“Big time. Big time.”
Early in the season, when senior quarterback Nate Sudfeld threw for seven touchdowns and one interception through four games and junior running back Jordan Howard ran for 150-plus yards on a weekly basis, the Hoosiers didn’t expect to be asked about a lack of offensive playmakers.
But with the flip of a switch — that switch being Sudfeld’s ankle injury — IU has thrown for just 358 yards in its last six quarters, after recording 497 in the six quarters before Sudfeld’s injury.
After injuries plagued the quarterback and running back positions for the Hoosiers, they also saw their top second-string receiver, sophomore Isaac Griffith, tear his ACL.
Enter freshman receivers Nick Westbrook and Leon Thornton.
“Coach (Kevin Wilson) always preaches next guy up, so that’s what we’ve got to do with the injuries,” Thornton said. “Nick and I, both of our roles are going to increase, and we’ve got some other guys who are going to step up, take some more reps in practice and get more comfortable and confident.”
The receiving corps, as well as the offense, is split into three teams, where the coaching staff mostly rotates the first- and second-team players into the game to keep the receivers’ legs fresh and facilitate quicker routes, Thornton said. Both receivers have seen the field plenty of times this season but have not been targeted with passes yet.
That will change now, as it is Westbrook and Thornton’s job to replace Griffith at the top of the second team.
Besides the top-three starters at wide receiver — Jones, junior Mitchell Paige and sophomore Simmie Cobbs — Griffith has the most receptions in the receiving core, with five for 54 yards receiving, 31 of which came on two catches against Penn State before his injury.
“He is just a great player, and he knew everything as a veteran,” Westbrook said. “He’s really a speedster, and we could use that. You saw in the last game where he made those really nice catches and really big plays when he needed to, going up and getting the ball.”
Between the two freshman receivers, Westbrook has made two catches for a total of 15 yards, and Thornton has no catches yet this season.
What stands out the most between the receivers, though, is Westbrook’s size and strength, allowing him to attack balls at their highest point and fend off aggressive defensive backs.
Both catches the freshman has made were in traffic with a defender on his back, including one catch where he broke two tackles and ran for 10 yards, converting the third-and-long.
“I pride myself in making competitive plays,” Westbrook said. “I like using my hands. Like today, I had a really good catch in practice where I had a guy draped all over me, but I used my hands and was able to pull it down. I’m a tall guy with a long wingspan, so it’s a lot easier for me to catch balls away from my body than letting them come in.”
Thornton has a similar build to Griffith, standing at 6-foot-1, 199 pounds, compared to Griffith’s 6-foot, 195-pound frame, and his ability to play in the middle of the field, compared to Westbrook’s perimeter play, is similar between the freshman and injured receiver.
Westbrook said the pressure he has felt in replacing Griffith is good pressure for the freshmen receivers, as it makes them better in practice. For Thornton, having Jones, Cobbs and Paige in the group alleviates any pressure.
“All three of those guys are like big brothers,” Thornton said about the first-team receivers. “They just really help us with our confidence and getting the plays down and just knowing what’s going on on the field, like reading coverages and everything. Gaining trust isn’t just with Nate Sudfeld, but with all those guys too because they’ve got to depend on us.”
After experiencing last season’s quarterback injury, Jones said stepping up in the wake of injury was stressed by the team all summer.
“This year we told guys that they’re just going to have to step up and play as freshmen,” Jones said. “That’s always been the thing at IU since Coach Wilson’s been here. He plays a lot of freshmen and gets them time, so you have to be willing to step up and make plays.”
