Indiana University Athletics
Notebook: Jordan Howard Effective In Return
10/24/2015 11:36:00 PM | Football
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Jordan Howard is back. Though he may not be full-go quite yet.
The junior running back—who at one point led the country in rushing early in the season—returned after missing two weeks with an ankle injury against Michigan State on Saturday.
He finished with 78 yards and one touchdown on 11 carries.
"It felt really good paying football again with the team," Howard said. "I feel like I'm really close to 100 percent, but you're playing football, so you're never 100 percent fully."
For the last two weeks, Indiana's coaching staff has hinted that Howard was getting closer and closer to making his return after suffering his ankle injury against No. 1 Ohio State. Head coach Kevin Wilson said he wouldn't play Howard until he could confidently run and make the cuts he needed to in game action.
Howard didn't get his usual workload—he was averaging 27.75 carries per game before suffering the ankle injury—but that was more a reflection on the game's flow than his health or play.
Among his better runs were a 5-yard score to put Indiana ahead 7-0 early and a 33-yard rush after exploding into the secondary and nearly breaking away from everyone on the field before being brought down.
"He did pretty well," Wilson said. "It's hard to run on these guys. The way they work their backers and edge players, it always feels like they have hats in there. That's why you have to throw on these guys one-on-one sometimes. I thought he did well. It was good to have him back."
Sudfeld: "Good Time" For Bye Week
Indiana's bye week is coming, perhaps, at just the right time, Nate Sudfeld said.
"I think it is a good time," the senior quarterback said. "It would have been a better time if we would have won today, though. We would have had some better vibes going in. Those guys with little injuries, it'll be good to let them recover a little bit. We just need to link arms at this point and fight for each other and continue to keep battling."
Sudfeld is one of a few Indiana players who have battled lingering injuries this season. The week away from competition should give the Hoosiers a chance to heal before playing Iowa at Memorial Stadium in two weeks.
It should also give Indiana time to reflect on the first two stages of the season. The Hoosiers completed the first third of the season a perfect 4-0 before losing four consecutive games to fall back to .500.
A week of focusing in internal improvement could go a long way for a team looking to get back on track.
"We need to take time to get right mentally, physically and refresh, recharge-up and come back at it," junior linebacker TJ Simmons said.
Oliver Continues To Lead Defense
Marcus Oliver's strong play is beginning to become repetitive, and that's a good thing for Indiana.
The redshirt sophomore linebacker forced his fourth fumble of the season, recording his sixth takeaway in the process. In 22 career games, Oliver has nine takeaways.
He also added seven tackles, two tackles for loss and one pass breakup. His play led Indiana to a season-high 13 tackles for loss, its first double-digit game since having 11 against Penn State on Nov. 8, 2014.
Wilson's Word:
"I don't like moral victories, but it shows we're going toe-to-toe with some pretty good teams. I'm not into moral victories and I'm not trying to justify anything because we need to win. That's what we talked about after the game. We need to learn to close games."
The junior running back—who at one point led the country in rushing early in the season—returned after missing two weeks with an ankle injury against Michigan State on Saturday.
He finished with 78 yards and one touchdown on 11 carries.
"It felt really good paying football again with the team," Howard said. "I feel like I'm really close to 100 percent, but you're playing football, so you're never 100 percent fully."
For the last two weeks, Indiana's coaching staff has hinted that Howard was getting closer and closer to making his return after suffering his ankle injury against No. 1 Ohio State. Head coach Kevin Wilson said he wouldn't play Howard until he could confidently run and make the cuts he needed to in game action.
Howard didn't get his usual workload—he was averaging 27.75 carries per game before suffering the ankle injury—but that was more a reflection on the game's flow than his health or play.
Among his better runs were a 5-yard score to put Indiana ahead 7-0 early and a 33-yard rush after exploding into the secondary and nearly breaking away from everyone on the field before being brought down.
"He did pretty well," Wilson said. "It's hard to run on these guys. The way they work their backers and edge players, it always feels like they have hats in there. That's why you have to throw on these guys one-on-one sometimes. I thought he did well. It was good to have him back."
Sudfeld: "Good Time" For Bye Week
Indiana's bye week is coming, perhaps, at just the right time, Nate Sudfeld said.
"I think it is a good time," the senior quarterback said. "It would have been a better time if we would have won today, though. We would have had some better vibes going in. Those guys with little injuries, it'll be good to let them recover a little bit. We just need to link arms at this point and fight for each other and continue to keep battling."
Sudfeld is one of a few Indiana players who have battled lingering injuries this season. The week away from competition should give the Hoosiers a chance to heal before playing Iowa at Memorial Stadium in two weeks.
It should also give Indiana time to reflect on the first two stages of the season. The Hoosiers completed the first third of the season a perfect 4-0 before losing four consecutive games to fall back to .500.
A week of focusing in internal improvement could go a long way for a team looking to get back on track.
"We need to take time to get right mentally, physically and refresh, recharge-up and come back at it," junior linebacker TJ Simmons said.
Oliver Continues To Lead Defense
Marcus Oliver's strong play is beginning to become repetitive, and that's a good thing for Indiana.
The redshirt sophomore linebacker forced his fourth fumble of the season, recording his sixth takeaway in the process. In 22 career games, Oliver has nine takeaways.
He also added seven tackles, two tackles for loss and one pass breakup. His play led Indiana to a season-high 13 tackles for loss, its first double-digit game since having 11 against Penn State on Nov. 8, 2014.
Wilson's Word:
"I don't like moral victories, but it shows we're going toe-to-toe with some pretty good teams. I'm not into moral victories and I'm not trying to justify anything because we need to win. That's what we talked about after the game. We need to learn to close games."
Players Mentioned
FB: Spring Game - Postgame Press Conference
Thursday, April 23
FB: Bray Lynch - Spring Practice No. 11
Tuesday, April 21
FB: Drew Evans - Spring Practice No. 11
Tuesday, April 21
FB: Nico Radicic - Spring Practice No. 11
Tuesday, April 21