The Daily Hoosier
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
    Trending
    • IU basketball: Indiana vs. Auburn — The Report Card
    • Mike Woodson keeps same substitution pattern every game, but is that the right answer?
    • Auburn exposed Indiana’s backcourt weaknesses in Atlanta
    • IU women’s basketball takes Big Ten opener at Rutgers
    • Watch: Woodson, Reneau and Cupps discuss loss to Auburn
    • IU basketball: Auburn 104 Indiana 76 — Three keys, highlights, final stats
    • Ware and Reneau among five listed as questionable for Indiana vs. Auburn
    • IU Basketball game day essentials: Indiana in Atlanta to face Auburn
    • Sign Up
    • About/Support
    • Jobs
    • Tickets
      • IUBB Tickets (Stubhub)
      • IUFB Tickets (Stubhub)
    • Shop
      • Official IU Store
      • IU Adidas Store
      • Amazon: Support TDH
      • IU Memorabilia
      • IU Press (Books)
      • The Daily Hoosier T-Shirt
    • Radio/Podcasts
    • Pro IU
      • IUBB NBA
      • IUFB NFL
      • IUBASE MLB
    • Forum
      • Disqus Forum
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube
    The Daily HoosierThe Daily Hoosier
    Sunday, December 10
    • IU Basketball
      • Latest IU Basketball News
      • IU Basketball 2023-24 Schedule
      • IU Basketball 23-24 Roster/Staff
      • Scholarship Chart
      • Future Schedules
      • 2023-24 Big Ten Standings
      • 2023-24 IU Basketball Stats
      • Rankings & Bracketology
      • IU Basketball Media Guide
    • IU Football
      • Latest IU Football News
      • Curt Cignetti’s IU Staff
      • Offseason roster tracker
      • IU Football: The 2023 Schedule
      • Roster
      • 2023 IUFB Stats
      • 2023 B1G Standings
      • Future Opponents through 2031
      • IUFB 2023 Media Guide
    • IU Recruiting
      • IU Basketball Recruiting News
      • IU Football Recruiting News
      • IUBB 2024-2026 Prospects
      • Recruit Interviews
      • Recruit Highlights
      • CBB Team Rankings
      • IU Football Recruiting Commits
    • IU Women’s Basketball
      • IU Women’s Basketball News
      • 23-24 Schedule
      • Big Ten Standings
    • IU Men’s Soccer
      • 2023 Schedule
      • Indiana Men’s Soccer: Program History
    • More Hoosiers
      • Fan and Business NIL options
      • IU Baseball
        • Baseball Schedule (links to iuhoosiers.com)
        • 2021 Stats (links to iuhoosiers.com)
        • Big Ten Standings
      • IU Swim & Dive
      • IU Olympic Results
    • Hoosier History
      • March Madness Classics
      • Basketball History
      • Football History
      • IUFB Best Seasons
      • IUFB All-Time Top 10 Players
    The Daily Hoosier

    IU football: 17 year-old Jaylin Lucas is fastest player on the team, ready to see the field

    Mike SchumannBy Mike SchumannAugust 9, 2022 IU Football 7 Comments
    Via Jaylin Lucas on Twitter
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    After his offense produced just 11 points per game over the last eight weeks of the 2021 season, Tom Allen knew he needed a spark.

    Several months earlier he had seen Jaylin Lucas at a camp, and it was love at first sight for the IU coaching staff.

    “He’s a guy that we actually found when we were doing our camps off campus down in the South, and got to see him live, in person, and immediately I was like ‘Wow, this is the kind of guy we’ve been looking for,'” Allen said on Tuesday via Zoom.

    What Allen saw that day probably looked a lot like this video Lucas has pinned to the top of his Twitter profile:

    👿.. pic.twitter.com/mAHAKMTljc

    — jaylin lucas (@jaylinlucas1) June 7, 2021

    At 5-foot-9, Lucas wasn’t wowing anyone with his size, but the then Tulane commit certainly made an impression with his physical abilities.

