After three consecutive matchups against a top-10 opponent, Indiana's schedule finally reaches a breathing point against unranked Maryland this Saturday. However, quarterback Jack Tuttle's foot injury last weekend against No. 5 Ohio State designates true freshman and third-string quarterback Donaven McCulley will likely be the starter.
Like the two other quarterbacks who have started before him, he has the same task of earning IU's first conference win in a road matchup.
"The predominant snaps were Donaven and Grant (Gremel)," head coach Tom Allen said about practice reps in a press conference on Thursday. "Those guys have had so little preparation that's been the focus to get those guys the reps that they need. It's been very positive; it's a whole group effort."
McCulley's lack of preparation showed last weekend, where he completed one of six passes for thirty yards and Ohio State's defense sacked him twice. In fairness, McCulley entered the game in the first quarter and took more snaps under center than anticipated throughout the game.
Offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan hopes McCulley will be more comfortable in his passing game with more repetition, he said in a press conference on Monday.
McCulley can feel more relaxed in the pocket if IU's offensive line repeatedly protects him. Ohio State continuously put pressure on McCulley, leading to two sacks.
"Everybody needs to elevate; everybody needs to improve, coaches and players," Sheridan said about the offensive line's performance this season. "The word consistency can get thrown around loosely, but it's true. We need to play more consistently. There were moments when we did a nice job and then there were other moments when we didn't."
The line did a great job during the game's first drive, IU's only scoring possession. McCulley substituted in for a snap and ran 15 yards. One of his strengths is his running ability and, if the line can provide gaps for him, he will have an easier time breaking Maryland's 83rd ranked defense in the NCAA.
On the other sideline, Terrapin quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa has unbalanced stats throughout his 2021 campaign. He has passed for 1,965 yards and 15 touchdowns but has thrown eight interceptions. Five of his interceptions came against No. 5 Iowa and he threw two more against No. 7 Ohio State.
Apart from two turnover-heavy games against ranked Big Ten opponents, Tagovailoa hasn't thrown an interception against unranked conference opponents, including llinois and Minnesota. Like those teams, IU is an unranked conference opponent.
IU defensive coordinator Charlton Warren talked about Tagovailoa's strengths in a press conference on Monday.
"You have a dual threat quarterback who does a great job of improvising and making plays with his feet to set up the pass game," Warren said.
Another strength of Maryland's offense is forcing opposing defenses to have to worry about the rushing and passing threat simultaneously, Warren said.
It's a reminder of how IU's defense imploded against Ohio State, giving up 44 points in the first half. The Buckeye's passing and rushing threats were almost equally lethal, gaining 352 total passing yards and 187 rushing yards. Ohio State had a hot start and never looked back.
And Maryland behaves in the same way.
"They're a group once they get it rolling, they're rolling," Warren said. "Tremendous challenge for us and our players to come up with a gameplan, go out and execute this coming Saturday against Maryland."
The game is scheduled for Oct. 28th at noon ET and will be available to watch on Big Ten Network.
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