BLOOMINGTON, Ind. –– Fear? Yeah, it was a motivator for an Indiana team determined to avoid complacency at all costs following its best-in-program-history victory at No. 3/2 Oregon against a struggling Michigan State squad pushing for a huge Saturday upset.
Focus? It stood out in multiple ways by multiple players as the No. 3/3 Hoosiers scored touchdowns on their first five possessions at Merchants Bank Field at Memorial Stadium, scored 31 straight points after falling behind, and rolled to a 38-13 victory.
“It was a good win coming off a big road win,” head coach Curt Cignetti said. “There were a lot of issues to deal with after (the Oregon win) and the team and the coaches did a good job of focusing on this challenge.”
Louisville’s upset of second-ranked Miami on Friday night opened an opportunity for IU to jump to No. 2 in the national polls behind top-ranked and unbeaten Ohio State.
The Hoosiers (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten) took advantage against the Spartans (3-4, 0-4) to retain the Old Brass Spittoon, symbolic of this rivalry.
“We made a big emphasis to have a hot start,” quarterback Fernando Mendoza said. “You see teams come off a big win and be complacent. Coach Cignetti made it a point throughout the week, never be complacent. Treat this team like every play is the game-winning play. We had that mindset.”
Cignetti saw danger during Thursday’s practice and addressed it, and if it meant being his players’ coach and not their friend, so be it.
“We started to slip a little bit in practice,” he said. “You can’t be a nice guy when you have a job like mine.”
Cignetti referred to Hall of Fame basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski, who once famously said the biggest opponent he ever faced was human nature.
“My job is to make sure our players have the right mindset and they’re ready to play. It’s not always fun, but you have to do what you have to do.”
The Hoosiers embraced it.
Added linebacker Aiden Fisher: “We had a humbling moment in practice. No game will be easy. A team won’t come in here and roll over. We’ll get the best punch from everybody.
“(Cignetti) wanted to make sure we didn’t feel too good about ourselves. We won a big game, and that’s the expectation here. Win those games and keep moving forward. Humble yourself, hone on the details, and be at your best when it’s needed.”
The Hoosiers were, nobody more so than Mendoza. He finished 24-for-28 for 332 yards and four touchdowns. He just missed a fifth touchdown pass to receiver E.J. Williams Jr. when Williams’ heel landed just out of bounds of the end zone.
“This is the sharpest we’ve seen him to this point in a game,” Cignetti said. “He continues to improve. He prepares like nobody I’ve ever been around and keeps getting better.”
Mendoza appreciated that praise even while deflecting it to teammates such as receivers Omar Cooper Jr. (eight catches, 121 yards, one touchdown), Elijah Sarratt (four catches, 70 yards, two touchdowns), and Williams Jr. (five, 59, one).
“We have so many great players,” he said. “We play better when we play as one. Whatever spotlight I might get, I try to dish it out to all of my teammates. They deserve it.
“Coach Cignetti is the best coach in college football. To hear that quote is inspiring, but this is only Week 7. There’s still a lot of season left, so my preparation needs to amp up to help get my guys the ball and help this offense be successful.”
Cooper Jr. deflected praise back to Mendoza.
“He hates hearing this,” Cooper Jr. said, “but I feel we have the best quarterback in college football. I’m grateful to have him. Seeing the progress he’s made every week is amazing.
“It’s his mentality, the way he attacks each week, the way he trusts us. He even makes plays with his legs. He’s a tough guy. He makes it easy.
“As receivers, we know we have to be in a certain position and he’ll get it to us.”
Not even a cold front that caused a 30-minue weather delay at halftime was a problem. Mendoza opened the third quarter by ignoring colder and windier conditions to drive the Hoosiers 75 yards in less than two minutes, the final 48 coming on a touchdown pass to Cooper Jr., for a 28-10 lead.
In essence, it was game over, and if the defense had a few glitches in giving up 367 total yards, it still recorded four sacks (two each by linebacker Rolijah Hardy and defensive lineman Stephen Daley) and nine tackles for loss.
“At times,” Fisher said, “we lost our discipline with our eyes and our keys. The first half could have been better. In the second half, we cleaned it up.”
Michigan State’s 38-yard field goal on the game’s opening possession gave it a 3-0 lead. IU countered with Mendoza’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Williams Jr. for a 7-3 late-first-quarter score.
The Spartans went ahead 10-7 with a 15-minute to five-minute edge in time of possession. Then Mendoza threw 19 yards to Williams Jr., 39 yards to tight end Riley Nowakowski and 24 yards to Sarratt. Just like that, IU led 14-10 with seven minutes left in the first half.
Running back Kaelon Black broke a couple of tackles during a 29-yard touchdown run and a 21-10 halftime score. Mendoza was 13-for-16 for 191 yards and two touchdowns.
After the weather delay, Mendoza threw 48 yards to Cooper Jr. for one touchdown and 27 yards to Sarratt for another TD. That put the Hoosiers ahead 35-10 in the third quarter. Both teams exchanged fourth-quarter field goals for the final score.
IU hosts UCLA next Saturday.
“We have lot of season left,” Mendoza said. “I’m focused on UCLA.”
