Indiana University Athletics
Wilson Impressed with FIU Defense
9/10/2015 3:48:00 PM | Football
By: Sam Beishuizen | Twitter
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana head coach Kevin Wilson said he expects his players to stop walking on eggshells and crank it up" when the Hoosiers play Florida International this weekend.
Wilson's words reflect a more aggressive approach to practice this week. He said he wanted to get his team flying around more on the field, thinking less and trusting themselves to make plays.
He's hoping the change in pace will help Indiana (1-0) come out sharper against Florida International (1-0) when the two teams meet Saturday at 8 p.m. at Memorial Stadium.
"We've kind of looked directly at ourselves, some things that are very correctable, fixable," Wilson said. "Looking forward to seeing how we play. Going to be a great challenge."
Wilson's been particularly pleased with how his defense responded to the emphasis on playing more freely. Indiana practice was expected to be less scripted and more instinctive this week in preparation for a Florida International team coming off a week one upset win against Central Florida.
Indiana played up to the standard it's looking to play at in the third quarter of last weekend's win against Southern Illinois when it held the Salukis scoreless. The goal this week is to repeat that success for a longer duration of time against an offense Wilson said doesn't make many mistakes.
"We're changing some business in getting our kids' urgency lighting up and flying around," Wilson said. "I don't think we are good enough to be sitting ducks, so we need to be moving around."
Wilson described FIU's defense as "salty" and added that he expects the Panthers to focus on stopping the run much like teams did last season against the Hoosiers.
He compared FIU's defensive prowess to some of the high end Big Ten defenses IU will play later this season and said they play aggressively like Michigan State.
Wilson made mention multiple times this week that Florida International held Central Florida to just 46 rushing yards in week one. He's expecting them to give Indiana a similar challenge.
"Based on last year's tape, we're playing several teams we thought had good defenses. Their defense appeared to be the best," Wilson said. "They have a great package defensively, and they play great defense."
Wilson said he expects Saturday's game to play out differently than last weekend's simply because of FIU's style of play. He emphasized the importance of grinding out extra yards to avoid needing to pick up big yardage late in a set of downs against a team that doesn't give up many yards.
"We're pleased we're 1-0, but we've got a lot of work to do," Wilson said. "Everybody says you improve from week one to week two. We just need to keep improving. I know we will, believe we will."
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana head coach Kevin Wilson said he expects his players to stop walking on eggshells and crank it up" when the Hoosiers play Florida International this weekend.
Wilson's words reflect a more aggressive approach to practice this week. He said he wanted to get his team flying around more on the field, thinking less and trusting themselves to make plays.
He's hoping the change in pace will help Indiana (1-0) come out sharper against Florida International (1-0) when the two teams meet Saturday at 8 p.m. at Memorial Stadium.
"We've kind of looked directly at ourselves, some things that are very correctable, fixable," Wilson said. "Looking forward to seeing how we play. Going to be a great challenge."
Wilson's been particularly pleased with how his defense responded to the emphasis on playing more freely. Indiana practice was expected to be less scripted and more instinctive this week in preparation for a Florida International team coming off a week one upset win against Central Florida.
Indiana played up to the standard it's looking to play at in the third quarter of last weekend's win against Southern Illinois when it held the Salukis scoreless. The goal this week is to repeat that success for a longer duration of time against an offense Wilson said doesn't make many mistakes.
"We're changing some business in getting our kids' urgency lighting up and flying around," Wilson said. "I don't think we are good enough to be sitting ducks, so we need to be moving around."
Wilson described FIU's defense as "salty" and added that he expects the Panthers to focus on stopping the run much like teams did last season against the Hoosiers.
He compared FIU's defensive prowess to some of the high end Big Ten defenses IU will play later this season and said they play aggressively like Michigan State.
Wilson made mention multiple times this week that Florida International held Central Florida to just 46 rushing yards in week one. He's expecting them to give Indiana a similar challenge.
"Based on last year's tape, we're playing several teams we thought had good defenses. Their defense appeared to be the best," Wilson said. "They have a great package defensively, and they play great defense."
Wilson said he expects Saturday's game to play out differently than last weekend's simply because of FIU's style of play. He emphasized the importance of grinding out extra yards to avoid needing to pick up big yardage late in a set of downs against a team that doesn't give up many yards.
"We're pleased we're 1-0, but we've got a lot of work to do," Wilson said. "Everybody says you improve from week one to week two. We just need to keep improving. I know we will, believe we will."
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