Game Wrap and Reaction: No.4 Ohio State 19 No. 5 Indiana 15
Sammy Jacobs
Host · Writer
Opponent: Ohio State Buckeyes
Location: Memorial Stadium, Bloomington, IN
Why They Played:
The Hoosiers welcomed the Buckeyes for the first time since 2023.
What The Game Meant
It was the first top-five matchup in Memorial Stadium and the winner would get an inside track to Indianapolis for the Big Ten Championship. While the game had all of the aura of that, it still was not a CFP elimination game. With how the games around the country fell, Indiana is in great shape, while OSU may be down their starting QB for a bit.
Players of the Game
Offense
Charlie Becker, Wide Receiver, Indiana
Becker made nine catches for 165 yards and probably should had more. While he did not catch a touchdown, he made big catch after big catch down the stretch.
Bo Jackson, Running Back, Ohio State
There was no singular star on Ohio State’s offense, but Jackson ran hard and scored on a two-yard touchdown catch.
Defense
Amare Ferrell, Safety, Indiana
Ferrell’s two interception day gets over shadowed with the loss, but he played his best game of the season. He made seven tackles as well.
Jaylen McClain, Safety, Ohio State
The Ohio State safeties played outstanding near the line of scrimmage. McClain and Earl Little both played a big role in IU’s trouble running the ball. McClain also had a strip sack on fourth down in the second half.
Special Teams Performance
Indiana’s special teams unit has gone from an asset to a liability very quickly. A unit that won games last year, had a major hand in losing one on Saturday. Kicker Nico Radicic missed a 32-yard field goal by hitting the upright and a 55-yarder when Cignetti elected to use him, and not Paddy McAteer, for a long field goal.
Punter Billy Gowers missed multiple opportunities to pin the Buckeyes deep in their own territory and could not execute. That seemed to lead to Cignetti to decide to kick a long field goal instead of trying to pin Ohio State deep.
The Indiana return game, which was a bright spot early in the year, has been non-exisitant the last few weeks. The lack of a true punt returner is not helping the offense and has misplayed several punts into worse field position.
Key Stat(s)
One Foot
While it’s not an official stat, but Indiana was one Nick Marsh foot from taking a 22-19 lead late in the fourth quarter. IU outscored Ohio State 7-3 off turnovers, but the Buckeyes were 3-3 in the red zone (1 TD, 2 FGs), while the Hoosiers were 2-3.
Turning Point
The momentum of the game changed when Indiana failed to get points and extend a 7-3 lead in the second quarter. IU quarterback Josh Hoover missed a wide open tight end, albeit to throw to a wide open running back. Radicic’s kick donked off the upright and IU came away with nothing and Ohio State took a 10-7 lead into halftime.
I Knew it Was Over When…
I saw Nick Marsh’s foot hit out of bounds on the final offensive play.
What I Took Away From the Game
Oh, what could have been. As I have said many times on our podcasts, forums and other spaces, the difficulty of going 16-0 may have been understated. This year, the catch was out of bounds, the field goal missed and the fumble just too far to recover.
This was not a game where IU was hanging on to dear life because they couldn’t block Ohio State or stop them on defense. IU’s defense gave OSU hell all day and the offensive line allowed one sack and just two tackles for loss. The loss was more about what IU didn’t do than what they couldn’t do.
Indiana quarterback Josh Hoover may be trying to hard to throw the perfect pass. He missed too many open receivers and leaned too much on a ground game that was running into a wall most of the day.
Hoosier receivers were beating Ohio State’s defensive backfield most of the afternoon and while Hoover threw for 296 yards, it should have been much more.
Defensively, IU played really well. They put heat on Sayin all game and had him throwing the ball away nearly anytime he was heated up. They created two turnovers and limited Jeremiah Smith as best they could.
Still, IU made the little errors that add up and result in a loss. Two lost fumbles may have taken points off the board, a missed field goal, poor punting and a throw and route that drifted a little to much to the left resulted in the end of IU’s 22-game winning streak.
Even with all of that, I do think IU may be in a better spot that Ohio State given all of the circumstances. Both have a loss on their ledger (and Saturday was a top 10 bloodbath), but Ohio State will be without starting quarterback Julian Sayin for “several weeks”. While Hoover has missed several big play opportunities, it seems he is healthy enough to carry on.
IU’s playoff hopes are still bright and while they may need some help to get to Indianapolis, it’s all still there.
What’s Next
The Hoosiers head to Ann Arbor to play Michigan. Indiana has not won at the Big House since 1967 and Michigan may have found their quarterback for the rest of the season.
