Indiana outlasts Ohio State to capture first Big Ten Title since 1967

INDIANAPOLIS — After going through a defensive battle, and smothering the Buckeyes in the second half, the Hoosiers can now call themselves Big Ten Champions again.

Not only did Indiana beat Ohio State 13-10 in dramatic fashion, but it also put an end to the reigning National Champs’ 16-game win streak. Curt Cignetti solidified why he earned Big Ten Coach of the Year honors for two consecutive seasons. Now the Hoosiers are soaring high after their first 13-0 start in school history, and the best is yet to come, including a No. 1 overall spot in the AP Poll and Playoff Rankings on Selection Sunday.

Cignetti couldn’t be more proud of his players for taking down the No. 1 team in the country, and they never let their foot off the gas throughout the contest.

“Great win; gutty game; hard-fought, physical football game,” Cignetti said. “Wasn’t perfect by either team, but we found a way to survive it, and made the plays when we had to.”

A crowd of 68,214 watched as the tone was set for a physical affair at kickoff. Quarterback Fernando Mendoza and the offense was ready too. However, Mendoza took a hard hit on his first pass of the game, and remained down for few minutes. It fell so silent inside Lucas Oil Stadium that you could hear a pin drop. Mendoza walked off the field on his own, and later returned to the game after his younger brother Alberto filled in for him.

Indiana fans were able to have a sigh of relief after they knew their star gunslinger was good to go. It must’ve lit a fire inside of Mendoza’s teammates, because the Hoosiers turned it up a notch, and drew first blood midway through the first quarter, with a 29-yard field goal from kicker Nicolas Radicic.

The Buckeyes responded with their own scoring drive towards the end of the first quarter, after they intercepted one of Mendoza’s passes. Quarterback Julian Sayin connected with wideout Carnell Tate for a nine-yard touchdown pass, and Ohio State took the lead 7-3. The Buckeyes scored 10 unanswered points, and extended their lead 10-3 in the second quarter, after a 39-yard field goal from kicker Jayden Fielding.

At that point a light bulb came on for Indiana,  and Cignetti knew he had to make adjustments to end the first half with some momentum. Mendoza led the offense on a 14-play, 61-yard scoring drive, that ended with a 32-yard field goal from Radicic, and took over seven minutes off the clock. Cignetti thought it was just what the Hoosiers needed before they went into halftime being down 10-6, and he sent a message to his team.

“I kind of gathered them right at the beginning of the end of the half, which I usually don’t do, and very calmly said, this is what we talked about, this is the kind of game we expected,” he said. “They’re going to make plays; we’re going to make plays, and I gathered the team 20 minutes later, before we went out, it was more like, okay, do we have what it takes to win a gut-check, physical game like this, so this is going to be a test of our toughness and our persistence, and we proved that we did.”

Indiana came out and play inspired for the final 30 minutes. Cignetti’s defense shut down Ohio State’s All-American wideout Jeremiah Smith, and put the pressure on Coach Ryan Day to move the ball in other ways. The Hoosiers played lights out on defense in the second half too. Indiana forced a turnover on downs when Ohio State failed to grind out a couple of yards, which killed a promising drive.

There were really no offensive fireworks from either team in the second half, due to the tenacity from both defenses. Regardless, Indiana made plays when it mattered the most, and Mendoza delivered down the stretch. The only score of the second half happened in the third quarter. Mendoza led the Hoosiers on a six-play, 88-yard drive that ended after he connected with wideout Elijah Sarratt for a 17-yard touchdown. At that point, all of the momentum shifted to Indiana’s side, and their fans went into a frenzy.

Ohio State (12-1) could never get a decent drive going on offense, and Indiana didn’t let up the intensity on defense. Cignetti wasn’t afraid to take chances, nor did he use the conservative game plan to keep the ball away from the Buckeyes. Indiana continued to attack with RPO’s as the fourth quarter came down to the two-minute warning,  and every first down was crucial.

Day’s squad did finally get the ball back, but only had under 25 seconds to operate with. After a couple of incomplete passes from Sayin, the Hoosiers stormed the field in pandamonium. Cignetti couldn’t believe his eyes as time expired, and it was clear that the better team won. The way the defense performed, and how Mendoza got his targets Sarratt and Charlie Becker involved in the clutch, Cignetti knew there was no way the Hoosiers were going to be denied.

“I thought, once again, when the game was on the line, you know, Fernando was throwing dimes and Charlie Becker was showing up making big plays and Sarratt with a big touchdown, our defense created a lot of issues,” the 64-year old said. “Ohio State did start to scratch out a run game there in the second half and missed that field goal, and we missed one, too, so, it’s even, but it’s a great win for us, obviously, our first Big Ten title.”

Once the smoke cleared, Indiana led Ohio State in total offense, rushing yards, yards per play, third down efficiency, fourth down efficiency and total plays. Mendoza completed 15 of his 23 passes for 222 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He was also named the MVP of the Big Ten Championship Game. Kaeion Black led the Hoosiers with 69 yards on the ground. Becker generated six receptions for a game-high, 126 yards. Sarratt caught three passes, including Indiana’s only touchdown of the evening.

Defensively, the Hoosiers were stellar, holding the Buckeyes to a season-low, 10 points and a mere 58 rushing yards. Rolijah Hardy led Indiana with 10 tackles, including one for loss and a sack. D’Angelo Ponds added nine stops, and Isaiah Jones posted seven tackles, including two sacks. Mario Landino, and Stephen Daley also put Sayin to the turf.

Radicic nailed two of his three field goal attempts, and the Hoosiers needed every pointfrin his leg.

Cignetti is making his mark in the Big Ten in just two seasons, and it appears Indiana is just hitting the tip of the iceberg as far as success goes. Now that the Hoosiers have reached postseason glory, and sealed the top spot in the Playoffs.

Cignetti, his staff and players are going to enjoy the win, but will utilize the time off, and he intends on returning to the gridiron better and more focused than ever before.

“Now I’ve got three and a half weeks to kind of humble this team again and get them ready for the playoffs.”