Indiana

Nebraska Football Preview: No. 16 Indiana

Published

3 months ago

October 18, 2024

Nebraska Football Preview: No. 16 Indiana

Fresh off bye weeks and treated to the FOX Big Noon stage, the Nebraska Cornhuskers face their biggest test of the 2024 season with a surprising ranked trip to No. 16 Indiana where they’ll face an upstart Hoosiers squad under first-year head coach Curt Cignetti.

Plenty is on the line for the Huskers who enter the second half of its schedule only one win away from locking up its first bowl berth since 2016. While a loss wouldn’t crater NU’s season, a win over a ranked opponent on the road to kick off a difficult later half of the schedule would do wonders for Nebraska’s confidence in making this season a special one.

But the pressure may be on the Hoosiers who have inspired College Football Playoff talks from the national talking heads after their perfect 6-0 start. Ohio transfer Kurtis Rourke is the best quarterback to wear the Cream and Crimson since Michael Penix in 2020, throwing for over 1,700 yards and 14 touchdowns in just six contests.

What awaits him is a Blackshirt unit that’s the only team in the NCAA to not allow a touchdown and are top ten nationally in rushing and scoring defense. A classic may ensue in Bloomington, but first here’s all you need to know ahead of Nebraska’s second trip to Indiana as a member of the Big Ten.

How to Follow Along

Matchup: Nebraska (5-1, 2-1 B1G) at No. 16 Indiana (6-0, 3-0 B1G)

Line: Indiana (-6.5), 50.5 O/U (BetMGM)

Where: Memorial Stadium, Bloomington, IND

Time: 11 a.m. CDT

TV: FOX

Broadcast Crew: Gus Johnson (PxP), Joel Klatt (Color) & Jenny Taft (Sideline)

Radio: Huskers Radio Network and Affiliates

Sep 14, 2024; Pasadena, California, USA; Indiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti reacts at the end of the game against the UCLA Bruins at Rose Bowl. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Indiana Scout

Head Coach: Curt Cignetti | 1st season at Indiana | 125-35 Career HC Record | 2023 Sun Belt Coach OTY, 2017 Colonial Athletic Association Coach OTY | Previous HC stops at IUP (FCS), Elon (FCS) and James Madison (FCS into D1).

2023 Record: 3-9 (1-8 B1G, 7th B1G East) | Ford-Kinnick Leadership Award Winner, One All-B1G First-Team selection (Media), One All-B1G Second Team selection (Coaches), Three All-B1G Third Team members (Coaches & Media), four All-B1G Honorable Mentions | Did not qualify for the postseason.

All-Time Series: Indiana leads 10-9-3 (2022 last meeting, 35-21 NU)

Fun Fact: Saturday’s game will mark the sixth time in the past eight meetings at least one of the teams has been nationally ranked. It will be the first time that both teams have been ranked in at least one of the national polls entering a Nebraska-Indiana matchup. The Huskers are No. 25 in the Coaches Poll. This will only be the fourth matchup between the two schools as members of the Big Ten.

Key Returners: Omar Cooper Jr., WR, R-Soph. | Amare Ferrell, DB, Soph. | Jacob Mangum-Farrar, DL, Gr. | Josh Sanguinetti, DB, Gr. | Lanell Carr Jr., DL, Gr.

Outlook: Indiana is one of the feel good stories at the midpoint of the wild 2024 college football season as the Hoosiers sit at 6-0 their first start to a season since opening up with eight-straights wins in 1967. But new head coach Curt Cignetti doesn’t want his team to be viewed as a feel-good story, but rather a serious contender to disrupt the hierarchy of the Big Ten and make a run at the inaugural 12-Team College Football Playoff.

Following the firing of previous coach Tom Allen, over three dozen transfers exited the program, scattering around to different Power Four and Group of Five programs across the country. Cignetti, who was on the first staff of Nick Saban at Alabama, went to work on the recruiting trail and transfer portal bringing in 46 players as part of his first recruiting class. That included 30 transfers and over a dozen following him from his previous stop of James Madison, in which he posted a 52-9 (.853) overall record, plus an 11-1 final season mark in 2023.

Ohio transfer quarterback Kurtis Rourke has used his veteran experience from playing in Maction to become the engine of this nearly unstoppable Hoosier offense. Indiana are tops in the Big Ten and top ten in the country in passing offense (315.3), scoring offense (47.5) and total offense (515.7). He’s been completing over 73% of his passes through six games with a 14-to-1 touchdown to interception ratio.

