Indiana opened the season with mystery at quarterback, and the result was the Hoosiers biggest win of the year, a triumph over Illinois capped off by a late-scoring drive led by Connor Bazelak.
But now on a five-game losing streak, IU finds itself desperately trying to reclaim that week one magic.
Perhaps a new round of quarterback uncertainty will do the trick?
Going into the bye week, IU coach Tom Allen said the performance level at every position would be evaluated, including quarterback.
Bazelak has started each of Indiana’s first eight games this season. He is normally part of the program’s regular Monday media availability but was not included in the schedule this week. That, along with multiple sub-par performances from the offense led to questions about who would start at quarterback when the Hoosiers host Penn State this weekend at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday (ABC).
The sixth-year head coach left open the possibility there would be a change behind center when the Hoosiers face the Nittany Lions.
“I guess we’ll have to see how it plays itself out when it comes to game day. Every position is up for evaluation, and we’re just trying to find the best combination to give us a spark on offense and allow our guys to be able to move the football and score points.” Allen said on Monday.
Allen was pressed on the matter, but still declined to say who would lead the IU offense to the field on Saturday.
“You’ll have to wait until Saturday to see who our starting QB is going to be,” Allen said.
Whoever plays quarterback will be without IU’s leading wide receiver Cam Camper, who Allen announced was done for the season with a torn ACL.
On the season Bazelak has struggled with accuracy while under a torment of pressure from an underperforming offensive line. He has completed just 54.9 percent of his passes while throwing 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions.
If Allen makes a change, his options are long-time backup Jack Tuttle, who has already announced his intent to transfer after the season, or third-stringer Dexter Williams, who has never taken a college snap.
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