“To me, if you’re playing toe-to-toe with some good teams for a long time, then you’re close to being good enough,” Wilson said. “Then you have to trust yourself and whether you’re good enough. That’s a part of some young guys, but sometimes I don’t know if it’s a mistake mentally as much as it is a lack of trust, whether it be in himself, the scheme, and he tries freelancing.”
Wilson mentioned this philosophy in his weekly press conference Monday, after IU lost 52-26 to No. 7 Michigan State on Saturday. The loss was IU’s fourth consecutive loss after starting the season 4-0, a streak which included a close loss to No. 1 Ohio State, a botched 25-point lead to Rutgers and a two-point deficit in the fourth quarter against Michigan State.
Wilson compared the several missed opportunities to professional golfer Dustin Johnson’s collapse in the 2015 U.S. Open. Heading to the final green ahead by two strokes, Johnson missed a 12-foot putt and then a seven-foot putt to lose his first major title.
“You have to be good enough to get into those positions,” Wilson said. “Now, where do you go from there? You have to get to that position, but that doesn’t justify losing because we don’t like that. Is that all you wanted, to get close? Or do you want to go further?”
Griffin Oakes
Sophomore kicker Griffin Oakes missed three kicks Saturday against Michigan State — two extra points and a field goal — leaving five points off the scoreboard for IU.
Wilson said Oakes will still kick field goals for the Hoosiers, as he leads the Big Ten in field goal percentage with 83.3 percent, making 10 of his 12 attempted field goals this season.
His body language is what Wilson said he is keeping an eye on in games where Oakes misses field goals because it affects his teammates in a negative way, mentally, when the kicker wears his emotions on his sleeve.
“The field goal he missed was a really solid kick,” Wilson said. “I reminded him today that (former Hoosier) Mitch Ewald is one of the best kickers I’ve been around, and he hit the crossbar a couple times at Ohio State. He hit 100 PATs in a row and then missed 101 at Penn State.”
Jordan Howard
Junior running back Jordan Howard played his first game Saturday after missing 2 1/2 games dating back to the Ohio State loss. He ran the ball 11 times for 78 yards and a touchdown, including a season-long carry of 37 yards.
“What you need to do to play good is you need to get — not just healthy — but when you get back to consistently practicing kind of good,” Wilson said. “The problem was that yeah, he’s got another week to get better, but does that get him into a loophole, where he’s not improving.”
Wilson said playing him against Michigan State provided the opportunity for the junior to get the reps he needs to get back to the shape he was in before his ankle injury.
Camion Patrick running wildcat
Sophomore receiver Camion Patrick, who transferred to IU after playing for East Mississippi Community College, has not seen the field this season after an issue in credit transfers prevented him from being eligible in 2015.
Wilson hinted at the receiver playing in a wildcat formation next season for the Hoosiers.
“He’s actually a pretty good runner,” Wilson said about the 6-foot-2 receiver. “He’s been playing at tailback, so he’s a pretty skilled kid. We would have loved to have had him this year, but it’s good to see him — this is about the fourth week in a row we’ve called him our player — playing well when he has to sit out.”
