Indiana is sitting at 6-0, but the first half of the season hasn’t been spotless. The Hoosiers have won every game, yet the cracks have shown in a few places, and that makes the midseason grades a little more interesting than a simple pile of A’s.
Start with the offense, where the biggest reason for Indiana’s success has been clear: the quarterback play. Josh Hoover has been outstanding through his first six games in Bloomington.
The TCU transfer has completed 68.2% of his passes for 1,364 yards and 17 touchdowns, and he has not thrown an interception on 129 pass attempts. He’s looked comfortable in Indiana’s RPO-heavy offense and has developed strong chemistry with Charlie Becker and Nick Marsh.
Following in Fernando Mendoza’s footsteps was never going to be easy, but Hoover has handled it well.
The backups have gotten only limited chances in the non-conference portion of the schedule, but both Grant Wilson and Tyler Cherry have shown a little something. Wilson completed four of his five throws for 74 yards and two touchdowns, and he also ran for 45 yards and a score on four carries. Cherry has one completion for 10 yards on three attempts.
Indiana’s running backs have been a major asset too, even if one rough afternoon kept the grade from climbing even higher. Turbo Richard leads the Big Ten with 597 rushing yards, while Lee Beebe Jr. is right behind among conference standouts with 551.
Between them, they’ve scored nine touchdowns and have consistently created explosive plays. Then came Week 6 against Nebraska, when the Hoosiers managed only 65 yards on 22 carries.
That kind of dud is enough to knock the unit down a notch.
The tight ends have not been heavily involved, and that fits the way this season began for that group. Indiana brought in an inexperienced tight end room, one that had just 17 total snaps of college football experience heading into Week 1.
So far, the production has been modest: four catches for 52 yards. Trevor Gibbs may be starting to push for more snaps after catching two passes for 24 yards against Nebraska, which could matter more as the competition gets tougher.
Up front, Indiana’s offensive line has delivered exactly what the team needed. Four of the five starters are fifth-year seniors, and that experience has shown up in the run game and in pass protection.
Hoover has been sacked only eight times in six games and has rarely been under serious pressure. That’s a big reason the offense has stayed on track.
The wide receiver room, though, has been the loudest weapon on the roster. Charlie Becker and Nick Marsh have been excellent, and their numbers are almost mirror images.
Becker has 30 catches for 529 yards and eight touchdowns. Marsh has 29 receptions for 528 yards and six scores.
They’ve formed one of the best receiver duos in the sport. The one missing piece is a reliable third option, because nobody else has really claimed that role yet.
Defensively, the front has done a lot of the heavy lifting. Tobi Osunsanmi has been one of the best portal pickups anywhere on the roster, leading the Big Ten with 9.5 tackles for loss and sharing the conference lead with 5.0 sacks.
He’s been part of a deep group that includes Tyrique Tucker and Mario Landino, and the results have followed: Indiana has piled up 20.0 sacks, which ranks third nationally. The run defense has also been excellent, holding opponents to 75.0 rushing yards per game, the best mark in the Big Ten and seventh-best in the country.
The linebackers have been steady and productive as well. Isaiah Jones leads the Hoosiers with 46 tackles, while Rolijah Hardy has 41. Each has also picked off a pass, and both continue to give Indiana the kind of veteran presence that settles a defense.
The secondary, on the other hand, has had more trouble. Aidan Chiles and Northwestern had their way with Indiana in Week 4, and Anthony Colandrea and Nebraska also found success through the air in Week 6.
Those were the two best offenses the Hoosiers have seen so far, and the results raised a flag. With Julian Sayin, Jeremiah Smith, and Ohio State up next, that group has to clean things up quickly.
Special teams have been a little less polished than usual under Curt Cignetti. Nico Radicic has missed time because of injury, and Paddy McAteer has handled kicking duties at points, missing an extra point and a field goal.
Radicic has also missed an extra point and a field goal. Even with those issues, Indiana has still produced some explosive kick returns and gotten solid work from the punting game.
In Other News...
Ryan Day Just Framed Indiana's Biggest Edge Against Ohio State
Ryan Day spent part of his week-into-the-Ohio State-Indiana buildup acknowledging what makes this matchup uncomfortable for the Buckeyes, even before the ball is kicked. He pointed to the possibility that several injured starters could be back for Ohio State, but also made clear the roster will not be whole. More importantly for Indiana, Day identified the battle up front as the key to the game and singled out the Hoosiers' defensive line and passing attack as strengths his team has to handle.
For Indiana, that is useful validation heading into a game that already carries a different feel at Memorial Stadium. Day also noted the challenge of playing there and stressed that Ohio State cannot let its attention drift at any point, which only underscores how much the Hoosiers can make this matter by staying disruptive early. If Indiana can turn the line of scrimmage into a problem and keep its offense moving, it may force the Buckeyes into a kind of game they would rather avoid. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Defense Proved Something Important In Win Over Nebraska
Indianas 20-17 win over Nebraska had a different feel from the kind of track meet both teams usually bring, and that was the point. Entering the matchup, each side had been averaging more than 40 points per game, but Indiana turned it into a defensive grind and found a way to come out on top in a game that asked its front seven and secondary to do the heavy lifting.
Pro Football Focus grades backed up what showed up on the field, with Mario Landino, Tobi Osunsanmi and Preston Zachman standing out for their work in run defense, pass rush and coverage. Outside linebackers Rolijah Hardy and Isaiah Jones logged plenty of snaps, but Nebraska also went after them in the passing game often enough to test Indianas depth and discipline in the kind of game where one busted assignment could have changed everything. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Faces Its Biggest Ohio State Problem In Season-Defining Rematch
Indiana heads into its rematch with Ohio State carrying far more than the usual Big Ten tension. Both teams are unbeaten in conference play, and the matchup has quickly become one of the defining games of the season, with control of the league and College Football Playoff positioning hanging in the balance. For the Hoosiers, it is another chance to prove the programs rise is real, and that last years breakthrough against the Buckeyes was not a one-time jolt.
Josh Hoover will be central to Indianas hopes as it tries to stack a second straight win in the series, but the task gets complicated fast when Ohio States passing game enters the conversation. Jeremiah Smith has been one of the most productive receivers in the country and gives the Buckeyes a game-breaking target that can tilt the field in a hurry. If Indiana is going to leave this one with momentum in the conference race, it will likely have to solve its biggest Ohio State problem in the one place the Buckeyes are hardest to contain. [Read more 🡒]