By Scott Dochterman, Mitch Sherman and Nick Baumgardner
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — The 16th-ranked Hoosiers trounced Nebraska 56-7 at Memorial Stadium, moving to 7-0 for the first time since 1967 with a systematic dismantling of the Huskers in a victory set to raise the profile of first-year IU coach Curt Cignetti and senior quarterback Kurtis Rourke.
The Hoosiers rang up more than 500 yards on offense, took a 28-7 lead into halftime and added some heft to their resume as they began what’s supposed to be a more challenging second half of the season. However, Rourke did not play in the second half after suffering an injury to his throwing hand. Cignetti said on the Fox broadcast they are unsure of the severity of the injury.
The Huskers dropped to 5-2 and lost their 26th consecutive game against AP-ranked opponents, dating to 2016. They’re 1-16 on the road in Big Ten play against ranked teams and remain a win away from their quest to reach bowl eligibility for the first time since 2016. Freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola threw three interceptions for the Huskers.
Here are some takeaways from the Hoosiers’ win.
IU answers questions
There were questions galore about Indiana entering its game against Nebraska, and the Hoosiers answered them with an exclamation point. Saturday counts as Indiana’s largest Big Ten win since a 49-0 victory at Minnesota in 1945.
On four of the Hoosiers’ six first-half drives, they drove at least 74 yards for a touchdown. Indiana put up 343 yards and made it look so easy on offense. In the first half alone, the Hoosiers averaged 11.1 yards per completion and 9.6 yards per rush. They were equally dominant in both the run (154 yards) and the pass (189 yards). Video games look at those numbers and say, those are video game numbers.
Then in the second half, it was just a continuation. Rourke stepped aside with a hand issue, and backup Tayven Jackson then crushed it in the third quarter, completing all four attempts for 68 yards and two touchdowns.
Why were there doubts about Indiana’s offense? After all, the Hoosiers averaged 47.5 points per game entering their matchup with the Huskers. But only one of the defenses Indiana faced was ranked in the top 30 (Northwestern). Also, none of Indiana’s first six opponents had winning records.
Well, Nebraska measured up statistically as Indiana’s best opponent … until it didn’t. The Huskers boasted the No. 13-ranked defense in giving up 272.5 yards per game. Nebraska was ranked earlier this year and was second in receiving votes in the latest AP poll. There’s nothing more Indiana needs to answer unless the question involves the College Football Playoff. — Dochterman
Nebraska is still running uphill
The big question for Nebraska, as it barrels toward the end of October with a trip to Ohio State on tap next week, is this: Why does it have to be so hard? Why do the Huskers, as a program, seemingly take one step back for every step forward?
Why do Minnesota, Illinois and Northwestern make strides quickly — strides that show in their win totals — as Nebraska idles while getting treated like an FCS team against the Hoosiers? How does Indiana, a program with no notable history of football success, pluck a coach from James Madison and a quarterback from Ohio to produce a 7-0 start?
Indiana made it look easy against Nebraska. Meanwhile, Nebraska is still trying to run uphill. To be frank, even when it beat Rutgers and Purdue this month, success often looked too hard to achieve.
What’s holding the Huskers back? Something embedded in the fabric of Nebraska football impedes the climb back to prominence. Does the weight of expectations or the abundance of resources remove an ingredient necessary for Nebraska?
The Huskers have made gains, seemingly, in recruiting and player retention, in strength and conditioning, nutrition, sports science and, yes, in coaching that should equate to wins. Still, it all remains so hard.
Too hard.
It’s an issue that coach Matt Rhule and athletic director Troy Dannen must tackle before Nebraska can clear the type of hurdle it faced Saturday in Bloomington. — Sherman
Indiana QB steals show
This was a pretty fascinating game from a quarterback standpoint, as Raiola is one of the most physically gifted — and most talked-about — passers in America. Indiana’s Rourke, meantime, has arguably been the best player in the country many haven’t heard about. Rourke, to no surprise, stole the show (at least early) with a scorching first half that saw him go 17-of-21 passing for 189 yards and a touchdown (with a Hail Mary interception). Rourke also injured his thumb and missed the second half. Either way, Saturday was further proof the 6-foot-5, 220-pound Indiana senior is one of the quickest and most efficient processors in the country.
The former Ohio quarterback entered the Nebraska game leading the country in third-and-long conversion rate (nearly 60 percent), and his 8.8 percent off-target rate was just behind Georgia QB Carson Beck’s for 10th among FBS starters. He’s got a great frame, enough athleticism to avoid the rush and great feel for pressure around him. Indiana’s schedule gets real from here, and so will the evaluation process on Rourke. If he can maintain his first half showing against defenses like Michigan and Ohio State, his stock — provided this injury isn’t serious — will soar.
On the other side, Raiola will have better days. Indiana’s a good football team, and the Huskers were probably over-valued with a 5-1 record entering this game. Still just 19, Raiola makes a ton of high-level throws both vertically, over the middle and on the sideline. He’s a big-time athlete who doesn’t lose velocity off-platform, and it’s obvious he models his game after idol Patrick Mahomes. However, Saturday’s dud was likely the point where Nebraska’s staff, if it hasn’t already, has to have the discussion with its freshman passer that there’s a fine line between aggression and carelessness. Apart from rookie inconsistencies with footwork and general accuracy, Raiola has made reckless decisions with the football all season. Saturday was the first time the roof caved in on him. A terrific learning experience for a talented youngster. — Baumgardner
Nebraska’s bad day
Everything that could have gone wrong for Nebraska on Saturday did go wrong.
Special teams, plagued by errors throughout this season, went poorly again. Jacory Barney ran out of bounds at the 1-yard line on the kickoff before the Huskers’ opening possession. The Huskers bobbled two consecutive kickoffs to start the second half. A bad snap on a punt in the second quarter nearly spelled doom.
Defensively, Nebraska didn’t force a punt until the final six minutes. Indiana gouged the Huskers every time it possessed the ball. Nebraska couldn’t stop any part of the Hoosiers’ offense. They went over 400 yards before the end of the third quarter, the first Nebraska opponent since Michigan last year to cross the threshold. The performance rated undoubtedly as the worst under defensive coordinator Tony White in 19 games.
On offense, the Huskers mounted one scoring drive. They lost the turnover battle for the first time this season. Running back Dante Dowdell lost a fumble after his successful fourth-down conversion in the red zone when the Huskers trailed 7-0. Wide receivers didn’t get open. When they did, Raiola didn’t see them. He constantly checked down regularly to backs and tight ends, eliminating the threat of explosive plays. It allowed Indiana to play more aggressively on defense. Without the threat of a running game, Nebraska can’t move the ball with consistency. — Sherman
(Photo of Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke: Rich Janzaruk / Herald-Times / USA Today via Imagn Images)
