Ramsey and Penix Team Up for 38-28 Victory in Season Opener
/
Peyton Ramsey (12) and Mike Penix combined for four touchdowns and 252 yards passing Image: Sammy Jacobs Hoosier Huddle
Written by: TJ Inman (@TJHoosierHuddle)
The Indiana Hoosiers were far from perfect but they got very encouraging performances from a pair of quarterbacks and a few takeaways from the defense en route to a solid 38-28 victory over Florida International University in the 2018 season opener. After a tight quarterback battle throughout the offseason, redshirt sophomore Peyton Ramsey got the start and was mostly very good, completing 20 of 27 passes for 156 yards with a trio of scores. He also added 36 yards rushing and really only made one mistake, throwing a bad interception on the first drive. True freshman Michael Penix made his much anticipated debut early in the second half and showed his talent, completing 8 of 10 passes for 96 yards with a touchdown. After tonight, it seems likely both quarterbacks will continue to see playing time.
The game began with a takeaway by Indiana’s defense as Florida International’s opening drive was halted when Jonathan Crawford forced a fumble that was recovered by true freshman Devon “Monster” Matthews. However, Peyton Ramsey threw an interception as he telegraphed a pass to end Indiana’s opening possession. The Panthers opened the scoring as James Morgan led a nice drive that ended with a touchdown run for Anthony Jones to put FIU ahead 7-0. Indiana’s attack answered quickly, marching down the field and capping a 7-play, 75-yard drive with a perfect 19-yard strike from Peyton Ramsey to Donavan Hale that tied the game. The defense added to the tally on the next drive as Jonathan Crawford intercepted James Morgan at the 35 and ran it in for a pick six touchdown that put Indiana ahead for good, 14-7. After an FIU three and out, Indiana had another 7-play drive, this one for 68 yards, as Peyton Hendershot caught a short pass from Peyton Ramsey for the touchdown to give the Hoosiers a 21-7 lead early in the second quarter. Florida International was able to answer as Anthony Jones exploited a mistake by the Indiana defense and burst to the outside for a 35-yard touchdown rush. The Hoosiers came right back though, and Peyton Ramsey threw his third touchdown pass of the night and Donavan Hale caught his second one, making an acrobat grab on fourth and goal from the two-yard line to make it 28-14 at the half.
The teams traded unsuccessful possessions to start the second half before Michael Penix was inserted into the game as quarterback for the Hoosiers. His first drive was a very good one as Indiana went eight plays for 72 yards and Penix tossed his first career touchdown pass on a short screen to Mike Majette to give Indiana a commanding 35-14 advantage. FIU countered with a long drive that took a lot of time off of the clock but eventually worked its way into the endzone, cutting the lead to 35-21. The Indiana offense again moved the ball but had a touchdown reception negated by an offensive pass interference penalty. IU had to settle for a field goal and Logan Justus connected on his first career field goal attempt, giving Indiana a three-possession lead in the fourth quarter, 38-21. James Morgan found Maurice Alexander for a late touchdown, the game’s final score, that made it 38-28 but Indiana recovered the ensuing onside kick and worked the ball down to the one-yard line before time expired. Donavan Hale led Indiana with 60 yards receiving and two touchdowns but eight Hoosiers had double-digit receiving yards. Freshman big back Stevie Scott paced IU on the ground with a team-high 20 carries for 70 yards.
For a team with more questions than answers coming into the season, this has to be considered a successful road trip. Indiana played a large chunk of the roster in Miami and were in control of this contest for the vast majority of it. That’s not to say there were not issues. Florida International scored 28 points and had 170 yards on the ground. Indiana was penalized eight times for 90 yards, with a couple of penalties keeping FIU drives alive and one penalty negating an IU touchdown and costing the Hoosiers points. Still, the Hoosiers had three takeaways, managed 465 yards of offense, including 213 on the ground and kept a talented opponent at arm’s length for the entirety of the second half. Starting the season 1-0 was the primary goal for the opener and Indiana accomplished that. They will now return home and begin preparation for a challenge next Saturday night in Bloomington against the Virginia Cavaliers.