Hoosier ground game struggles again without Coleman

COLUMBUS, Ohio — IU’s 42-14 loss to No. 3 Ohio State on Saturday marked the second consecutive game in which the Hoosiers’ running backs were held to fewer than 100 yards.
 
In the past two weeks, No. 22 Wisconsin and Ohio State jumped out to early leads against IU and the Hoosiers were held scoreless in the first halves of both matchups.
 
What caused the Hoosiers’ slow starts on offense?
 
“Three-and-outs, maybe not coming out to play,” junior running back D’Angelo Roberts said.
 
Wisconsin and Ohio State both took four-touchdown leads into halftime against IU.
 
“For two weeks in a row, we kind of started off slow,” Roberts said. “You can’t really establish a running game when you have to play catch up. As an offense, we need to come out and score and not have to be put in this position every week.”
 
Roberts and senior Stephen Houston have taken the reigns of IU’s backfield after the team’s starting running back, sophomore Tevin Coleman, suffered a right ankle sprain against Minnesota.
 
IU Coach Kevin Wilson said despite Coleman’s absence the past two weeks, the Hoosiers do not have a void at running back.
 
“Stephen’s played well,” Wilson said. “D’Angelo has been solid.”
 
However, IU’s offense lacks a home run potential out of the backfield without Coleman. The Tinley Park, Ill., native led the country in runs of at least 40 yards through the first 11 weeks of the season.
 
“He’s just a little bit better as far as suddenness, explosiveness,” Wilson said. “(He’s) a little more decisive, taking three and getting you five, taking five and running through a crack and getting you 15, 20. The other guys are pretty good but sometimes you get a little more what you block.
 
“A really good back sometimes will, when there’s a nickel, he’ll get you a dime and a quarter and a little bit more money for the blocking.”
 
Wilson said IU and Ohio State’s offensive statistics looked similar on paper. However, the scoreboard — the only statistic that truly matters in determining wins and losses — heavily favored the home team.
 
“The real difference (was) their ability to run the ball and our inability to run the ball,” he said.
 
In Wilson’s eyes, a good offensive team can run the ball “when zones get tight and the weather gets bad.”
 
“The games we’ve played well, we ran it and played pretty good run defense,” he said. “The games that we’ve struggled, we haven’t had the run game. Bottom line, that’s a format there that’s going to be tough to win games.”
 
In IU’s wins this season, the Hoosiers have run for an average of 275 yards per game and they held their opponents to less than 163 rushing yards in each victory.
 
On average in the team’s losses, IU ran for 132 yards while allowing more than 331 yards per game.
 
“It wasn’t there today,” Wilson said. “Credit to Ohio State (for) getting off blocks and having proper leverage and tackling us.”
 
The Hoosiers doubled the Buckeyes in passing yards, 320 to 160, but Wilson credited Ohio State’s play at the line of scrimmage and in the backfield as the difference in the game.
 
“There’s a lot of teams that do what we do in the spread,” he said. “Actually throw it very, very well. The teams that are really good are still running for two-, two-fifty, three-hundred (yards).”
 
Ohio State ran for 311 yards, led by junior quarterback Braxton Miller’s 144 yards on the ground.
 
“We haven’t been able to do that against good teams,” Wilson said. “That’s a credit to their defense and shows where our weaknesses are as we’re still trying to grow and get where we need to be.”

Follow reporter Andy Wittry on Twitter @AndyWittryIDS.