Jack's Take: Goal-Line Blunder, Poor First Half Tarnish Jackson's Promising Performance

Indiana redshirt freshman quarterback Tayven Jackson showed traits of a future star quarterback, and after a rough first half, the defense shut out an explosive Louisville offense for 30 minutes. But a questionable play call in the game's biggest moment ruined what could have been a pivotal win.

Jack Ankony | Sep 16, 2023

Jack's Take: Goal-Line Blunder, Poor First Half Tarnish Jackson's Promising Performance /

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Indiana Hoosiers

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Indiana was 18 inches from a tie game, but chose to start six yards away instead.

On fourth-and-goal, trailing Louisville by seven points with 4:43 left in the game, quarterback Tayven Jackson took the snap and handed the ball to Josh Henderson. It was a slow-developing play, and as the offensive line failed to pave a gap, Henderson had nowhere to go. Louisville stuffed Henderson at least one full yard short of the goal line, all but sealing the Cardinals' 21-14 victory at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Indiana used its second of three timeouts to plan the fourth down play, so it had little power in stopping the clock after the turnover on downs. A few first downs later, Louisville quarterback Jack Plummer took a knee and ran out the clock, keeping Louisville's undefeated start alive and dropping Indiana to 1-2.

This is the play Indiana called on 4th & Goal with the game on the line after using a timeout #iufb pic.twitter.com/OzAPff3ceT
— Dan Olinger (@dan_olinger) September 17, 2023

Execution on fourth-and-goal was bad, but the play call might have been worse. Indiana was unable to run the ball between the tackles with any success all game, so why would it work on the most important play of the game?

Indiana running backs finished the afternoon with 17 carries for 64 yards, good for 3.7 yards per carry. For context, Indiana ranks 12th in the Big Ten with 3.4 yards per carry this season. The interior run game has never been this team's strength, especially for backs like Henderson and sophomore Jaylin Lucas, who thrive on off-tackle runs and with space to make defenders miss.

Hindsight is always 20/20, but it wasn't hard to envision a fourth-and-goal play that better suits Indiana's strengths. Jackson, a strong runner, stands at 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds. Surely he could have plowed ahead 18 inches on a quarterback sneak, especially with a push from his teammates.

Maximizing Jackson's athleticism and rolling him with the option to run or pass to tall, athletic receivers like Donaven McCulley or Cam Camper would have been a better call, too.

Instead, Indiana went with what hadn't worked all game long. One play doesn't entirely decide a game, but those situations are weighted more heavily. Failing in them costs wins, which Indiana can't afford to give away, especially with the path to bowl eligibility narrowing after Saturday's loss.

Allen explained the decision after the game.

"You could run a quarterback sneak, could run a base power play," Allen said. "Obviously we chose to not run the sneak. Obviously, since it didn't work, you'd want to run the other one. We scored previously on the other one. But yeah, it didn't work, so obviously I wish we'd done something else.

"But I don't second guess that. You’ve got to execute. You got the ball on the six-inch line, knock them off the ball and go score. I don't care what you call if you run the football. But we didn't execute it obviously, and that's frustrating.

"That's the one I'm sure everyone is going to focus on, but there were a lot of other variables leading up to that one. Since the play didn't work, I wish we would have called something else. But I love our coaches, love our team and we just got to keep getting better."

Where Allen is correct, though, is that a lot of other variables put Indiana behind Louisville almost all afternoon.

Indiana's defensive backfield blew several coverages that allowed Louisville to jump out to a 14-0 halftime lead. Plummer connected with wide receiver Jamari Thrash first for a 43-yard gain, then on an 85-yard touchdown to open the scoring. Completions of 13 and 18 yards to Thrash helped set up the Cardinals' second touchdown.

Allen attributed these busted coverages to a lack of eye discipline, which improved in the second half as the Hoosiers mounted a comeback. Indiana made a few schematic adjustments to fill running lanes, and the tackling was simply better, too. Indiana shut Louisville out in the second half, further stamping the idea that the defense is good enough to stay competitive in most games.

And when the defense is playing like it did in the final 30 minutes of Saturday's game, Jackson proved he's developing into a quarterback who could be a real threat moving forward.

After a few overthrows in the first half, one of which was deflected then intercepted, Jackson found his rhythm in the second half. He said it was a result of playing fast, which makes him feel free.

In his second career start – and first where he played the entire game – Jackson showed impressive poise and awareness. He knew exactly when to step up in the pocket. He used his elusiveness to dodge pass rushers. As Allen can't help but say whenever asked, he showed moxie and confidence not every quarterback has. And perhaps most importantly, he revealed a strong arm and accuracy.

After a gutsy onside kick call by Allen that Indiana recovered, Jackson led a quick three-play, 54-yard drive, capped off by a silky-touch pass to Lucas down the seam. Two drives later, he completed seven passes – three of which went for 11 or more yards – en route to a 97-yard touchdown drive to trim Louisville's lead to seven.

Jackson led another long fourth-quarter drive, this time covering 89 yards in eight plays. Jackson nearly tied the game on his own late in the fourth quarter, as he dove for the pylon after avoiding pressure. He thought he had the touchdown, but replay revealed Jackson's knee touched the turf just before.

Jackson took the loss hard after the game, but he shouldn't shoulder the blame.

"I don't want to see it," Jackson said of his lunge for the pylon. "We lost that game because I didn't get in. Growing up as a little kid you're always in the backyard, 'Oh, three, two, one,' dive for the end zone, and you finally get that moment and it doesn't go as planned. So it's a hard pill to swallow."

On the next play, instead of letting Jackson surge through the middle on a quarterback sneak, use his athleticism on a roll out or pass to one of Indiana's talented receivers, Indiana chose to run it up the middle, which has never been a strength of the 2023 Hoosiers.

This decision tarnished an otherwise promising day from Jackson, young quarterback with a glowingly bright future, as well as an inspiring second-half effort from a defense that's looked sturdy in all three games, aside from a few costly blown coverages.

A win would have gone a long way for Indiana, both in its pursuit of bowl eligibility and in growing belief that it can get there. But instead, it's another close fourth-quarter loss that feels all too familiar.

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