Indiana Football Spanks Nebraska
By: Pete DiPrimio | IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Where were you when Indiana blew out Nebraska 56-7 on a sun-splashed Saturday afternoon, when Hoosier head coach Curt Cignetti went on a fourth-quarter don’t-you-dare-let-up tirade, when sky-really-is-the-limit football potential was there for a nation to see?
Were you part of the 53,082 watching at sold-out Memorial Stadium, or among the potential millions of TV viewers tuned into FOX, or did you miss out on perhaps college football’s biggest story?
Hot dog-eating champ Joey Chestnut was at this most memorable of Homecoming Games as the No. 16/18 Hoosiers (7-0 overall, 4-0 in the Big Ten) dominated by run (215 yards), by pass (280 yards), and by turnover-forcing defense (five).
The No. 25 Cornhuskers (5-2, 2-2), a tradition-rich program whose other loss was in overtime to Illinois, never challenged.
“This shows we can play with anybody in the country,” defensive back Shawn Asbury II said. “We play to our best and do our job.”
That best delivered a seventh-straight blowout victory.
“We know what we come to do, we come to play hard against anybody they put out there,” receiver Miles Cross said. “We take our chances against anybody in the nation. We had a good game plan coming in. We just had to execute it.”
Execution never wavered in part because Cignetti wouldn’t allow it. He wins because he can’t stand losing, because he can’t stand slippage, can’t stand seeing players give less than their best all the time no matter what.
“We have a veteran team with the right kind of guys,” he said. “You don’t let them get complacent. That’s why I was a maniac in the fourth quarter, and we responded.”
Cornerback D’Angelo Ponds saw this passion last season when he and Cignetti were at James Madison and sees it now as Hoosiers.
“His message is all gas, no brakes,” Ponds said. “He wants no warm fuzzies. That’s what he calls it. I love it that way. That’s the way it’s supposed to be.”
The decisive victory over a ranked opponent blasted away previous soft-schedule talk.
“We don’t care about that,” Cross said. “Whoever they put out there, we’re ready to play. That’s all that matters.”
It certainly matters to Cignetti, whose win-now approach continues to pay off.
“I’m proud of the way we approached this week and the effort we gave,” Cignetti said. “It was a dominant win.”
IU punished a Nebraska defense known for its physicality, exploited the Huskers’ overplay-the run-pass-option approach with explosive runs, pin-point back-shoulder passes, and electrifying catches.
“If teams want to load the box up, we can throw RPOs behind it,” Cross said. “If they try to stop the RPO, you’ll see a lot of big runs. It complements each other and keeps the defense off balance.”
Quarterback Kurtis Rourke only needed a half to shred what had been one of the nation’s best defenses. He completed 17-of-21 passes for 181 yards, one touchdown, and one interception (a first-half-ending Hail Mary attempt).
Late in the second quarter, he banged his thumb against a helmet, lost a nail and sat out the second half. Cignetti said he’s optimistic Rourke will be ready for next Saturday’s home game against Washington.
Tayven Jackson replaced Rourke and went 7-for-8 for 91 yards and two touchdowns.
“He played well,” Cignetti said of Jackson, “but he still has to practice better. It’s hard to be the second-string quarterback. We put in a lot of new stuff each week. He did a good job. The team has confidence in him.”
Running back Justice Ellison rushed for 105 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries. Ty Son Lawton added 68 rushing yards and a touchdown. The Hoosiers punished a run defense that came in allowing 84.2 yards a game.
The offensive line, Cignetti said, set the tone.
“We’ve got some blue-collar guys coached by a blue-collar guy (Bob Bostad). They are really tight, tough guys.”
Ten Hoosiers caught at least one pass, led by Cross’s seven for 65 yards and a touchdown. Elijah Sarratt had three catches for 65 yards and a TD.
Defensively, the Hoosiers intercepted three passes (one each by defensive backs Asbury and Jamier Johnson, and linebacker Rolijah Hardy). They forced (linebacker Jailin Walker) and recovered (defensive lineman Jacob Mangum-Farrar) one fumble, and then another (defensive lineman Mikail Kamara had a strip sack and recovery). Linebacker Aiden Fisher led with 11 tackles.
Cignetti called Asbury’s interception perhaps the play of the game because it stopped a potential Nebraska third-quarter scoring drive.
“I just tried to make a play and do my job,” Asbury said.
Cignetti and offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan’s offensive aggression and confidence resulted in two first-quarter, fourth-down gambles in Nebraska territory. The first led to a touchdown. The second led to a sack and a loss of possession, which led to IU forcing a Nebraska fumble, which led to a Rourke touchdown pass to Cross for a 14-0 second-quarter Hoosier lead.
Aggression paid off. IU totaled 495 yards and averaged 7.9 yards per play against a defense that came in allowing just 11 points a game. The Hoosiers haven’t trailed all season.
“This says a lot about our team,” Cignetti said. “There’s a national perception that Nebraska has a legit defense. This probably opened some people’s eyes. I think this is a great team.”
IU sent an instant tone. Ellison’s 43-yard run and a clutch nine-yard, fourth-down completion from Rourke to Cross led to Ellison’s five-yard touchdown run and a 7-0 IU lead six minutes into the game.
A few minutes later, the Hoosiers passed up a field goal attempt for another fourth-and-short attempt. Nebraska stopped them by sacking Rourke, then drove inside the IU 20-yard line before Walker forced a fumble and Magnum-Farrar recovered.
Rourke’s back-shoulder passes to Sarratt and Omar Cooper Jr. set up a seven-yard touchdown pass to Price for a 14-0 second-quarter lead.
Nebraska came back with a touchdown run midway through the second quarter. The Hoosiers responded with a Lawton touchdown run of one yard and an Ellison TD run of 31 yards for a 28-7 halftime lead.
Asbury’s 78-yard interception return ended Nebraska’s second-half-opening drive and set up Jackson’s 2-yard touchdown pass to Cross for a 35-7 lead. Jackson added a 15-yard scoring pass to Sarratt to make it 42-7 late in the third quarter. Kaelon Black and Elijah Green added fourth-quarter TD runs for the final 56-7 score.
The result — IU playoff potential talk grows, do-you-now-have-a-bullseye-on-your-back questions emerge, and Cignetti has no time for any of it. He has a team to prepare and opponents to scout.
“We have a process,” he said. “This is the way. The margin for error (is small). We have to put ourselves in the best position. If we prepare properly, anything is possible.”
Courtesy of iuhooisiers.com used with permission.
