Injured Indiana QB Sudfeld Out, True Freshman In
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Indiana starting quarterback Nate Sudfeld will undergo season-ending surgery this week after injuring his left shoulder in the second quarter of the Hoosiers' 45-29 loss to Iowa.
After battling through quarterback competitions during his first two seasons in Bloomington, Indiana was Sudfeld's team. There was no Tre Roberson or Cam Coffman to split snaps with and no one to look at over his shoulder when he made a mistake. But Sudfeld and Indiana's young receiving core never found the rhythm that the junior established with the Hoosiers' veteran receivers last year.
Now, six games into the season, Sudfeld will have surgery Thursday and Indiana will turn to true freshman Chris Covington to fill the void.
Covington struggled Saturday when he replaced Sudfeld. It was Covington's first Big Ten action, completing just three of 12 passes for 31 yards with two interceptions. Covington also added 41 yards on the ground.
A quarterback in high school, Covington was recruited by Indiana with the potential to play on the defensive side. Indiana's coaching staff switched him to quarterback after they got a glimpse of his arm strength.
"He has the strongest arm on the team, and it's not even close," Indiana head coach Kevin Wilson said.
For offensive coordinator Kevin Johns, being able to work with a young, raw talent brings him some excitement.
"He can make any throw on the field," Johns said." ''He needs some development, some grooming, some reps, some coaching, but we think he can be very special."
Covington has had the fewest reps of all the backup quarterbacks because of an injury earlier in the season for which he wasn't fully cleared to play until the week of Sept. 13, when Indiana took on Bowling Green, Wilson said.
Freshman Nate Boudreau and Zander Diamont will also compete for the position and may see snaps, but Covington is the clear favorite. At 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, Covington has the physical maturity to compete in the Big Ten.
Led by the nation's leading rusher in Tevin Coleman, Indiana has relied heavily on its run game this season, but has balanced that with Sudfeld completing over 60 percent of his passes. But Covington's inexperience in the pocket and his ability to create plays with his feet may mean Indiana will struggle to avoid becoming one-dimensional.
"We'll keep throwing it," Wilson said. "You got to keep your offense going. You got to stay in attack mode. We'll emphasize different things because of the talent level of the quarterback and his youth, but you got to stay in attack mode."
Covington's first start will come Saturday in front of Indiana's homecoming crowd against No. 8 Michigan State, which will be stingiest defense yet. The true freshman will need to keep his head on a swivel, as the Spartans enter Saturday tied for 8th in sacks in the FBS with 22 this season, bringing speed off the line of scrimmage that Indiana has not faced.
"It's (speed) pretty hard to simulate, especially a Michigan State defensive speed," Johns said.
(© Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
