Bone-crushing hits. Wide-open touchdowns. Complete Hoosier domination — unlike any other.
Indiana football was never challenged in Friday night’s 77-3 win over Western Illinois University inside Memorial Stadium. The Hoosiers set a program record for points in the process, topping the previous mark of 76, which had stood since 1901.
Their success started early and never faded.
At the end of the first quarter, Indiana had 12 first downs. Western Illinois had 11 overall plays from scrimmage. The Hoosiers outgained the Leathernecks 279 to 22 in total yards and held a 28-0 lead. By halftime, Indiana’s advantage ballooned to 42-3.
Western Illinois hasn’t won a game since Oct. 30, 2021, and was outmatched from the start — but for Indiana, wins over the Leathernecks and Florida International University in the Aug. 31 season opener hold more value than boosting the win column.
“Definitely gave us confidence,” junior receiver Elijah Sarratt said postgame. “Allowed us to work out the little knick-knacks that we had, get the little details down. So, grateful for that.”
Starting at the top with head coach Curt Cignetti, the Hoosiers have more new faces than almost anyone in college football.
Only one on-field assistant coach — offensive line coach Bob Bostad — returned from last year’s staff. Indiana has 54 newcomers, which ranks 23rd-most among 134 schools in the Football Bowl Subdivision, and 30 transfers, tied for 14th. The Hoosiers are tied for the ninth-fewest returning players across all FBS schools.
An offseason spent learning playbooks, installing schemes and building a culture preceded Indiana’s win over Florida International. A week spent correcting first-game mistakes followed it.
“Say we played a, not to disrespect [Florida International], but like a No. 1 ranked team out there, you don't have time for those mistakes,” Sarratt said. “We made some mistakes; we cleaned them up in the film room. We just got to keep on improving.”
Apart from its one-play, clock-killing drive to end the first half, Indiana’s starting offense scored on each of its seven possessions. Sixth-year senior quarterback Kurtis Rourke went 15-of-17 for 268 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. Sarratt was his most popular target, catching six passes for 137 yards and a score.
Much like in their 234-yard rushing performance against Florida International, the Hoosiers dominated the ground game. With contributions from 11 players, including six different running backs, Indiana ran for 323 yards and seven touchdowns on 47 attempts. Fifth-year senior Justice Ellison led the herd with nine carries for 117 yards and two scores.
Defensively, Indiana proved airtight — and productive. Freshman linebacker Rolijah Hardy, making his Hoosier debut off the bench, forced a fumble and returned an interception for a touchdown. Junior linebacker Aiden Fisher had a team-high nine tackles, while redshirt junior defensive end Mikail Kamara posted two sacks.
Western Illinois finished the night with 121 total yards of offense, including a miniscule 12 rushing yards. The Leathernecks averaged just 2.3 yards per play.
As a result of their two-week domination, which includes a combined margin of victory of 98 points, the Hoosiers will statistically stack up well across the country. The strength of the opposition — Florida International went 4-8 last season while Western Illinois is winless the past two seasons — is a key reason why.
But Cignetti said after the game that while the Leathernecks are a lesser opponent, the Hoosiers play whoever is in front of them. Nights like Friday, while perhaps unrepresentative for Indiana’s looming Big Ten slate, remain important for Cignetti’s long-term plan to rebuild a program that went 9-27 from 2021-23.
“I get them ready to play, put them in the best positions — me and the staff get them to play as well as they can on gamedays,” Cignetti said. “Develop this football team every single day: the intangibles, culture, mindset, identity and how they think, which is critical. And how we play. So, the schedule is what it is.”
The Hoosiers, after what Cignetti dubbed a less-than-satisfactory practice Tuesday, steadily improved throughout the week ahead of Friday night’s contest and played with an appropriate edge, attitude and standard.
But now, the road gets tougher.
Indiana plays its first Big Ten game of the season in Week 3, traveling to take on UCLA at Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, California. Cignetti said the Hoosiers will first enjoy the victory over Western Illinois before shifting their focus to UCLA later this weekend.
UCLA, in a sense, is Indiana’s first litmus test of the Cignetti era. The matchup comes after the Hoosiers had, effectively, a two-game ramp-up.
Kamara said he doesn’t think Indiana needed one, as it could’ve beaten anyone in Week 1, but nevertheless found value in the 2-0 start — and enough confidence to forecast a fruitful trip out west.
“It’s cool just to get the confidence going, get the fans going — that’s definitely important because we have so many home games,” Kamara said postgame. “Go over there at UCLA, win. And then come back with UNC Charlotte and hopefully our fans will come in here and fill the stands.”
Indiana set many records Friday night, from a program-best 701 yards to kicking 11 extra points, and it came close to another, missing its highest margin of victory by just 3 points.
Now, the Hoosiers enter their first Big Ten game under Cignetti — with hopes of proving their ramp-up success is more than a product of their competition.
Follow reporters Daniel Flick (@ByDanielFlick) and Dalton James (@DaltonMJames) and columnist Jhett Garrett (@jhettgarrett) for updates throughout the Indiana football season.
