As the final seconds ticked down Saturday on Indiana’s 51-43 upset of No. 22 Minnesota, Hoosiers coach Cam Cameron gathered his players at midfield.
“Let’s thank everybody who stuck with us,” a hoarse Cameron shouted. The players jogged toward both grandstands and lifted their helmets to salute the remnants of a disappointing homecoming crowd of 30,882.
It was a bittersweet moment. At most Big Ten schools, a pulsating homecoming victory might provoke a wild celebration on the field. But the Hoosiers’ first triumph over a ranked opponent since 1993 only sparked a race for the parking lots, with many fans taking off before the game was over.
“Some people probably left and said, `They’re going to give it up,'” quarterback Antwaan Randle El said.
That’s why Cameron wanted the players to recognize the people who hung around to the end on a glorious afternoon. Those who stayed saw a terrific Big Ten battle–a game that all but eliminated Minnesota (5-3, 3-2) from Rose Bowl contention while restoring a measure of pride in the losingest football program in conference history.
Indiana (3-4, 2-2) jumped ahead 24-6 in the second quarter, watched Minnesota charge back for a 29-24 lead five minutes into the second half and then blew the Gophers away with four touchdowns in 15 minutes.
These didn’t look like the Hoosiers who had been hammered 58-0 at Michigan a week ago.
“You realize how difficult it was for those people to show up,” Cameron said of his players. “A lot of people haven’t stopped believing in us.”
As he left the field, it was hard to tell if Cameron was thrilled or merely relieved. It didn’t really matter. This has been a trying autumn for the Indiana alumnus.
First there was last month’s firing of Bob Knight, Cameron’s former basketball coach here. Like many at the school, Cameron agonized at the thought that its national reputation had been tarnished by last spring’s investigation into Knight’s conduct and by the reaction to his dismissal among students and fans.
Without Knight’s support Cameron suddenly seemed vulnerable, at least according to speculation among IU followers.
A few weeks after Knight was fired, Cameron suffered a more personal loss. His best friend, assistant head coach Pete Schmidt, died after a long struggle with lymphoma.
A hand-lettered sign affixed to the Memorial Stadium grandstand declares: “We miss you, Pete.”
But that wasn’t the only sign spotted Saturday. At a tailgate party just beyond the south end zone, a bedsheet banner bore the words “Can Cam” next to a drawing of a trash receptacle.
That’s why Saturday’s victory, which left Cameron 13-27 in four years, was so important for the beleaguered coach. Cameron is among four coaches who took over Big Ten programs in 1997. Three have led their teams to bowl games: Purdue’s Joe Tiller, Minnesota’s Glen Mason and Illinois’ Ron Turner.
Things never seemed bleaker for Cameron than they did last Saturday, when the Hoosiers absorbed their 58-0 pasting at Ann Arbor. The loss might have deflated the team, but Indiana’s six senior captains called a players-only meeting Sunday. By the time practice resumed Tuesday, the team had a new direction.
“Everybody blames coach Cam, but he can’t go out and play the games,” Randle El said. “He knows football. We need him here. People need to get off him.”
Randle El, a redshirt junior from south suburban Riverdale, helped Cameron’s cause with a wondrous individual performance Saturday. Randle El isn’t going to win the Heisman Trophy, but he ought to be named on more than a few ballots. He is easily the most exciting player in the Big Ten.
Randle El led Indiana’s explosive offense to 611 total yards. He rushed for 210 yards and two touchdowns and passed for 263 yards and two more touchdowns.
“The stats don’t really tell you what he did,” Cameron said.
Indeed, Randle El even recovered an onside kick in the final minutes, killing Minnesota’s last hope for a comeback.
But Randle El’s most brilliant play came midway through the second quarter. After wheeling around right end on an option keeper and gliding into the secondary, Randle El flipped a no-look, shoulder-high pitch to tailback Levron Williams, who bolted untouched 24 yards down the sideline for the touchdown that gave the Hoosiers a 24-6 lead.
“I don’t say I surprise myself because I don’t think about it when it happens,” Randle El said. “But when I go back and look at the film, sometimes I smile.”
There were plenty of smiles on Saturday. One belonged to Cameron.
“No matter what was said about people here, the people in Memorial Stadium never stopped believing,” Cameron said.
