Well, that's it folks. With the Hoosiers' 33-25 loss to Purdue in the Old Oaken Bucket game Saturday afternoon at Memorial Stadium, Kevin Wilson's first season in Bloomington has mercifully come to an end.
Like other games this season, the Hoosiers had a chance to beat Purdue. They led 17-10 early before appearing to lose interest on offense. The Boilermakers took a 33-17 lead in the fourth quarter before IU made one final charge.
Running back D"Angelo Roberts scored from five yards out with 8:22 to play, and the Hoosiers converted a two-point conversion attempt to cut the Boilers' lead to eight points.
After a quick stop, IU got the ball back on its own 1-yard line with a chance to drive for the tie. The Hoosiers moved the ball before Tre Roberson threw one up to receiver Nick Stoner.
It looked like Stoner and Purdue defensive back Josh Johnson had joint possession of the ball, which would give the catch to the offense. But the official ruled it an interception and said it was not a reviewable play.On a similar play against Michigan two years ago, however, the officials did review the play.
It was a pretty awful call, but the Hoosiers lost this game well before that play. And they lost it in all too familiar ways. So, for the final time this season, here are five things we learned about the Hoosiers -- both Saturday and this season.
1. You can't win if you can't stop anybody...That was clear from the outset this year. The IU defense was much worse than last year's unit, and it really couldn't keep the opposition out of the end zone all season. If Wisconsin, Northwestern or Michigan State wanted to score 70 points on the Hoosiers, all three teams could have.
It was that bad.
If the Hoosiers are going to be any better in 2012, Wilson is going to have to completely makeover this defense -- ideally through junior college transfers that are ready to play immediately. No defensive coach -- with the exception of Mike Ekeler -- should be safe, either. Wilson can be an offensive mastermind all he wants, but he's never going to have success at IU without a better defense.
2. Roberson, Houston and Hughes are the future...As bad as the defense was for much of the season, I did think the offense took some steps in the right direction as the season went along.
Roberson isn't going to put up huge passing numbers, but he has the potential to be an effective quarterback for the Hoosiers. He threw for 147 yards on 17-of-26 passing against the Boilermakers -- a pretty typical line for him. I'd like to see him improve his deep passing game in the offseason and get stronger, but I think he's proven he's Wilson's starter going forward.
Stephen Houston is a guy I really like and a player I can see rushing for more than 1,000 yards next season. Houston ran for 129 yards and a touchdown on only seven carries on Saturday, and he should have gotten the ball a lot more. He's big enough to be a legitimate factor in the blocking game, and he's fast and strong enough to take the beating of a Big Ten season.
Kofi Hughes had an up-and-down year, but he's still plenty capable of being a playmaker in this offense. When his head is in the right place, he can be one of the top five or 10 receivers in the conference. When it's not, though, he has the ability to disappear on the field. Hughes had five catches for 64 yards against Purdue.
3. No sense of urgency...in the middle quarters, that is. The Hoosiers always come out with a lot of offensive fire in the first quarter and jump out to early leads in many games. But for whatever reason, they seem to lose interest and lack a sense of urgency in the second and third quarters. Then, after they fall behind late, they put together a good drive and score again.
Saturday's game was a perfect example. IU jumped out to a 17-10 lead, but scored only three points in the middle quarters and gave up 23 consecutive points. With the defense the Hoosiers have, that can't happen. I know things like that sometimes happen with a young team, but Wilson must find a way to correct the lack of urgency before next season.
4. Wilson is learning on the job...It was clear by some of his postgame comments that Wilson wasn't entirely prepared for this season. He said he needed to do a better job knowing what his players are and are not capable of and putting them in the best position to succeed.
It was refreshing to hear him admit those things. Wilson has never been a collegiate head coach before, and learning is part of it. I still believe he can and will be successful at IU, but he certainly needed a wake-up call in his initial season. It's safe to say he got it.
5. IU will beat Purdue next year...That according to Houston, who impressively knows Purdue is located in West Lafayette, even though he has only been at IU since July.
"Next season, when we return to West Lafayette, that bucket will come home, back to IU"
