One of a number of players who had to learn one the fly last season as a freshman, Shane Wynn saw plenty of action as a wide receiver and kickoff return man for the Hoosiers in his rookie season. Against Illinois, he won Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors, after returning a kickoff for a touchdown, and his 1,015 kick return yards were an Indiana record for a freshman.
A year on, Wynn has turned into one of Indiana’s primary options at receiver, using his excellent speed in the slot, and he still features prominently in the return game as well.
Things have changed somewhat at the position, with coach Kevin Johns now overseeing quarterbacks and wide receivers, and three new faces bolster the Hoosiers at wideout as well.
Wynn spoke with InsideIndiana.com after a closed scrimmage Saturday on a number of topics. Here is that conversation, presented in question-and-answer format.
Question: Coach (Kevin) Wilson talked about how he felt that in the last few days, the receiver position was really starting to gel with the quarterbacks. What’s facilitated that? Are you feeling that greater level of chemistry?
Answer: Yea, I feel a lot more comfortable. We meet together now, so we watch film together. We know the right amount of steps the quarterbacks do in order to hit us right coming out of our break. There’s a lot more confidence this year. You know, we were young last year. Now we have one year under our belt. We’re just way more confident.
Q: You talked about meeting together this year. Is the dynamic a little bit different, with coach Johns heading up both position group, whereas last year he just coached receivers?
A: It’s not very different. I would say it’s more in meeting time, because now that we have both together, we can meet as a group, instead of separate meeting times with quarterbacks and receivers. I would say it benefits both of us.
Q: Not asking you to pick a favorite or a starter, but just generally, what have you seen from the three guys behind center, Tre Roberson, Cameron Coffman and Nate Sudfeld?
A: Competitive, you know. Tre was starting last year, so right now, they’re all competing for the No. 1 spot, and they’re all looking good right now.
Q: You talked about being young at receiver last year. Do you feel like some of you guys are more advanced than normal because you had to play so young?
A: Yea, coach Johns calls us old heads now. Really, we’re still young. We’re only sophomores But we got a lot of experience last year
Q: And what have you seen from the freshmen this year, Kevin, Caleb and Ricky?
A: A lot of potential, you know? A lot of potential. Kevin, Caleb and Ricky have all looked good this fall camp.
Q: Duwyce Wilson is a guy that did some good things last year, before tearing his ACL. Is he getting back close to where he was before the injury?
A: He’s very close to where he was. He still has a little pain, but he fights through it. (Wilson) just is basically one of our best receivers, so we really need him to come back.
- Zach Osterman
- Indiana Insider - InsideIndiana