The game everyone had circled in Bloomington came down to one toe on the sideline.
With 1:02 left, Indiana faced fourth and 4 from the Ohio State 27 and had a chance to steal it. Josh Hoover fired into the end zone, Nick Marsh appeared to haul it in for a go-ahead touchdown, and then the left foot landed out of bounds on the left side of the end zone. The play was wiped away, and Ohio State escaped with a 19-15 win over the Hoosiers.
The fourth-ranked Buckeyes improved to 5-1 overall and 4-0 in Big Ten play, while Indiana fell to 6-1 and 3-1, seeing its 22-game winning streak end.
“Kind of a wild game,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said. “I don’t know how to put words to it right ow.
The defense stepped up in a big way down down the stretch. We had to win the game on defense at the end.
The huge fourth-down play made it possible. We had to win in the fourth game.
It was a great game, have to give them a lot of credit but credit our guys for continuing to fight in the fourth quarter, especially after losing Julian.”
That late stop was even more dramatic because Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin was already on the sideline with his right arm in a sling. Day later said he had few details, but he believed Sayin “will be out several weeks” with the injury. “Obviously, that was a big blow to us, but the rest of the team picked it up for him,” Day said.”
Ohio State built its margin in a game that never felt comfortable, and it did it just before halftime. With 8 seconds left in the first half, the Buckeyes scored on fourth and goal on a 2-yard TD reception by Bo Jackson, the first time Indiana had trailed at halftime of a home game under Curt Cignetti.
Indiana still had chances, and Hoover kept the Hoosiers alive despite taking some punishment. At one point he was shaking his right arm in pain, but he still finished 20 of 40 for 296 yards and a 19-yard touchdown pass to Marsh. Indiana could have had another score, too, if Hoover’s final throw had not drifted just enough left to send Marsh out of bounds on the last snap the Hoosiers got.
Ohio State also had to deal with Jeremiah Smith being largely contained for most of the day. Indiana limited the Heisman Trophy favorite until Sayin connected with him on a 38-yard touchdown pass with 12:46 remaining in the fourth quarter, pushing the Buckeyes ahead 19-7. Smith didn’t record his first catch until early in the second quarter and finished with four receptions for 68 yards.
“Just staying patient,” Smith said. “My teammates and coaching staff have been telling me the whole game: Just be patient, it’s going to come, it’s going to come.
Eventually, it came. So I’m happy I get to play today.”
Indiana got on the board after Amare Ferrell picked off Sayin twice, with the first interception setting up a 7-yard touchdown run by Turbo Richard from the Buckeyes’ 7.
In Other News...
Indiana Took The Least Painful Route Into Jersey Patch Sponsorships
Indiana University is taking a broader step into the new world of college sports sponsorships, expanding its partnership with Merchants Bank to cover jersey patch deals across all 24 varsity athletic programs. The banks logo will now show up on jerseys and coaches apparel, while also getting more visibility through Indianas athletic venues and digital platforms, another sign of how aggressively schools are leaning on brand partnerships to create new revenue streams.
For Indiana, the move is easier to digest because it grows out of an existing relationship rather than introducing a fresh corporate presence out of nowhere. Merchants Bank already has naming rights to the field at Memorial Stadium, so this next layer feels more like an extension of something the Hoosiers have already been living with, even as jersey patches continue to reshape the look and feel of college athletics. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana May Have Changed Ohio State's Entire Season
Indianas 22-game win streak came to an abrupt end in a 19-15 loss to Ohio State, but the ripple effect of that game may reach far beyond Bloomington. The Buckeyes needed a physical, tense afternoon to survive, and it came with a major setback when starting quarterback Julian Sayin went down with a right arm injury and was replaced by true freshman Luke Fahey.
Ryan Day said Sayin will be out for several weeks, and that timeline immediately puts a different kind of pressure on Ohio States season. The Buckeyes are staring at a demanding stretch ahead with USC, Oregon, Northwestern, Nebraska and Michigan still on the schedule, and the injury has turned what looked like one of the Big Tens cleanest runs into a far less certain situation. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Let Ohio State Slip Away For Three Brutal Reasons
Indiana had Ohio State right where it wanted it for long stretches at Memorial Stadium, but a second-half unraveling left the Hoosiers with a 19-15 loss and plenty to sort through afterward. The offense never found a steady rhythm, and what had been a competitive game turned into one defined by missed chances, especially as the Buckeyes kept finding ways to hang around and wait for Indiana to crack.
Josh Hoover finished 20 of 40 through the air in an inefficient outing, and the ground game never gave Indiana the balance it needed to ease the pressure. Add in second-half turnovers and missed field goals by Nico Radicic, and the Hoosiers ended up staring at a result that felt far more avoidable than inevitable. [Read more 🡒]