was really in rhythm, had some strong throws. Some of those hit me pretty good. I think last week maybe freshened his arm a little bit because I thought he played really well."
Paige led Indiana with 126 yards on eight catches. Jones wasn't far behind, hauling in six catches for 119 yards. Sophomore receiver Simmie Cobbs completed the trio of starting receivers who all went for more than 100 yards, catching seven passes for 107 yards.
"I thought he played well," Wilson said of Sudfeld. "It was good to get those receivers going."
Sudfeld wasn't eager to talk about his own performance in postgame afterward. He was less interested in his own numbers and more concerned with the result.
He said he'll help lead Indiana in resetting after a third consecutive loss and get to work on preparing for Michigan State. With another performance like this week's and some cleaning up elsewhere, Sudfeld said IU should be in good shape.
"It's frustrating, but I love this team," Sudfeld said. "I love the guys on the team. There was a lot of good from today."
Majette Helps Carry Rushing Load
Receiver-turned-running back Mike Majette provided Indiana with a much-needed second option in the backfield to compliment normal second-option Devine Redding, who's had an increase in carries in the absence of Jordan Howard.
Majette, a true freshman, had 83 yards on 11 carries for Indiana. He also added 33 yards and a touchdown on three catches out of the backfield.
More of a speedster than a power back like Howard and Redding, Majette showed off his explosive first step both on the ground and through the air. Once he got his feet underneath him, he was able to take off down the field and pick up chunks of yards at a time.
"It was a blessing," Mejette said. "I thank my coaches for giving me the opportunity to go out there and help the team and I appreciate the front for blocking for me like they did."
Oliver's Big Day Leads Defense
Marcus Oliver continued his trend of managing to be in the right place at the right time for Indiana.
The redshirt sophomore linebacker had an interception off a deflection in the third quarter. It was the fifth takeaway he has been involved in this season and eighth of his career. He also set career marks in total tackles (14) and solo tackles (12) while adding a tackle for loss.
Wilson's Word:
"Kids are much more resilient than coaches and fans. They'll bounce back tomorrow and they'll be good to go, and we'll have a good week and we're going to play a tremendous team."
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Nate Sudfeld's two weeks dealing with a nagging ankle injury didn't appear to have slowed him down much.
His team's result, however, didn't necessarily reflect the senior quarterback's play.
Sudfeld posted one of his career-best games in a 55-52 loss to Rutgers on Saturday in his first game action in nearly six quarters. He completed 32-of-42 attempts for a career-high 464 passing yards. He also tied a career-high with four passing touchdowns and added a fifth score on the ground.
"He played awesome," redshirt junior receiver Ricky Jones said. "He was hitting everything. I saw it in warmups (that) he was playing pretty well. He also had a great week of practice. It just transferred to the field."
Sudfeld participating was in question leading into Saturday's game. He was limited in practice the last two weeks after suffering an ankle injury in the third quarter of Indiana's Oct. 3 loss to Ohio State.
Sudfeld nearly played last weekend against Penn State after being medically cleared before head coach Kevin Wilson decided it would be best to keep him out. He returned to being nearly full-go in practice in the days leading up to Saturday's game against Rutgers and it was determined pre-game that he was healthy enough to play.
"It's still a work in progress and I'm still getting better," Sudfeld said. "Throughout the week, I was just feeling more confident that I could play. Really, it was Coach Wilson's call."
Once on the field, Sudfeld's injury was hardly noticeable from an onlooker's perspective.
His throws were sharp, especially in the first half where he completed 21-of-27 passes for 301 yards and two touchdowns. When Rutgers did manage to hit Sudfeld, he got up quickly without signs of being hurt and moved on to the next play without delay.
"I thought Nate played really well," redshirt junior receiver Mitchell Paige said. "He's throwing great balls. I thought he was really in rhythm, had some strong throws. Some of those hit me pretty good. I think last week maybe freshened his arm a little bit because I thought he played really well."
Paige led Indiana with 126 yards on eight catches. Jones wasn't far behind, hauling in six catches for 119 yards. Sophomore receiver Simmie Cobbs completed the trio of starting receivers who all went for more than 100 yards, catching seven passes for 107 yards.
"I thought he played well," Wilson said of Sudfeld. "It was good to get those receivers going."
Sudfeld wasn't eager to talk about his own performance in postgame afterward. He was less interested in his own numbers and more concerned with the result.
He said he'll help lead Indiana in resetting after a third consecutive loss and get to work on preparing for Michigan State. With another performance like this week's and some cleaning up elsewhere, Sudfeld said IU should be in good shape.
"It's frustrating, but I love this team," Sudfeld said. "I love the guys on the team. There was a lot of good from today."
Majette Helps Carry Rushing Load
Receiver-turned-running back Mike Majette provided Indiana with a much-needed second option in the backfield to compliment normal second-option Devine Redding, who's had an increase in carries in the absence of Jordan Howard.
Majette, a true freshman, had 83 yards on 11 carries for Indiana. He also added 33 yards and a touchdown on three catches out of the backfield.
More of a speedster than a power back like Howard and Redding, Majette showed off his explosive first step both on the ground and through the air. Once he got his feet underneath him, he was able to take off down the field and pick up chunks of yards at a time.
"It was a blessing," Mejette said. "I thank my coaches for giving me the opportunity to go out there and help the team and I appreciate the front for blocking for me like they did."
Oliver's Big Day Leads Defense
Marcus Oliver continued his trend of managing to be in the right place at the right time for Indiana.
The redshirt sophomore linebacker had an interception off a deflection in the third quarter. It was the fifth takeaway he has been involved in this season and eighth of his career. He also set career marks in total tackles (14) and solo tackles (12) while adding a tackle for loss.
Wilson's Word:
"Kids are much more resilient than coaches and fans. They'll bounce back tomorrow and they'll be good to go, and we'll have a good week and we're going to play a tremendous team."
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