Indiana University Athletics
Graham Column: Hoosiers Fall in Tough One to Terrapins
10/28/2017 10:51:00 PM | Football
By: Andy Graham
IUHoosiers.com
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Indiana football played hare to Maryland's tortoise Saturday.
And, yes, the turtle won the race.
Not that the hare didn't provide the host Terrapins way too much help, with a slew of self-inflicted wounds fueling a 42-39 loss.
IU sprinted to a 14-0 start in the first 5:57 and looked great doing it. And the Hoosiers scored the first 10 points of the second half, too.
Special teams were a primary culprit. And Tom Allen's defense generally didn't play like the Top 25 unit it aspires to be.
"We had a couple of drops that hurt us (on IU's final possession)," Allen said, "but when you talk about our offense, I felt they played well enough for us to win. They did a lot of great things. Threw the ball well. Ran the ball when we had to.
"To me, this is about special-teams mistakes – which is inexcusable – and then defensively, also, not finishing drives. I'm just really disappointed in the defensive side of the ball … just really didn't play to our standard."
Yep. And yep.
But even the offense will rue mistakes and missed opportunities.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Peyton Ramsey played with tremendous courage in his fourth career start, twice leaving the game with an injury but finishing with 31 of 41 passing for 279 yards and three TDs. Nobody should ever question his guts and grit.
Ramsey, however, would also likely be the first to say he'd like to have some plays back.
For example:
Indiana had the ball back, starting at its own 7, after scoring the game's first two touchdowns. But Ramsey was picked off by Darnell Savage, Jr., at the IU 14. The Hoosier defense then didn't respond to the quick-change, giving up a touchdown run to Lorenzo Harrison on the next snap.
Then after a terrific Allen Stallings IV tackle of Ty Johnson for a safety that made it 16-7.
After the Terrapins defense held the Hoosiers, Maryland got a TD by blocking a Haydon Whitehead punt and then making it a scoop-and-score from 16 yards out. The Terps were suddenly right back in it, down just 16-14.
A great read and throw by Ramsey, and maybe an even better catch by Luke Timian, subsequently bumped IU's lead up to 23-14.
Then the defense surrendered two Maryland TDs in the final 2:46.
So the Terps took a 28-23 lead into intermission despite being outgained 262-159, running just 26 plays to IU's 54 and failing to convert a third down. But the tone for the game was set.
After a hit that sent Ramsey temporarily to the sideline, Richard Lagow shovel-passed to true freshman Whop Philyor for a 12-yard TD to start the second half scoring.
Lagow, the fifth-year senior quarterback, who started the season at the Hoosier helm, showed class and composure in hitting his first five passes.
To his credit, Lagow was ready. He nearly rallied IU back into position to win. He found Simmie Cobbs Jr. for a TD that capped a 75-yard, 10-play drive and gave IU a chance down the stretch.
"Richard did a great job," Allen acknowledged. "We talked to him through this whole process, saying, 'We're going to need you, so be ready to go when called upon.' He was.
"Did some great things. Led us down to a score and was hoping to have a chance to take us down for the win."
Philyor finished with career highs of 13 catches for 127 yards and Cobbs had 10 catches for 138.
After Griffin Oakes' 41-yard field goal gave the Hoosiers a 33-28 lead heading into the fourth quarter, Indiana's kickoff coverage unit gave up an 82-yard return to Maryland's Javon Leake (who started 6 yards deep in his own end zone, and ignored teammates' signals not to bring the ball out).
That set up the score that put Maryland ahead for good.
Indiana would finish with almost twice as many first downs as the Terps (35-18), 483 total yards to Maryland's 345, and 36:08 of possession time to the home team's 27:62.
All for naught.
Some might note that positive plays are often forgotten quickly in the wake of a defeat, but the Hoosiers had a slew of them Saturday.
Just from the first quarter alone:
>>>Cole Gest made a phenomenal adjustment to the ball that Ramsey threw behind him, snagging it one-handed to convert a 3rd-and-3 on the opening drive.
>>>Ramsey smartly threw deep for Cobbs on a "free play," with Maryland having jumped offside, for the 34-yard strike that opened the scoring.
>>>Tony Fields' ensuing interception was pretty, as he leaped to high-point the ball and snag it before returning it 36 yards to set up IU's second score.
>>>And that TD came in impressive fashion as Gest took a flat pass and ran right over J.C. Jackson for a 23-yard scoring play.
All that, and more, ended up moot.
Maryland showed good speed and skill at times and proved resilient. Quarterback Max Bortenschlager got better as he went along.
No. 5-ranked Wisconsin comes to town next Saturday.
"We've got the Badgers coming to town," Allen said. "No time to feel sorry for anybody."
