Bowl Victory Quest Drives Caleb Jones

By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Caleb Jones isn't having it. Not a chance. Losing one bowl game was tough, but two?

It's got to end.

Indiana's veteran offensive lineman knows it. So do his teammates. They haven't won a bowl game since 1991, five years before email started taking off, basically a decade before current freshmen were born.

Next time, Jones insists, they will get it right.

"We did a lot of good things the last two years," he says, "but neither of the last two years did we finish the way we've wanted to."

Losses to Ole Miss in last season's Outback Bowl and to Tennessee in the 2020 TaxSlayer Gator Bowl linger like a broken heart. Blame competitive nature -- you remember losses more than victories. Disappointment trumps thrill.

That's why, in a Tuesday Zoom opportunity, Jones draws a line he refuses to let his teammates cross without a fight.

"It brings a level of focus and tenacity toward what we want to do next season, the goals we want to achieve," he says. "Two years in a row we didn't finish. This year, it can't be that same way."

IU has gone 8-5 and 6-2 in those last two seasons.

But head coach Tom Allen demands more. The Hoosiers demand more. Win bowl games, claim championships, become a powerhouse program for the foreseeable future.

In so many ways, as spring practice winds down, they are on the cusp of achieving it. Players such as Jones will lead the way.

"There's a level of excitement that's expressed throughout the whole program," he says.

Jones is a big man with a bigger upside, and it starts with cutting down to the best of him, not the most of him.

Size is important in football, but it has limits.

Back on the day of his Bloomington arrival, Jones pushed 405 pounds, which you can carry when you're 6-foot-8, but high-level football requires more.

Jones wanted more, offensive line coach Darren Hiller wanted more, and the Hoosiers certainly needed more. He cut 40 pounds, and redshirted, then played in 11 games as a redshirt freshman, started 13 games as a sophomore, playing well enough to earn honorable-mention All-Big Ten.

Then came the pandemic, and a postponed season, then a reinstated season, then an injury that cost him three games, and 30 unwanted pounds.

Then came the bowl loss and motivation.

So Jones has cut down to 355, and aims to hold it, perhaps push under 350, a goal made easier now that living, training, and playing in a pandemic has been achieved.

"The biggest thing was body weight," he says about his goals. "Making sure I was at a weight I was comfortable playing at. A weight I would get the most out of the season.

"Now that I've gotten to a weight I feel good about, it's about refining my technique and making sure I'm taking every opportunity and advantage I can in spring ball. Make sure I am the best version of myself I can be next season."

That best will have plenty of offensive line company. It includes Matthew Bedford, Luke Haggard (who replaced the injured Jones last season), Dylan Powell, Mike Katic, and Mackenzie Nworah. They have size, strength, experience and, crucial in rugged up-front battles, toughness.

"We have a lot of guys back with a lot of game experience," Jones says. "That's going to help when it comes to crunch time, and those situations when you have to have guys out there who know what they are doing and how to handle themselves. That will be a big advantage for us."

Another advantage is veteran leadership.

"That's a weight off of my shoulders," Jones says. "Other guys around me can help take on the task of making sure the younger guys know what to do. It's a sigh of relief when you have guys around you who play at the same level you do."

The 6-7 Haggard, a junior college transfer out of California, reflects that high level. He has gone from 260 pounds to 291 while ratcheting up the strength numbers.

"He's put on the weight," Jones says. "He's attacked the field. He's tried to make himself into a very good player."

That aggressive nature has motivated his fellow linemen, Jones adds.

"You don't want to let your brother work his butt off and you don't give the same effort. That's not fair to him. He definitely pushes us. I'd say we all push each other to become the best players we can be."

IU wants to run opponents into submission. It didn't happen last season, even with a battering ram of a running back in Stevie Scott III. The Hoosiers rated 11th in the Big Ten in rushing at 108.6 yards a game last season.

Some of it had to do with a simplified offense that reflected Allen's concern over pandemic-caused practice limitations and quarantines. Backups might have to play and needed to be able handle it.

Pandemic limitations likely won't be the case this season. IU offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan can unleash the entire package, including a potent passing attack behind quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and as talented a group of receivers as the Hoosiers have had in years.

Add a strong offensive line, and the competitive juices flow.

And if it ends with a bowl victory, make that multiple bowl victories over the coming seasons, all the better.

Indiana University Athletics

Related News

Players Mentioned

Matthew Bedford

Luke Haggard

Caleb Jones

Mike Katic

Michael Penix Jr.

Dylan Powell

Stevie Scott III

Related Videos