Lee Beebe Jr. showed IU’s football team what he could provide when his number was called against Northwestern.
At this time last season, Beebe was dealing with a knee injury that kept him sidelined before Big Ten play.
Last Friday night, with starting running back Turbo Richard leaving the game with a lower leg injury, Beebe took on a larger role in his first Big Ten matchup with the Hoosiers. He responded with more than 200 rushing yards in a 29-23 victory over the Wildcats.
Richard could return Saturday when the Hoosiers travel to Rutgers, but Beebe's performance showed Indiana has another great option at running back..
Beebe said he knew “what I have to do and (knew) what the situation was with Turbo going down. Just (knew) I had to step up and just take on all those reps.”
Even after his 200-yard performance, Beebe said there were things he could have done better. After watching the film, he graded himself somewhere between a B-plus and an A, pointing to missed reads and opportunities to gain more yards.
“There were some plays in the game where I did mess up or I could have had better reads here and there, could have had more yards, could have had an early touchdown,” Beebe said.
Beebe also believes there is another part of his game he has yet to show.
“I think my ability to make guys miss is something that I haven't really showcased yet and I would like to do that a little more,” Beebe said.
Defensive end Tobi Osunsanmi said the Hoosiers’ defensive line still has areas to clean up after allowing Northwestern to make the game close in the second half. Indiana shut out the Wildcats in the first half before Northwestern scored 23 points in the second half..
Rutgers has a potentially explosive offense with a basic yet effective offensive scheme. The Scarlet Knights have one of the nation’s best receivers in KJ Duff and one of the most electric running backs in the nation with Antwan Raymond. He is in the top ten nationally in rushing yards.
Osunsanmi said limiting mistakes will be important for the defensive line to consistently create pressure and stop explosive plays.
“Whenever we limit our mistakes and limit kind of our brain farts on the D-line, I feel like we really get after the quarterback, we really get after the run game” Osunsanmi said.
Osunsanmi also said Indiana's coaches have emphasized maintaining intensity throughout the week after the defensive line's technique slipped in the second half against Northwestern.
For Saturday's matchup, he said the focus is simple.
“Just being physical and being fast,” Osunsanmi said. “Making fast decisions.”
Rutgers is IU’s first road game of the season.
Kickoff is at 8 p.m. The game will be streamed on the Big Ten Network.
