In Indiana’s 31-17 win over Washington, the running game was the focal point of the offense, and that was all thanks to what quarterback Tayven Jackson calls the “best O-line in the country.
This offensive line group, coached by Bob Bostad, has been great all season long, but these last two games have truly put them into the spotlight, so it’s high time they get some coverage.
Coach Cignetti mentioned postgame that “they're all real tough, hard-nosed kind of guys, and they function well together,” giving praise to the players, but also saying that “Bob does a great job coaching them.”
This is high praise from the coach who said that the team as a whole “wasn’t playing very well” but the same cannot be said about the offensive line who allowed the running game to lead the offense in victory.
All in all, the group (left to right) of Carter Smith, Drew Evans, Mike Katic, Bray Lynch and Trey Wedig, were terrific against Washington, so let’s dive deeper into how they led IU to the victory.
The offensive line did not allow a sack all game, while also not allowing a tackle for loss the entire game, both incredible stats, especially going up against a skilled Big Ten defense in Washington.
Jackson mentioned that the offensive line helped him tremendously, saying “I feel so comfortable back there,” also saying that “they give me so much confidence,” further describing just how critical the offensive line was to winning this game, even with the passing attack not performing as well as in previous weeks.
Indiana and Jackson threw for just 124 yards, meaning that the rushing game had to step up, and they did. Indiana rushed for 188 yards, Justice Ellison rushed for 123 of those and added a touchdown, Jackson specifically mentioning Ellison by saying “Justice that's my one of my MVPs.”
Jackson then said “I'm so proud of him and I feel so confident when he's back there and all the other running backs too,” mentioning that while Ellison was the star of this one, all the running backs are serviceable and that they all contributed to the running game playing so well.
Ellison himself, though, wants to give all the credit to his offensive line, saying “I'm so appreciative of everything they've been doing,” letting everyone know that, while he was the one with over 100 yards, it was the O-line making the holes that made it possible for Ellison to contribute as much as he did.
While the rushing attack led Indiana throughout the game, it didn’t have a huge play, Ellison elaborating on that by mentioning “It wasn't a lot of big runs, explosive runs but it really showed the resilience of this football team.”
This resilience can certainly be found in the offensive line, as it’s a position group that thrives on being tough, Cignetti saying “they’re tough, tough guys,” but it trickles down to the rest of the roster including the running backs, Ellison and the rest of the guys having phenomenal games.
Cignetti agrees too, saying “Justice had the hot hand. We had Kaelon take a few carries, too, but I thought he was terrific. Terrific.”
This really shows the give and take between the two position groups, as when the offensive line the running game follows, something that center Mike Katic knows all too well.
The sixth year senior has been around IU football and then some, something that has tremendously helped the offensive line to be what it is today.
Katic said postgame how he likes to get his offensive line going, saying that “I tell the guys on the sideline before every drive that it's going to be on us and we're going to have to take control of this game.”
He mentioned that in the first half they could have been better but said “in the second half we did and it's kind of what the story has been these past couple weeks just breaking their will in the fourth quarter and just dominating.”
And dominate they did, as the running backs rushed for 70 yards in the fourth quarter alone, cementing the lead Iu had and allowing the Hoosiers to get the victory.
Katic attributes his group’s success to chemistry, saying that it’s “just us five just gelling, we just gel really well together, our chemistry is really good and we're just communicating.”
Whatever the reason may be, whether it’s chemistry like Katic said, strength like Cignetti said, resilience like Ellison said or a combination of several factors, this offensive line is a force to be reckoned with and was a vital part of Indiana defeating Washington and improving to 8-0.
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