USA TODAY International Edition
In loss, Indiana proves it’s no fluke
Early mistakes dug a hole one possession too deep to climb out of Saturday, but No. 10 Indiana proved a lot to doubters in its 42- 35 loss at No. 3 Ohio State.
Despite Ohio State’s hot start ( remember the two- play touchdown drive?), Indiana had success early Saturday getting Justin Fields off rhythm and uncomfortable. The nation’s mostefficient quarterback threw two early interceptions, the Hoosiers had Ohio State playing behind the chains and even flipped field position.
Despite that, what has been an opportunistic offense all season couldn’t capitalize. A dropped fourth- down pass wasted what should’ve been a scoring drive of some kind. A red- zone fumble flipped momentum for good, Ohio State turning what looked like it would be a 2114 lead at halftime into 28- 7 because of it. Fields threw three interceptions, and the Hoosiers scored zero total points from them. Ohio State got the last pick back on a fumble on the return.
It’s not the formula that got Indiana to 4- 0, and it’s what buried them.
Indiana looked in danger of being run out of the stadium going into halftime. It couldn’t gear up offensively. Fields seemed to have rediscovered his rhythm, thanks to his run game. The David Ellis fumble that led to that 14- point swing looked like a backbreaker.
Michael Penix wouldn’t let it be, nor would his receivers. Indiana made the most of its halftime, opening up the downfield portions of its passing game and turning Penix loose against an Ohio State secondary that looked like it wasn’t sure how to play with its lead.
Penix connected with Ty Fryfogle on TD passes of 63, 33 and 56 yards, the last in that trio against a helpless Shaun Wade. The same Shaun Wade considered one of the best NFL prospects at cornerback in the country. Penix finished with 491 yards passing, Fryfogle 223 yards receiving. Penix had five TD passes, Fryfogle three TD receptions. All were career highs.
This wasn’t reflective of Ohio State’s mistakes. It was a testament to just how good Penix and his passing offense can be, in full stride. Despite its struggles, it was good enough to pull Indiana back from a blowout to within one score in the fourth quarter.
The Hoosiers, despite their mistakes and missed opportunities, had one last chance.
It was a long one, starting their final drive deep in their own territory. Penix got one first down but couldn’t beat Ohio State’s pressure one last time, and his defense was too low on gas for one last three- and- out.
There was little shame in the way Indiana lost. Tom Allen’s team was imperfect and, at times, lacked poise. The Hoosiers made mistakes that cost them the game and missed opportunities that might have done so for Ohio State.
But a team that had quite literally never played a regular- season game with both sides ranked in the top 10 before Saturday rallied, fought and ultimately made this the game of the year in the Big Ten, not by accident but because it was good enough to do so.