On the backs of Peyton Ramsey and the offense, the Hoosiers bounced back after an early deficit to become bowl eligible for just the third time in five years. Their 38-31 victory against the Cornhuskers answered a number of questions about this Hoosier team, including the sustainability of the offense for either quarterback under center and the reliability of Peyton Ramsey as Indiana’s backup. Finally, Indiana had a second foe (the first being Maryland) worthy enough to prove the capabilities of this team.

While Michael Penix Jr. has been getting the national attention, Ramsey has improved in his own right and has played well under Kalen DeBoer’s offensive architecture.

Below we break down the film for Indiana’s red-zone offense in Lincoln, Peyton Ramsey’s accuracy, and some secondary breakdowns against Nebraska QB Noah Vedral.

Peyton Ramsey’s accuracy.

The story going into the Saturday in Lincoln was the quarterback situation for both teams. Ultimately, both Indiana and Nebraska started their backup quarterbacks despite sending out their starters for warm-ups in full pads.

Ramsey for the Hoosiers played well all afternoon. While he does not have the same zip and velocity that Penix Jr. has shown, Ramsey remains as one of the most accurate quarterbacks in the Big Ten and in the country.

The first play we have for review comes in the second quarter after Indiana recovered a fumble for over 90-yards to be in scoring position. Indiana identifies a match-up that they liked: Ty Fryfogle against one of Nebraska’s shorter defensive backs. In this simple, yet effective play, Ramsey finds the match up and airs one to the edge of the end zone where only Fryfogle can make the play. The result is a touchdown for the Hoosiers and the lead.

We now look at two receptions to Indiana’s receiver Whop Philyor. As two of 14 receptions on the day for Philyor, Ramsey threads the needle to find his star receiver between two Nebraska defensive backs on the first play. He finds Whop on the run in the second play. Whop is not the tallest receiver, so passes to Philyor cannot be jump balls.

Ramsey’s pass frankly does not have the same speed as a Penix pass; however, his accuracy on the afternoon more than compensated for that. Ultimately this great throw and a great move from Philyor gave Indiana two first downs.

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Late into the third quarter, Indiana decides to run up TE Peyton Hendershot right up the middle. With a spread Stevie Scott who Indiana was hitting earlier in the first half, the Husker defense has to respect the screen pass. With just a little bit of hesitation, the defense decides to stay back instead of tracking down Hendershot.

Ramsey hits the wide open Hendershot with an accurate pass over his left shoulder for an easy play to move the chains.

For this last play that unfortunately was ruled out of bounds, Ramsey feels the pass rush right away from the Nebraska front-line. The result is that he is in scramble-mode for the majority of the action. That does not stop Peyton Ramsey from making an impressive throw on the sideline while on the move. He finds Hendershot on the move and athletically throws while under pressure. Look at exactly where Ramsey places the ball. Hendershot has multiple defenders on him, but Ramsey is able to accurately drop the ball in the basket.

Hendershot is able to complete the diving catch, but unfortunately he was ruled out of bounds before he had possession of the ball.

Indiana’s efficient red-zone offense.

The Hoosiers have scored just as many touchdowns this year relative to the entire 2018 season in red-zone scenarios. Indiana currently sits at 25 touchdowns on 37 red-zone attempts (67.5%), while they finished last year with 25 touchdowns on 44 attempts in side the 20-yard line (56.8%).

Here’s a look at some of the offensive sets for Kalen DeBoer in the red-zone that has improved Indiana’s effectiveness in scoring positions.

Indiana spreads the offense with three-receivers on right. Scott takes away one of the defenders with a convincing fake run. Hendershot motions over to the left and looks to be a potential lateral option. Either way, the Hoosiers are in a 2-on-1 scenario. They accomplished this by stacking the receiving core up top, faking the run, and motioning Hendershot.

The defender decides to play in the middle of the two players with hesitation. The result is an untouched run into the end-zone for Ramsey.

Ellis lines up as a receiver on the left of the box, and he is motioned over by Ramsey. The Huskers remain packed in the box and decide to play Ellis man-on-man. With momentum moving to the edge, the speedy Ellis has no problem sneaking into the end-zone for six points.

On the following two-point attempt, the Hoosiers run a very simple route for the trusty Hendershot. While the play looks very similar in setup to the Ellis touchdown right before this, Indiana decides to change it up by moving Scott to the edge. Hendershot does not make any blocks on the line and instead runs straight into the secondary. With his size, he is a very easy target to hit especially with his ability to hold position using his frame. Hendershot makes an athletic catch mid-air and shakes off a hard hit.