    As impressive as he looks on film, Allen says seeing what Lucas could do that day in person is what really stood out.  The superlatives from a more than 30-year football coach make you pause.

    “Just the twitch, the burst, the acceleration to go from zero to full speed as fast as anybody that I’ve been around coaching wise, and then just a guy that has the complete package of a guy that has good ball skills, can catch, is a good running back, and just speed,” Allen said.

    And everything IU thought they were getting in the speed department, Lucas has delivered since arriving on campus.

    “He’s not only quick, he’s fast,”  Allen said.

    How fast?

    “He’s our fastest player.”

    That’s particularly noteworthy since Lucas won’t turn 18 until IU is four games into it’s 2022 season.  But don’t expect his age to stop him from seeing the field as a true freshman.

    “He’s a really young kid.  He’s still 17 years-old,” IU offensive coordinator Walt Bell said on Tuesday.  “But he’s really far along how he prepares from a maturity standpoint in his approach to the game.

    “On the field he’s incredibly explosive.  He’s a guy that can go win in a 5-by-5 box, the first guy isn’t going to get him on the ground very much.  He’s had some really good explosive plays in the first five or six days of fall camp.”

    Just how much Lucas plays as a freshman remains to be seen, but Indiana’s message to him as a recruit was that they wanted to use him as a running back, slot receiver and in special teams as well.

    Basically, just find ways to get Lucas the ball in the open field, and turn him loose.

    “Just being the world’s most dangerous man, just being an athlete all over the field,” is how Lucas described IU’s plan for him after he decommitted from Tulane and announced his commitment to the Hoosiers in December.

    Originally from Houma, Louisiana, Lucas is already used to adjusting on the fly and making an early impact.

    After his family was displaced by Hurricane Ida, Lucas moved to New Orleans and played his senior season at Edna Karr High School.

    There the all-purpose back was a first-team all-state selection after he totaled 1,883 all-purpose yards with 958 rushing, 705 receiving, 135 kick return, and 85 via punt returns.

    After IU lost Whop Philyor to eligibility after the 2020 season, and D.J. Matthews to injury last year, they really had no one who could make an impact in in the open field in a game-changing way.  That made their push to flip Lucas’ commitment all the more important.

    Now it looks like the payoff will come right out of the gates.

    Lucas joined the program in January, just a few weeks after he committed, and that extra time with Bell and the staff has helped to ensure the dynamic young back will indeed play this fall.

    “Speed is speed, even if it’s young speed.  I do see him as a guy that we expect to play as a freshman,” Allen said.


    The Daily Hoosier –“Where Indiana fans assemble when they’re not at Assembly”

    • Find us on Facebook:  thedailyhoosier
    • You can follow us on Twitter:  @daily_hoosier
    • Seven ways to support completely free IU coverage at no cost to you.

    Share this:

    • Tweet

    Related

    indiana hoosiers Jaylin Lucas
    Mike Schumann

    Keep Reading

    IU football to get visit from Ohio transfer quarterback Kurtis Rourke

    Curt Cignetti has completed his IU football staff

    Q&A on Curt Cignetti, assistants with Jack Fitzpatrick of JMU Sports News

    Latest Hoosier News
    • IU basketball: Indiana vs. Auburn — The Report Card
    • Mike Woodson keeps same substitution pattern every game, but is that the right answer?
    • Auburn exposed Indiana’s backcourt weaknesses in Atlanta
    • IU women’s basketball takes Big Ten opener at Rutgers
    • Watch: Woodson, Reneau and Cupps discuss loss to Auburn
    • IU basketball: Auburn 104 Indiana 76 — Three keys, highlights, final stats
    • Ware and Reneau among five listed as questionable for Indiana vs. Auburn
    Sign Up



    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube
    © 2023 The Daily Hoosier, LLC.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    Ad Blocker Enabled!
    Ad Blocker Enabled!
    Our website is made possible by displaying online advertisements to our visitors. Please support us by disabling your Ad Blocker.