Indiana had Ohio State on the ropes, but one misstep near the goal line turned a possible breakthrough into a 19-15 loss that will sit with the Hoosiers for a while.
No. 5 Indiana and No. 4 Ohio State played a tight, physical game in Bloomington from start to finish, with Curt Cignetti’s team matching the Buckeyes for much of the afternoon before dropping its first game of the season and falling to 6-1.
The ending was the kind that leaves a stadium frozen. With a little more than a minute left and Indiana facing fourth-and-4, Josh Hoover rolled back and hit Nick Marsh, who was wide open heading toward the end zone.
For a moment, it looked like the Hoosiers had pulled off the kind of finish that gets replayed forever. But Marsh stepped out of bounds, wiping out what would have been the winning touchdown.
Indiana still had plenty to point to beyond that final snap. The Hoosiers actually outgained Ohio State 369-313 and moved the ball through the air with real success.
Hoover finished 20 of 40 for 296 yards and a touchdown, while Charlie Becker turned in a huge day with nine catches for 165 yards. Marsh added three receptions for 57 yards and a touchdown.
The problem was finishing drives. Indiana couldn’t get much going on the ground, managing only 73 rushing yards on 29 carries. Turbo Richard led the way with 46 yards and a touchdown, and Lee Beebe Jr. finished with 24 yards on nine attempts.
Even in defeat, the defense gave Indiana a chance to win it. The Hoosiers held Ohio State to 78 rushing yards, produced four sacks and picked off Julian Sayin twice. Sayin completed 15 of 29 passes for 235 yards and two touchdowns.
Ohio State led 10-7 at the half and stretched the margin to 13-7 in the third quarter. Then came a 38-yard touchdown from Sayin to Jeremiah Smith early in the fourth to make it 19-7.
Indiana answered with a 19-yard touchdown pass from Hoover to Marsh and a two-point conversion to Richard, trimming the deficit to 19-15 and setting up the dramatic final sequence.
The Hoosiers gave themselves chances all game. They forced turnovers, moved the ball and stayed right there with one of the country’s top teams. But in the end, one step out of bounds made all the difference.
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