11/17/2017 football Edit

Cole Gest Rewarded For Patience

Stu Jackson • TheHoosier

Staff Writer

Stu Jackson covers Indiana University basketball, football and recruiting for TheHoosier.com. He also hosts Heard on The Hoosier, the site's official podcast.

If the beginning of the season was any indication, Cole Gest never saw last Saturday's performance coming.

The redshirt freshman running back had eight carries total through Indiana's first three games, his first regular season action since suffering a season-ending ankle injury in late September last year. The Hoosiers also returned several veteran running backs.

Would he be able to find a role in a deep running back room? He had his doubts.

"Honestly, at the beginning of the season, I didn't think I was going to be playing much," Gest said. "A lot of mental struggles, honestly, just questioning if I really wanted to do this anymore. Not playing really takes a toll on your psyche."

Against Illinois last Saturday, his doubts were alleviated.

Gest finished with career-highs in both all-purpose yards (109) and rushing yards (82) in the Hoosiers' 24-14 win in Champaign, complimenting freshman running back Morgan Ellison's bruising rushing style with speed and agility on the ground and through the air.

"Morgan has been a pleasant surprise, but Cole is a guy that I always, really from last year, felt like he had a chance to be a really good one," IU head coach Tom Allen said. "You just need that. You can’t have enough of them."

Gest said he never thought about transferring or quitting due to his limited opportunities. Instead, he leaned on his faith while he waited for an answer for what was in store for him the rest of the year.

"You can’t just tap out and quit because it’s not going your way sometimes," Gest said. "In the real world, you can’t pout about it. Things aren’t always going to go your way. You just have to see it through and continue to work and continue to get better. Good things come to those who wait. I understood this life principle and I applied it."

He's been rewarded for that patience in his last two games.

Against Maryland on Oct. 28, he recorded 12 carries for 38 yards, adding two catches for 28 yards in a touchdown. Although he was injured in that contest and missed the Wisconsin game on Nov. 4, he returned against Illinois and finished with a team-high 17 carries for 82 yards plus three catches for 27 yards to help the Hoosiers remain in contention for a bowl game.

In total, he's had 175 all-purpose yards across his last two games. However, his first career touchdown stood out above all else he accomplished during that span.

"I was like, ‘Oh, thank you, Jesus,'" Gest said. "Through the season, it was rough and just for that, to finally cross that pylon for the first time was like, alright, lord, you got me. It was like a load was just lifted off me. It was huge."

Described as an "explosive," versatile running back by redshirt senior quarterback Richard Lagow, Indiana will need more performances like those last two from Gest over the final two weeks, especially against Rutgers on Saturday. The Scarlet Knights rank 10th out of 14 Big Ten teams in rushing defense, which could open up more opportunities for him and the Hoosiers' ground attack as a whole.

Whenever he gets those chances, they will be worth the wait.

"Really proud of how he just stuck with it," IU redshirt senior quarterback Richard Lagow said. "He never got down on himself or said, ‘Why me?’ He kept showing up to work every day and it’s paying off for him."