PASADENA, Calif. — Kurtis Rourke’s eyes were supposed to be up, reading the 11 gold helmets on the other side of the ball. Instead, Indiana football’s sixth-year senior quarterback was looking at the ground, his hands picking up a low snap from sixth-year senior center Mike Katic.
The Hoosiers were already facing an uphill climb on 3rd and 16 in Saturday’s game against UCLA in Pasadena. Their road to a third down conversion suddenly grew much tougher.
But Rourke didn’t panic. He corralled the ball, reset his eyes and fired a strike over the middle to junior receiver Elijah Sarratt for a 24-yard gain and new set of life for the Hoosiers.
Perhaps nothing better summarizes Indiana’s 42-13 victory over UCLA on Spieker Field at the Rose Bowl than that — two veterans with extensive college experience making plays en route to the Hoosiers’ largest Big Ten road win since Oct. 6, 2001.
“It will open some eyes,” Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti said after the game. “Because it was on national TV, and that’s it. It’s one game. We came out here, got done what we wanted to get done. At the end of the year, we’ll see what our resume looks like. There’s no one in our locker room surprised.”
Indiana’s new-look program, which includes 30 transfers and an almost entirely new coaching staff under Cignetti’s guidance, took a considerable step toward validating an offseason littered with high hopes.
Better yet, the Hoosiers did so in convincing — and sustainable — fashion, particularly on offense.
Six different pass catchers logged at least three receptions. Indiana rushed for 123 yards and two touchdowns despite no running back eclipsing 10 carries. Four different ball carriers took handoffs while eight receivers and three tight ends saw action.
Such variety in weaponry led to a stout night for Rourke, who finished 25-of-33 for 307 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions — and not a glimmer of nerves for the 23-year-old who made his 36th college start Saturday evening.
“He’s been doing this a while now,” said senior receiver Miles Cross, who played with Rourke the past three years at Ohio University before transferring to Indiana last winter. “It’s just what he does.”
Cross led the Hoosiers with six receptions for 90 yards and a touchdown. He made his second one-handed catch of the young season, a 33-yard connection with Rourke to convert a 3rd and 3 in the second quarter.
Redshirt sophomore Omar Cooper Jr., senior tight end Zach Horton and Sarratt each had four receptions, combining for 143 yards. Cooper added a 23-yard touchdown, coming on a heady back-shoulder throw from Rourke after drawing UCLA offsides.
Senior receiver Ke’Shawn Williams turned two of his three catches into scores, while fellow senior wideout Myles Price pitched in three grabs for 39 yards, including a 23-yard pickup on the game’s first play.
Of the six standouts, only Cooper was on the team last season. Cignetti brought Sarratt and Horton with him from James Madison University, but the other three came from different schools and conferences.
The Hoosiers’ overall collection of deep, experienced pass catchers isn’t by mistake — configuring the group in such a way was a priority for Cignetti during the roster-building process last winter.
“We’ve got a lot of veteran receivers that have good statistical history at other schools that have gotten it done,” Cignetti said. “I put a value on that — guys that have been starters for multiple years and been productive. It’s good to get a lot of people involved; I think that’s a real good thing. So, made a lot of plays tonight.”
With experience comes savviness.
Early in the second quarter, Sarratt ran a comeback route down the left sideline. UCLA redshirt freshman cornerback Kanye Clark was in bail technique, side-shuffling with his eyes on Rourke. Sarratt maneuvered to Clark’s blind spot and stopped. Clark had no clue.
The Hoosiers gained 16 yards, a play capped by Sarratt lowering his pads and sending Clark flying to the turf on the visitors’ sideline.
But Indiana’s playmakers don’t only impact the game statistically. Senior running back Justice Ellison had a crucial blitz pickup during the Hoosiers’ first drive of the third quarter, allotting time for Rourke to find Horton for a 17-yard gain.
Rourke touted the physicality of his running backs for being up to the task of pass protection. Cross, meanwhile, praised the work ethic of Indiana’s receiver room, which has stepped up time and again through the first three games.
“We all just work hard,” Cross said. “We all put the time in, and when the ball comes our way, we're all making plays.”
Rourke knew Indiana could be a good team when it started winter workouts in January, sparked by recognition in the team’s vast array of pieces. The Hoosiers, Rourke said postgame, have shown off those pieces thus far, sending a message that Indiana, which won just nine games the previous three years, should now be taken seriously.
And the new faces — from Cignetti to the transfers and everyone in between — are a big reason why.
“Coach Cignetti and the culture he's brought and built, and we have such a great talent of guys — makes my job a lot easier,” Rourke said. “And then everybody just wants to win. That's one common goal we have — a lot of transfers, a lot of older guys — and we all have the same common goal of winning. And that comes out to play every day.”
The Hoosiers are now 3-0, halfway to their first bowl appearance since 2020. They’ve matched their win total from last year and have a strong chance to add another to the tally Sept. 21, when the University of North Carolina at Charlotte (1-2) enters Memorial Stadium for a noon kickoff.
Cignetti said Indiana will enjoy the win for the next 24 hours before moving onto Charlotte, starting Monday humble and hungry with eyes on Week 4.
But as the Hoosiers hope to dodge complacency, they’ll do so with a heavy dose of momentum at their backs — and proof in the Cignetti-laced pudding that the new era of Indiana football is, in fact, different.
“You can just tell things are way different from both sides of the ball to special teams,” said sophomore defensive back Amare Ferrell, a 12-game contributor on last year’s 3-9 team. “The coaches demand perfection every single day, and that leads to [success] on Saturdays.”
Follow reporters Daniel Flick (@ByDanielFlick) and Dalton James (@DaltonMJames) and columnist Jhett Garrett (@jhettgarrett) for updates throughout the Indiana football season.
