IU's Dream Season Ends in South Bend As Hoosiers Fall to Irish 27-17

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Written by: TJ Inman

Curt Cignetti’s first season in charge of the Indiana University football program resulted in the most wins in school history, a top ten ranking and a berth in the College Football Playoff. The Hoosiers drew a trip to South Bend to play the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. On Friday night, the best season in Indiana football history ended in disappointment as Notre Dame overwhelmed the Hoosiers and rolled to a 27-17 victory to advance to the Sugar Bowl against the Georgia Bulldogs.

The Indiana Hoosiers got the ball first and Justice Ellison went backwards on first down followed by back-to-back incompletions. It was an inauspicious beginning for the Hoosiers but De’Angelo Ponds intercepted a tipped pass to give IU the ball back in great field position and then Kurtis Rourke connected with Elijah Sarratt to move Indiana inside of the red zone. Rourke made a critical mistake though and forced a pass into coverage that was intercepted and ended IU’s scoring threat. Notre Dame was backed up at the two-yard line but Jeremiyah Love burst through the line and scampered 98 yards for a critical touchdown that put the Fighting Irish ahead 7-0. Indiana’s offense picked up two first downs before being forced to punt. Notre Dame ground out 84 yards on 16 plays and finished the drive with a short touchdown pass to go ahead 14-0. The teams traded punts and IU got the ball back in desperate need of something positive. The offense picked up three first downs before being halted at the 16-yard line. The Hoosiers lined up to go for it before taking a timeout and opting to kick a 34-yard field goal that was hit by Nicolas Radicic to make it 14-3 with 3:26 left in the first half. Notre Dame converted on a key third down and then got away with what looked like intentional grounding that would have pushed the Irish out of field goal range. They took advantage of the opportunity provided and hit a 49-yard field goal to end the half ahead 17-3.

Notre Dame began the second half with a reverse on the kickoff return and got great field position in IU territory but the Indiana defense stiffened and forced the Irish to punt without picking up a first down. Indiana’s offense just could not get going though. Kurtis Rourke was sacked twice and IU had to punt from their own end zone after another three and out. The Notre Dame defense was too quick and Indiana’s attack had no answers for most of the night. A late hit on James Carpenter kept Notre Dame’s ensuing drive alive and they cashed in with a short field goal to make it a three-possession game at 20-3. Notre Dame’s third field goal attempt of the night was blocked by Indiana and the offense crossed midfield but again petered out and had to punt the ball away in what was effectively a waiving of the white flag by Curt Cignetti. Notre Dame kept on chucking it and Riley Leonard converted a 44-yard completion to the one-yard line before finishing the drive with a one-yard touchdown run to go ahead 27-3. Indiana’s offense found a bit of rhythm and finally finished a drive successfully as Rourke connected with Myles Price for a touchdown and then completed a pass to Elijah Sarratt to make it 27-11 with less than 90 seconds remaining. Indiana executed a perfect onside kick to get the ball back at midfield and Omar Cooper caught a really nice pass from Kurtis Rourke to make it 27-17 with 25 seconds remaining. The two-point conversion failed as a pass to Elijah Sarratt fell incomplete. Notre Dame recovered the second onside kick and took a knee to end the contest.

Notre Dame outgained IU 394 to 278 and Kurtis Rourke struggled mightily until late in the contest, completing only 20 of 33 passes for 215 yards and one critical interception. The Hoosiers finish the season at 11-2 and will quickly pivot to offseason mode as they return to campus to host portal visitors this weekend. Hoosier Huddle will have ongoing coverage of this defeat and the impending offseason.

Key Takeaways

  • Indiana was overwhelmed and outclassed by the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Credit to Notre Dame because this game was not particularly competitive and the Irish have a real chance to win a national title.

  • I have been a passionate sports fan for nearly all 37 years of my life. This Indiana football season has been the most unexpectedly enjoyable and joyous season I have had the privilege of experiencing. Thank you to all of the players and coaches that made this possible. The ending was bitterly disappointing and IU played poorly but this was one heck of a ride to be on.