Lewis struggles against Ball State

Kellen Lewis misses James Hardy, and on Saturday night, it showed.

The world Lewis lives in – one where Hardy is no longer available as his favorite target – came crashing down as Ball State’s 86th-ranked defense easily held the Hoosiers to one offensive touchdown.

Losing 42-20 in a dramatic setback for the Hoosiers, it was Lewis who looked lost on a continuous defense. The defense had its fair share of gaffes, but Lewis, who is ranked as one of the best quarterbacks in the Big Ten, erred all night.

“I was rushing myself a little too much,” Lewis said. “This was the first game that we’ve been down and obviously, we never really had the lead. It’s something we have to learn from.”

Lewis overthrew errant passes, as other throws were rocketed into his receivers’ hands, only to bounce out.

He completed two passes for more than 40 yards – both to junior wide receiver Andrew Means – and ran for 148 yards and a touchdown, but he was clearly off in the passing game.

After the game, IU coach Bill Lynch was asked about the passing game but declined to talk in detail until he had a chance to watch over the game again.

“I think some of that you have to watch the tape and see,” Lynch said.

Until the second quarter, Lewis and the Hoosier offense moved the ball well. But as soon as the first quarter ended, IU did not just unravel – the wheels fell off.

After completing 3-of-5 passes to start the game, Lewis failed to connect on all six of his attempts in the second quarter, with two throws resulting in interceptions. The second of his picks proved most costly.

Ball State’s Sean Baker picked off a pass over the middle after it sailed over junior wide receiver Ray Fisher’s outstretched arms. Lewis admitted he gift-wrapped the interception and Baker returned the gift for a touchdown.

Instead of going into the half down one point, the score read 28-20 with all of the game’s momentum trotting into the visitor’s locker room.

There were other times when the downfield coverage by the Cardinals was so tight and the pass rush so relentless, Lewis had to evade a sack and escape the pocket. But instead of throwing the ball away, he continued to try to make plays with his legs and took losses on several occasions.

“They were playing a couple people over me on the outside,” Means said. “We really weren’t exploiting their holes in the middle of the defense.”

The Lewis that a near-packed house at Memorial Stadium saw was a far cry from the one who continuously connected with Hardy throughout 2007. The play-making ability was still there but the confidence appeared absent.

“We were hoping that they would man down a little bit more on us and press us,” Lewis said. “Hopefully, we would get some key matchups, but they did a good job of keeping everything underneath and forcing us to run. ... Maybe we just weren’t patient enough.”

Last year, Lewis emerged as one of the top quarterbacks not just in the conference, but in the nation. He completed 60 percent of his passes, threw 28 touchdowns and currently owns several IU records.

Whether Saturday was an aberration or not, Lewis said he knows he has to get better as the Hoosiers entertain Michigan State this weekend and counter a high-octane Spartan offense.

“Coming in, we have the stereotype that we’re a little bit soft,” Lewis said. “I know Michigan State is going to come in and try to bully us. Hopefully this week we can learn to play all four quarters and not just one half.”