Indiana head football coach Tom Allen addressed the media for his weekly press conference on Thursdays inside Memorial Stadium and touched on a plan if center Hunter Littlejohn can't play and how he plans to avoid a second-quarter lull.

Watch his conference in the video below.

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As the week has gone on leading up to Maryland, Tom Allen has sounded less and less confident in fifth-year senior Hunter Littlejohn's availability after he suffered a lower leg injury against Rutgers that kept him out for more than a half. After the game, Allen said Littlejohn would be "fine," and he doubled down on that feeling Monday. But on his radio show Wednesday, he said "we'll see" in regards to Littlejohn's status, and finally, Thursday, he labeled Littlejohn as a game-time decision.

Redshirt freshman and former walk-on Charlie O'Connor stepped in for Littlejohn mid-game against Rutgers, but there could be a different plan than plugging O'Connor in for Littlejohn if the senior can't play.

Allen said placing O'Connor at center is being considered, but he also said the staff is considering moving left guard Harry Crider, who received a lot of praise as a center in 2017, to Littlejohn's spot and spotting Crider with redshirt junior guard Mackenzie Nworah or any of a number of guards.

They have worked both options into practice all week, the head coach said.

Allen said after the Rutgers game that he felt like his team, specifically his offense, got into a "lull" up 21-0 against Rutgers in the second quarter last week, and he has stressed all week that he would like to see his team finish better in those positions or avoid them if it doesn't have a lead.

"Those things can happen and have happened at all levels, so you have to coach hard to avoid them," Allen said. "At the same time, getting yourself into those positions, being up 21-0 in the first quarter, is a position you want to be in. You just have to learn how to handle it with maturity and finish."

Allen said Wednesday he came into the Monday meeting with specific notes about the second quarter lull, beginning at the 8:40 mark of the quarter, and he hit those moments hard in practice this week.

Maryland opened some eyes in the first two weeks of the season, as it beat Howard and Syracuse by wide margins – including a 63-20 win against the then-No. 21 team in the country, in Syracuse. Those wins had many wondering just how good Maryland could be this year.

But in the third week, Maryland lost to Temple, 20-17, and followed it up with a 59-0 loss to Penn State and, eventually, a 40-14 loss to a struggling and injured Purdue team.

"When you look at the whole picture, there's no question, you know what their potential is. They have extremely explosive athletes and are a very, very talented football team. We've played them – in the time that I've been here – three times in the past, and they've always been very talented. This is the most they've had."

Related: Ten things to know about Maryland

Quarterback Tyrell Pigrome played Indiana last season and has the ability to break off big plays with his legs, and other playmakers, like Anthony McFarland and Javon Leake, create a potential for a big play on any given snap.

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