Sep 28, 2024; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Kurtis Rourke (9) warms up before a game against the Maryland Terrapins at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-Imagn Images / Robert Goddin-Imagn Images

Nearly the entire offensive skill players have been plucked from the transfer portal with the Hoosier’s three leading rushers as well as the three of the four top receivers coming from different schools including Wake Forest’s Justice Ellison who leads IU with 409 yards on 64 carries with six touchdowns. Ty Son Lawton splits the reps with Ellison racking up 329 yards of his own with seven scores on 68 carries. One of many transfers from James Madison, Elijah Sarratt is the leading receiver as the junior has recorded 513 yards on a team-high 29 catches and a pair of touchdowns. Returning wideout Omar Cooper Jr. has 375 yards and three scores while Texas Tech transfer Myles Price (266 yards) and Ohio transfer Miles Cross (208 yards, two touchdowns) also factoring into the passing game.

The calling card of his coaching style, Allen left behind some defensive gems that Cignetti convinced to stay after the transition. Gone is 2023 sack and tackles for loss leader Aaron Casey to the NFL as well as Andre Carter who posted a pair of sacks and 11 TFL. However, grad student and defensive linemen Lanell Carr Jr. is back after five sacks and 8.5 TFL last year. Mikail Kamara has filled that hole from Casey, garnering a team-high five sacks and 7.5 TFL. James Carpenter has been a menace up front from James Madison corralling four-and-a-half sacks and three TFL from the middle. Another follower from JMU, linebacker Aiden Fisher leads the team with 55 tackles which is 21 more than second-place Jailin Walker (34), who also followed Cignetti.

Granted, all these stats come from a schedule with opponents that have a combined record of 14-22 and no one currently above .500. However, the margin of victory has been extremely lopsided with an average win margin of over 32 points. There is a skill of stomping opponents you should beat, a skill that has escaped the Huskers over the past half decade.

Momentum is riding high for the Hoosiers and a victory Saturday is necessary for their postseason hopes as it seems unlikely for IU to get into the CFP with a 10-2 record and a lackluster schedule. A reasonable path is to split the games against Ohio State and Michigan while winning the rest. So, plenty is at stake Saturday morning for both teams and it’s safe to assume we’ll see play from both sides that reflects that sentiment.

MORE: Stukenholtz: Halfway Home, But Toughest Miles Still Ahead

MORE: Nebraska’s Midterm Exams Begin in the Form of Indiana & Ohio State in Back-to-Back Weeks

MORE: Kicker Remains Out, Cornerback Questionable for Nebraska Against Indiana

MORE: Keys to Victory: Nebraska vs. Indiana

MORE: Joel Klatt Says Dylan Raiola Needs a ‘Real Threat’ at Wideout

Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, subscribing to HuskerMax on YouTube, and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.

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Indiana

Man killed in northwest Indiana house fire

Published

6 hours ago

January 5, 2025

Press Room

Man killed in northwest Indiana house fire

One person died in a house fire on Sunday morning in LaPorte County, Indiana, authorities said.

According to the LaPorte County Sheriff’s Office, at around 7:06 a.m., deputies responded to a structure fire in the 200 block of South Longshore Drive near Fish Lake. Deputies approached the house, where “excessive smoke prevented them from safely entering to search for any occupants inside.”

Once the fire had been extinguished, first responders entered the residence and found one person who had died. The resident was identified as 64-year-old Ronald Conrad.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation on Sunday.

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Indiana

At the Buzzer: Indiana 77, Penn State 71

Published

13 hours ago

January 5, 2025

Press Room

At the Buzzer: Indiana 77, Penn State 71

Quick thoughts on a 77-71 win against Penn State at the Palestra:

How it happened

It was a sharp start on both ends for Indiana on Sunday afternoon at the Palestra. The Hoosiers took care of the ball, hit the offensive boards and hit a couple of early perimeter shots to build an early 17-14 advantage. But as IU went to its bench, the offense waned, the turnovers increased and the Hoosiers managed just 12 points over the final 12:14 of the half. Fortunately, Penn State struggled, too. The Nittany Lions didn’t make a 3-pointer in the first half, shot just three free throws and didn’t make a field goal over the final 6:29 of the opening 20 minutes. With Malik Reneau unavailable due to injury, Oumar Ballo was the focal point of the Hosier offense and was sometimes unstoppable. Ballo had 14 points and nine rebounds in 16 first-half minutes.