And Badgers tend to be a bit surly.
IUHoosiers.com
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Indiana football played hare to Maryland's tortoise Saturday.
And, yes, the turtle won the race.
Not that the hare didn't provide the host Terrapins way too much help, with a slew of self-inflicted wounds fueling a 42-39 loss.
IU sprinted to a 14-0 start in the first 5:57 and looked great doing it. And the Hoosiers scored the first 10 points of the second half, too.
Special teams were a primary culprit. And Tom Allen's defense generally didn't play like the Top 25 unit it aspires to be.
"We had a couple of drops that hurt us (on IU's final possession)," Allen said, "but when you talk about our offense, I felt they played well enough for us to win. They did a lot of great things. Threw the ball well. Ran the ball when we had to.
"To me, this is about special-teams mistakes – which is inexcusable – and then defensively, also, not finishing drives. I'm just really disappointed in the defensive side of the ball … just really didn't play to our standard."
Yep. And yep.
But even the offense will rue mistakes and missed opportunities.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Peyton Ramsey played with tremendous courage in his fourth career start, twice leaving the game with an injury but finishing with 31 of 41 passing for 279 yards and three TDs. Nobody should ever question his guts and grit.
Ramsey, however, would also likely be the first to say he'd like to have some plays back.
For example:
Indiana had the ball back, starting at its own 7, after scoring the game's first two touchdowns. But Ramsey was picked off by Darnell Savage, Jr., at the IU 14. The Hoosier defense then didn't respond to the quick-change, giving up a touchdown run to Lorenzo Harrison on the next snap.
Then after a terrific Allen Stallings IV tackle of Ty Johnson for a safety that made it 16-7.
After the Terrapins defense held the Hoosiers, Maryland got a TD by blocking a Haydon Whitehead punt and then making it a scoop-and-score from 16 yards out. The Terps were suddenly right back in it, down just 16-14.
A great read and throw by Ramsey, and maybe an even better catch by Luke Timian, subsequently bumped IU's lead up to 23-14.
Then the defense surrendered two Maryland TDs in the final 2:46.
So the Terps took a 28-23 lead into intermission despite being outgained 262-159, running just 26 plays to IU's 54 and failing to convert a third down. But the tone for the game was set.
After a hit that sent Ramsey temporarily to the sideline, Richard Lagow shovel-passed to true freshman Whop Philyor for a 12-yard TD to start the second half scoring.
Lagow, the fifth-year senior quarterback, who started the season at the Hoosier helm, showed class and composure in hitting his first five passes.
To his credit, Lagow was ready. He nearly rallied IU back into position to win. He found Simmie Cobbs Jr. for a TD that capped a 75-yard, 10-play drive and gave IU a chance down the stretch.
"Richard did a great job," Allen acknowledged. "We talked to him through this whole process, saying, 'We're going to need you, so be ready to go when called upon.' He was.
"Did some great things. Led us down to a score and was hoping to have a chance to take us down for the win."
Philyor finished with career highs of 13 catches for 127 yards and Cobbs had 10 catches for 138.
After Griffin Oakes' 41-yard field goal gave the Hoosiers a 33-28 lead heading into the fourth quarter, Indiana's kickoff coverage unit gave up an 82-yard return to Maryland's Javon Leake (who started 6 yards deep in his own end zone, and ignored teammates' signals not to bring the ball out).
That set up the score that put Maryland ahead for good.
Indiana would finish with almost twice as many first downs as the Terps (35-18), 483 total yards to Maryland's 345, and 36:08 of possession time to the home team's 27:62.
All for naught.
Some might note that positive plays are often forgotten quickly in the wake of a defeat, but the Hoosiers had a slew of them Saturday.
Just from the first quarter alone:
>>>Cole Gest made a phenomenal adjustment to the ball that Ramsey threw behind him, snagging it one-handed to convert a 3rd-and-3 on the opening drive.
>>>Ramsey smartly threw deep for Cobbs on a "free play," with Maryland having jumped offside, for the 34-yard strike that opened the scoring.
>>>Tony Fields' ensuing interception was pretty, as he leaped to high-point the ball and snag it before returning it 36 yards to set up IU's second score.
>>>And that TD came in impressive fashion as Gest took a flat pass and ran right over J.C. Jackson for a 23-yard scoring play.
All that, and more, ended up moot.
Maryland showed good speed and skill at times and proved resilient. Quarterback Max Bortenschlager got better as he went along.
No. 5-ranked Wisconsin comes to town next Saturday.
"We've got the Badgers coming to town," Allen said. "No time to feel sorry for anybody."
And Badgers tend to be a bit surly.
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