The Maryland Terrapins (3-2, 0-2) came to Memorial Stadium on a 3-game winning streak against the Hoosiers (5-0, 2-0).
That streak was broken.
Indiana won 42-28 on a rainy and nasty Saturday, marking the first time IU has started 5-0 since 1967. The game was an ugly watch as Indiana started with two interceptions by Kurtis Rourke and Maryland went 3-and-out in their first two drives.
“There's a lot of corrections to make, but it was a good effort, a gutty effort,” said Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti postgame. “You could feel the fans out there. I'm glad that they keep improving in the attendance area. I thought that was a good turnout.”
The recorded attendance of 48,303 played a major part in the momentum turn for the Hoosiers. Every player postgame noted how important the fans were post-game.
From junior WR Elijah Sarrett giving a shoutout, sophomore WR Omar Cooper Jr. and junior DL Mikail Kamara showing their appreciation, and junior LB Aiden Fisher calling for fans to sell out the next few home games.
The offense had to shake off those bad throws from Rourke, which were thrown straight to the defense, and a lost fumble on a scramble. Rourke bounced back, throwing for 359 yards and three touchdowns.
“It’s just about trying to flush right away and not even really think about it,” Rourke said. “You just have to move on. Even when you have a good play, you have to reset and be emotionally stable so that you can move forward, whether that’s good or bad. That’s what I try to do.”
That gutty effort Cignetti talked about sparked from Indiana giving up four turnovers but allowing zero points coming off of them. While the defense was impressive, they bent as well. They allowed a touchdown before and after halftime, then a long 75-yard rushing TD to Roman Hemby.
“Everyone kept their heads up on the sideline,” Kamara said. “People still communicating. No one put their heads down… That's usually when losing teams would probably get down to themselves, start arguing. That's when the gap opens up. But we handled it really well.”
Regardless of the turnovers and poor spurts of defense, Indiana never gave up the lead.
It was back and forth for a few drives in the third quarter but the defense went back to its original form. After the third quarter, the Terrapins would punt twice, then turn it over on downs two more times. By the time Maryland scored again, Indiana led 42-28.
That score would hold for the final two drives until the Hoosiers could kneel it out and celebrate with a student section that was still full when the clock hit 0:00.
The Hoosiers move to 5-0, making Cignetti the first coach in IU program history to ever start his career with such a record. Their next game is Saturday, Oct. 5, in Evanston at the Northwestern Wildcats (1-2, 0-1).