Mackenzie Mgbako scored eight points in less than a minute to start the second half, forcing Penn State to take an early timeout with the Hoosiers leading 37-29. By the under-16 media timeout, Indiana’s lead was 44-33 after the Hoosiers made three 3-pointers before the timeout. After Penn State cut the lead to eight at 47-39, Indiana went on an 11-4 run to make it a 58-43 advantage with 11:34 remaining. The Hoosiers stretched the lead to 16 on a Trey Galloway 3-pointer with 10:20 left. But Penn State scored the next six points to pull within 10 at 61-51 at the 9:05 mark. Mgbako’s third 3-pointer of the second half stretched the lead to 11 with 7:39 remaining, but Oumar Ballo picked up his fourth foul on the next possession and had to go to the bench.

After Penn State cut the lead to four at 65-61 on a Nick Kern Jr. 3-pointer, Indiana brought Ballo back in and the big man converted a 3-point play to make it 68-61 with 5:25 remaining. By the final media timeout, Indiana’s lead was 69-63. Penn State had a chance to cut it to one possession with under 2:15 left, but Galloway got a key steal and took the team’s last timeout with the Hoosiers leading 73-68 with 2:04 to go. Out of the timeout, IU turned it over, Penn State hit a 3-pointer to make it 73-71 and Rice didn’t get the ball past halfcourt, giving Penn State the ball with 1:32 left. Zach Hicks missed a 3-pointer that would have given the Nittany Lions the lead and on the ensuing possession, Mgbako was fouled with 42.7 seconds left. Mgbako made both free throws to make it 75-71, Hicks missed a 3-pointer on Penn State’s next possession and Rice made two free throws to seal the win for Indiana.

Standout performers

Ballo led Indiana with 25 points, 13 rebounds and two blocked shots in 32 minutes. Mgbako finished with 20 points in 31 minutes. Luke Goode made three 3-pointers and finished with 12 points and seven rebounds in 25 minutes. And Rice had nine points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals in 31 minutes.

Statistics that stand out

Indiana went 9-for-23 on 3s (39.1 percent) and 16-for-22 from the free throw line (72.7 percent). The Hoosiers turned it over just 14 times. Penn State opponents were averaging 17 per game entering the contest.

Final IU individual statistics

Final tempo-free statistics

Assembly Call postgame show

(Photo credit: IU Athletics)

Filed to: Penn State Nittany Lions

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Indiana

Point Spread: Indiana Big Underdog vs. Penn State in Philadelphia

Published

21 hours ago

January 5, 2025

Press Room

Point Spread: Indiana Big Underdog vs. Penn State in Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — There have been a lot of ups and downs during Mike Woodson’s three-plus years as head coach at Indiana, but one of the most disturbing trends is the Hoosiers’ inability to beat Penn State.

Woodson lost five of six games to the Nittany Lions before finally beating them 61-59 in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament in Minneapolis, Minn. last season. And this is an average Penn State side that’s only made one NCAA Tournament (2023) during that run. Still, they have guards who pressure and make threes, and Indiana has struggled with rosters like that.

Oddsmakers are expecting more of the same on Sunday when the two teams hook up at The Palestra in Philadelphia for a Penn State alternate home game. According to the FanDuel.com gambling website, the 12-2 Nittany Lions are 6.5-point favorites over the Hoosiers (11-3). The over/under is 158.5.

The game starts at Noon ET and is televised on Big Ten Network. (How to watch story link below.) It’s the fifth time Penn State has played a Big Ten home game during the Christmas break at The Palestra, which was built in 1927 and is one of the most iconic building in the college game.

Indiana has been an underdog twice this season, and both ended badly, getting blown out late by both Gonzaga and Nebraska.

Here’s what we know so far about how Indiana and Penn State have fared against the point spread this season.

UPDATE … Rutgers is 12-2 on the season, and 2-1 in Big Ten games. They resumed league play on Thursday night with an 84-80 win over Northwestern in State College, Pa.

Penn State is just 6-8 against the spread this season. They’ve had an easy schedule, only playing two Power 5 teams in the nonconference schedule. They beat a 6-8 Virginia Tech team, but lost to Clemson., both from the ACC. Here’s what Penn State has done straight up and against the spread this season:

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