IU’s offense was clicking. The Hoosiers were driving, up 13-10 in the first quarter and threatening to score on their third consecutive drive to open up the game.
Junior kicker Griffin Oakes lined up for a 54-yard field goal, and Rutgers defensive lineman Sebastian Joseph blocked it. The block began a stretch of eight straight drives without any Hoosier points.
The 13-10 lead quickly turned into a 24-13 deficit.
Junior quarterback Richard Lagow threw two interceptions, one in the red zone. Junior quarterback Zander Diamont fumbled at the Rutgers 25-yard line, and Scarlet Knight lineman Darnell Davis ran it back 75 yards for a touchdown. Freshman running back Devonte Williams failed to corral a kickoff and fumbled it into the hands of the opposition at the IU 21-yard line.
Four plays later, Rutgers quarterback Giovanni Rescigno punched it in from a yard out for the score. The Scarlet Knights finished with 14 points off IU turnovers.
And yet, IU found a way to win, 33-27. The Hoosier defense forced a turnover, then six straight three-and-outs and a turnover on downs before a field goal with 12 seconds left. In the meantime, IU’s offense pulled itself together for three separate touchdown drives.
“Today, we didn’t play smart all the time,” IU Coach Kevin Wilson said. “We didn’t play horrible, there was some good football. There was some not smart, negative football that can beat you. But, I think our will to win was pretty good, especially defensively.”
But the game shouldn’t have ended 33-27.
Oakes missed an extra point, and a missed hold by sophomore punter and holder Joseph Gedeon cost IU another. The 2015 Big Ten Bakken-Andersen Kicker of the Year didn’t connect on any of his three field goals, either.
One he simply missed. The other two were blocked, the first because of poor blocking by IU and the second because Oakes approach to the kick was too slow — Rutgers defensive back Isaiah Wharton got so close he nearly could have tackled Gedeon.
That’s 11 points IU could have scored, but didn’t.
Lagow’s interception in the red zone robbed IU of a drive that could have seen the Hoosiers reach the end zone or at least kick a field goal. IU’s failure to convert on fourth down on two of its last three second quarter drives squandered two drives that reached the Rutgers 30-yard line.
The Oakes of 2015 very well could have connected on those, and simply better decision making could have extended the drives. Lagow hit sophomore wide receiver Nick Westbrook on a crossing route that only gained a yard on fourth and two and missed an end zone shot meant for senior Ricky Jones on fourth and 12.
That’s at least six, and as much as 14 points left on the field.
IU finished with 567 total yards, 147 on the ground and 420 through the air, and held Rutgers to 351. It overcame a -3 difference in the turnover battle and held the Scarlet Knights to just one third down conversions in 16 attempts.
But the Hoosiers should have scored at least 50 points, not 33. Mistakes mounted, but IU didn’t quit, and that’s why they come away with the win.
“You gotta bounce back and forget about it,” Lagow said. “Zander said that to me after any bad play. He comes up the sideline and that’s the first thing he says: Screw it man. Just keep moving on. That’s how you got to think.”
