Cannot Falter

Indiana lost a massive game, and lost it badly as Kellen Lewis was out for the second half, and Indiana got blitzed 45-9. Not that Kellen was that much of a help. Indiana failed to get a first down on six of their first eight possessions. Kellen only threw for 108 yards, but did manage one score, a 17-yard TD pass to Terrance Turner late in the first half. Just to let you know how bad things went, Mr. Reliable, Austin Starr, pushed the extra point wide.

The biggest disappointment was the defense. As the offense struggled yet again, you might have expected the defense to step up once again after playing decent against Michigan State and very well against Minnesota. Unfortunately, Iowa just wore them down. Indiana allowed not just Shonn Green (23 rushes, 115 yards) to rush for 100 yards, but also his backfield mate, Jewel Hampton. Hampton rushed for 114 yards on 22 rushes, and added three scores.

Maybe Indiana could have put together a comeback with Kellen, but he suffered a leg injury and could not go in the second half. But it was probably academic as Ricky Stanzi (12-20, 184 yards, 2 TDs) and the two running backs just simply wore down Indiana. When three guys are having really solid games against you like that, they’re tough to beat, and even if you are hanging on, that can go south really quick.

Things will now get tougher as Indiana travels to Illinois for a night game against the Illini, who are probably still pissed at Indiana for the Eric Gordon saga and are still searching for revenge (although not going to get anymore than they go last year, except for probably watching a different Illinois team beat a different Indiana team at home).