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Indiana's rushing attack has struggled through three weeks and that has caused what should be a two-dimensional offense to become very one-dimensional. It's clear and evident to the coaches, and it's something that needs a spark in order to produce consistent offensive drives against the likes of Cincinnati and the remaining Big Ten schedule.

The Indiana running back room largely consists of transfer backs Shaun Shivers and Josh Henderson -- but before last week's matchup with Western Kentucky, it was very much a one-man show in the backfield.

Entering last week, Shivers had 35 carries while Henderson had just 13. But, that wasn't a direct result of production. Both backs averaged over 5.0 yards per carry through two games, but it was Shivers who was seeing the majority of the touches.

After its win over Illinois where the team rushed for just 32 yards on 1.2 yards per rush, it exploded against Idaho, going for 239 yards on 6.6 yards per carry. Then, to follow it up against Western Kentucky, Indiana struggled a bit carrying the ball for 120 yards on just 3.4 yards per carry.

The inconsistent rushing attack is evident to head coach Tom Allen and he knows in order to compete in the Big Ten, having a consistent rushing attack is a key.

"Yeah, we rushed for 120 yards, so would like to get a little bit more than that. 150 would be a good place to be," Allen said after IU's win over Western Kentucky. "I would say there's no doubt, you kind of mix things up to kind of take some pressure off there with that, without a doubt, but to me it's just whatever they're giving us, we want to try and take it.

"We were moving the ball down the field, I'm not going to get caught up in what kind of yardage it is, what area it comes from. We definitely need to run the football. I get that. We did have some good runs, but they were doing some things at times, and we've got to have some good answers for that."

Despite getting outgained by nearly 100 yards on the ground last week, there were some positives that Indiana is now looking to take into next week, and beyond.

Shaun Shivers was struggling, finishing with 15 carries for just 58 yards -- a 3.9 average. So, Indiana leaned a little bit more on Josh Henderson to add variety to the backfield and the rushing attack. It resulted in a season-high 11 carries for 65 yards and a touchdown for the UNC transfer. He also caught a 32-yard pass out of the backfield. His breakout was not unexpected, however.

"Not really surprised by Josh," Allen said. "I saw him practice. He didn't come in with as much hype or fanfare, maybe, but really good player, good balance, hard to tackle. Great out of the backfield, made a great one-handed catch and got a bunch of yards."

"That's what I love to do," Henderson added. "I can play in any spot and hopefully I can keep being used in the offense."

Still, through three weeks, Shivers has out-touched Henderson 56-27, including receptions, and did so again last week. But, with what Indiana found last week, look for some additional packages for Henderson, as well as both players on the field together.

"When you put that package together between him and Shaun, I think we've got a really special duo back there," IU offensive coordinator Walt Bell said.

"I think he and Shaun need to be great together. And they are," Allen added. "They have great chemistry. They really respect each other.... It's a two-headed monster. It's a 1-2 punch with those two guys. They're two different guys. They're both very talented players."

Despite the 'two-headed monster' Indiana has in the backfield, the Indiana offense has 77 completions to just 74 carries for running backs Shivers and Henderson. In total, there have been 136 passing attempts, nearly twice as 'touches' as the talented duo in the backfield.

But with the recent success that the rushing attack has had, and the multi-dimensional backs on the roster, look for the rushing game to be more involved moving forward.

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