Indiana’s receiver duo of Charlie Becker and Nick Marsh looked every bit like the kind of one-two punch the Hoosiers imagined when Marsh arrived from Michigan State through the portal.
In IU’s 47-15 win over Rutgers in Week 5, both wideouts topped 100 receiving yards. Becker led the way with 107 yards and two touchdowns on eight catches, while Marsh added seven receptions for 120 yards and a score.
For Marsh, his first 100-yard game in an Indiana uniform was a sign that the early-season buildup is starting to show up on Saturdays.
"Coming here I knew Charlie was going to be one of the top priorities, and I think I'm a baller myself, so that was already the mindset coming here," Marsh said. "These are things that we expected earlier in the season, but you know, it's finally coming along."
Marsh needed a few games to settle into the passing game, but once he did, the production has come in a hurry. Over Indiana’s last three games, the Michigan native has 19 catches for 253 yards and two touchdowns. He said the more he’s worked through the offense, the more comfortable he’s become lining up anywhere.
"After watching some film, after going over some formations and stuff, just being in the right spot, I'm definitely more comfortable being everywhere," Marsh said.
The Hoosiers have flashed explosive potential through the air at times this season, but the timing has not always been clean. Against Rutgers, though, the big plays arrived in bunches, including a 48-yard strike to Becker from Josh Hoover that hit exactly the way it was drawn up.
Marsh pointed to the work behind those moments.
"It's something that we work on at practice," he said about the long pass to Becker. "We draw them up just to get things going.
We were finally able to execute perfectly how we wanted to. It's coming along."
Becker and Marsh are clearly the top two options at receiver, but Indiana still has a question to answer behind them: who becomes the third target? Davion Chandler is making a case. The former Indianapolis Lawrence North standout caught his fourth touchdown pass against Rutgers, and Marsh said the young receiver keeps getting better.
"He's just a young guy," Marsh said about Chandler. "He's learning…he's learning a lot, and he's picking up from me, Charlie, some of the older guys, and he's out there executing everything that Coach (Mike Shanahan) asks him to do."
The work from Indiana’s receivers also goes well beyond catching passes. Their perimeter blocking on run plays has become a key part of the offense, even if it never shows up in the box score. Marsh said the group understands how much one block can change a run.
"Most of those plays are one block away from touchdowns," he said about run blocking as a receiver. "We preach it in the film room, watching film, one block can make a difference in a lot of plays.
When we watch film we see it every day. I think that's the mindset going into that."
Becker said the same kind of commitment shows up when the Hoosiers are trying to spring their backs for extra yards.
"We were able to get some good blocking downfield and create some space for our running backs," Becker said. "I'm always going to say it wasn't perfect, and there's going to be areas where we can improve and watch film and get better so that the next time a 30-yard run turns into a touchdown."
He also credited the coaching for Indiana’s execution, especially in the details that matter when the Hoosiers are away from home.
"We have the best coaches in the world," Becker said. "They do a great job of making sure that everybody knows the very minute details in every kind of concept that we have, so when you go out for these big games, and these road games, when everybody's against you, that you're poised and you know that you're confident in your abilities. We trust Coach Shanahan, and we're here to do our job, and that's about all we can do."
In Other News...
Indianas Latest AP Ranking Just Sparked A New Disrespect Debate
Indianas latest AP ranking has given Hoosier fans another reason to grumble, even after a convincing 32-point win over Rutgers and a 21-game winning streak that has kept the season rolling. The Associated Press poll still slotted Indiana seventh, while Alabama jumped to sixth after its dominant win over Mississippi State, a swap that naturally caught plenty of attention.
The gap between the AP and Coaches Poll only added to the conversation, since the coaches kept Indiana at fifth. For a program that keeps stacking wins, the difference in perception is becoming its own weekly storyline, and it leaves the Hoosiers with another chance to answer on the field rather than in the rankings. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky Fans Have Every Right To Be Furious With This Poll
Week 5s AP Poll has given college football plenty to argue about, and Indiana is right in the middle of the noise. The Hoosiers slipped a spot even after a decisive victory, one of several moves that left fans around the sport scratching their heads, especially when contrasted with teams that were rewarded or punished far differently for results that did not seem all that dissimilar.
Kentuckys fall out of the rankings after a road win is the kind of jolt that makes the whole exercise feel arbitrary, and it is not the only example stirring frustration. Floridas drop after a loss looked steep next to Ole Miss, while North Dakota State barely showed up in the voting despite its strong start, a reminder that pollsters are often grading teams on more than the final score and leaving plenty of room for debate. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Will Help Reveal What Nebraskas Hot Start Really Means
Nebraskas 5-0 start has given the program a welcome burst of optimism, but the next stretch is where the conversation gets more serious. The Huskers have already shown some resilience, including in the recent win over Maryland, yet there are still fair questions about how steady they are on both sides of the ball and whether the offense and defense can hold up once the Big Ten schedule tightens.
Indiana is part of that next test, and that matchup should say plenty about what Nebraska really is this season. A conference win can keep the momentum rolling, but a stumble would only sharpen the scrutiny around a team that has looked promising without fully answering the bigger questions just yet. [Read more 🡒]