Highlights From Tom Allen on 'Inside Indiana Football' Radio Show Week 3

Indiana coach Tom Allen and play-by-play broadcaster Don Fischer discussed the Hoosiers' 41-7 win over Indiana State, previewed Saturday's matchup against Louisville and much more on Wednesday's edition of "Inside Indiana Football."

Jack Ankony | Sep 13, 2023

Highlights From Tom Allen on 'Inside Indiana Football' Radio Show Week 3 /

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Indiana Hoosiers

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana football coach Tom Allen joined "The Voice of the Hoosiers" Don Fischer on Wednesday night's edition of the "Inside Indiana Football" radio show, live from Chop Shop Market and Table in Bloomington.

Allen and Fischer recapped Indiana's 41-7 win over Indiana State and previewed Saturday's matchup against Louisville at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Here are the highlights.

On the 41-7 win over Indiana State:

Allen said there is much to correct and get better from, but he was pleased that Indiana started and finished strong. He did not like the "lull" in the second quarter.
Allen called a timeout in the second quarter as Indiana State came close to scoring. “I was ticked to be honest with you," Allen said. "I got after them pretty good.” He challenged the defense to bow up and get a stop, and he was happy with the response. Andre Carter made a big tackle for loss, then Nic Toomer came down with an interception on fourth down.
Allen was frustrated with Indiana's special teams penalties, calling the running into the kicker penalties "stupid." He said kicking the ball out of bounds on kickoffs can't happen, "don’t kick it outside the white lines.”
Allen disagreed with the penalty on Indiana State's punt return. He said the officials claimed Indiana hit the returner before he caught the ball, but Allen believes that was not the case and the penalty should not have been called.

On naming Tayven Jackson starting quarterback:

Allen reiterated that the plan all along was to give Tayven Jackson and Brendan Sorsby a chance to win the job in the first two weeks of the season because they were both inexperienced and the competition was even throughout fall camp.
Jackson separated himself enough for Allen to name him the starter, but it was a “tough tough battle, both guys going back and forth." Allen feels like Indiana has two quarterbacks that can lead the team, if needed.
Fischer asked Allen if it's true that some players are better when they lights are on, and Allen agreed, saying Jackson fits that description. Allen said Jackson seems more comfortable and is at his best when he can just go out and play in a game, as opposed to practice. That is where some of the separation occurred. Allen thinks this attribute comes from Jackson's core confidence.
"It's not that Brendan didn't do things," Allen said in regards to the quarterback competition and ultimate decision.
Allen said he and the staff rewatched everything and evaluated read progression. It was a close call, but ultimately came down to who commanded the offense and led the team on scoring drives.
Allen said both quarterbacks were decisive and thought they often made the correct reads in the throwing game.
The game plan won't change much with Jackson versus Sorsby, due to their similarities and ability to pass and run.

On Indiana's wide receivers:

"Omar [Cooper Jr.] really rose up and had over 100 yards receiving."
Cooper made the most of his biggest opportunity so far by leading Indiana in receptions and receiving yards against Indiana State. His role increased when E.J. Williams and Cam Camper left the game with injuries.
Allen said this type of performance is what he expected from Cooper when he recruited him out of Lawrence North High School in Indianapolis, where he showed a knack for coming down with contested catches.
Allen also mentioned he thought Donaven McCulley and Fordham transfer DeQuece Carter played well.

On Indiana's position coaches:

Indiana hired Anthony Tucker as the wide receivers coach and co-offensive coordinator. Tucker has prior experience as an offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, and has also been on the same staff as Indiana offensive coordinator Walt Bell, which has helped his transition to Indiana. "Really good addition to our staff," Allen said.
Allen said the offensive line has done some good things, but he and new offensive line coach Bob Bostad think they can and will play a lot better, saying, “Time is necessary to be able to gel as a unit."
With Matt Guerrieri joining the staff as co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach, Allen gave him defensive-play calling duties this season. Allen said there has been good chemistry on defense. He thinks Guerrieri and co-defensive coordinator Chad Wilt communicate well during the game and have done a good job cleaning things up at halftime.

On Bradley Archer:

Archer joined Indiana as a transfer from Stanford in the latter portion of this offseason due to Stanford's quarter system.
Archer has quickly emerged as a top option for Indiana at tight end because Allen said he is the most-well rounded tight end, due to his ability to catch, run and block.

On Saturday's game against Louisville:

In Louisville's first game against Georgia Tech, Allen said it was impressive how they came back from a 28-13 halftime deficit to win 39-34. Allen noticed Louisville ran the ball more in the second half, which helped. Louisville ran for 227 yards and gained 6.7 yards per carry in this game.
In their second game, Louisville dominated Murray State 56-0. Allen said Louisville simply outclassed their opponent.
Overall, Allen said Louisville has a lot of weapons on offense at running back, wide receiver and quarterback. The defense is aggressive, flies around, has a lot of athletes and dominated last week's game.
Allen said Louisville is a top-five team in the ACC, in regards to what people predict they're going to be.
Louisville's quarterback is Jack Plummer, who began his career under Louisville coach Jeff Brohm at Purdue. Plummer transferred to Cal, but joined Louisville this season when Brohm took the head coaching job.
Allen said Plummer's biggest advantage is that he knows Brohm's system. He described Plummer as having a big arm and athletic. Indian must account for him in the run game, as well.
Allen remembers evaluating Plummer when he played at Purdue, which helps their knowledge of him entering this game.
Louisville's top running back is Jawhar Jordan, who is averaging 16.5 yards per carry. Allen said he is a threat to "take it to the house at any time" because of his combination of speed and power. Their backup running back, Isaac Guerendo, has a lot of power and can also catch, Allen said.
Defensively, Allen first mentioned Louisville's talented defensive line. He thinks they have good tacklers in the secondary and a lot of speed on the field, overall. He anticipates Louisville frequently rotating defensive personnel.
Allen said Louisville's defensive staff is pretty much the same staff that coached against Indiana under Brohm at Purdue.
Allen called Brohm a really good play caller and said he has an offensive system that he believes in. He is impressed by Brohm's ability to play to his team's strengths and maximize their roster. Allen said Brohm's offense will put Indiana in conflict defensively, so they have to have disciplined eyes.
Allen believes Louisville is running the ball more than past Brohm-coached teams because they are better at it than the last few years.
Stopping Louisville's run game starts up front, Allen said. They must be disciplined in their run fits and play well at all three levels. Allen mentioned Indiana's defensive pillars – takeaways, tackling and effort – must be on full display in order to win.