5 Observations from Indiana Football's Dominant Win Over Illinois

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Curt Cignetti wasn't wrong, he was just nine months late.

Before Indiana football's College Football Playoff opener against Notre Dame, Cignetti infamously said the Hoosiers "don’t just beat top-25 teams, we beat the shit out of them." His evidence was a 56-7 win over Nebraska, unranked in the Associated Press poll and No. 25 in the coaches poll at the time of the matchup.

Indiana fell 27-17 to then-No. 7 Notre Dame several hours after Cignetti's statement. Just under one month prior, the Hoosiers lost 38-15 to then-No. 2 and eventual national champion Ohio State on the road.

The Hoosiers checked many firsts off their bucket list in 2024. Yet for as much as they accomplished, they didn't beat a top-10 team. They've already flipped the script in 2025.

No. 19 Indiana (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) took a 63-10 victory over No. 9 Illinois (3-1, 0-1 Big Ten) on Saturday at Merchants Bank Field inside Memorial Stadium.

Here are five observations from Indiana's dominant victory ...

Observations

Indiana's defense out-toughs physical Illinois offense

After Indiana outside linebacker Kellan Wyatt sacked Illinois quarterback Luke Altmyer with just over five minutes remaining in the second quarter, Altmyer slowly rose from the Memorial Stadium turf. And for good reason — he’d already been sacked five times.

The Hoosiers added two more to their tally, finishing the game with seven sacks and 10 tackles for loss. When they weren't pressuring Altmyer or stopping runs — Illinois running backs Kaden Feagin and Ca'Lil Valentine rushed 11 times for 29 yards combined — the Hoosiers often disrupted passing windows.

Indiana's secondary recorded four pass breakups, while junior safety Amare Ferrell intercepted Illinois backup quarterback Ethan Hampton in the fourth quarter.

Altymer hit receiver Collin Dixon for a 59-yard touchdown in the first quarter to cap a three-play, 75-yard drive. Apart from that possession, the Hoosiers held the Fighting Illini to just 86 yards of total offense. Three players — linebacker Isaiah Jones and defensive tackles Tyrique Tucker and Mario Landino — had two tackles for loss apiece.

On ESPN's College GameDay show Saturday morning, one of Cignetti's former bosses, Nick Saban, said he thought Illinois was more physical than Indiana. Senior linebacker Aiden Fisher and his teammates heard similar comments all week and wanted to prove otherwise Saturday night.

Mission accomplished.

"We heard a lot of things over the week," Fisher said. "A lot of people would just say they were a lot more physical than us. They were gonna come in, run the ball, kind of dominate us physically. So, that puts an edge on a team that already has a lot of players with an edge on their shoulder.

"So when it comes to games like this, the preparation, the time that we put in, I think it really shows. Especially on the scoreboard, which is the dominating fashion that we play with on defense."

Indiana has registered double-digit tackles for loss each of the past three weeks, which Tucker attributes to playing to the team's mantra: Fast, physical, relentless.

"Just keep going vertical, attacking, attacking, attacking," Tucker said. "So, I think it's pretty good that we're able to keep getting this done. We just got to keep getting better and better every week."

Mendoza stars — again

With 15 NFL scouts in attendance, Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, viewed as a potential first-round draft pick, had a pro-level performance.

Mendoza entered the locker room at halftime with four touchdown throws under his belt, all to different pass-catchers, and he added another to receiver Elijah Sarratt in the third quarter. He finished the game 21-for-23 passing for 267 yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions.

Over his last two games, Mendoza has completed 40 of 43 passes for 537 yards, 10 touchdowns and no interviews.

"I think he's got a tremendous upside, and he prepares," Cignetti said. "He's a tremendous person. He will do everything he can to be the best he can be. It means a lot to him. He wants to be great. And he's made great progress the last couple of the weeks."

Mendoza completed his final 17 passes Saturday night, and spanning back to the Hoosiers' Week 2 win over Kennesaw State, Indiana has scored touchdowns on 17 of Mendoza's last 20 full drives.

"He's really good," said receiver Omar Cooper Jr., who caught six passes for 78 yards and a score. "He's definitely going to play in the NFL one day, and I'm glad we got him."

Running back rotation changes without Beebe; Martin keeps making push for snaps

As the dust settled on redshirt junior running back Lee Beebe Jr.'s season-ending knee injury suffered against Indiana State, the Hoosiers appeared likely to continue rolling with three ball-carriers in their rotation.

Redshirt seniors Roman Hemby and Kaelon Black were fixtures with Beebe, while Cignetti said redshirt freshman Khobie Martin, who scored two touchdowns against the Sycamores, needed to be ready for a larger role.

It didn't immediately come Saturday night.

Martin didn't get his first touch until the final play of the third quarter. He ultimately led Indiana in rushing for the second consecutive week, taking 12 carries for 107 yards and two scores.

But while the Hoosiers built their lead throughout the first three quarters, they kept Martin off the field. Hemby rushed 14 times for 65 yards, while Black logged 89 yards and a touchdown on 10 attempts. Neither touched the ball after Martin entered.

Indiana primarily used two running backs last season in Justice Ellison and Ty Son Lawton while sparingly inserting Black as a change-of-pace runner. It's possible Martin takes a similar role, though his productivity may be too difficult for Cignetti and staff to ignore.

Nevertheless, Indiana's ground game shined once again Saturday night. The Hoosiers' rushing offense, which entered the day ranked No. 3 in the nation at 307.7 yards per game, finished with 49 attempts for 312 yards and three scores.

Indiana has eclipsed 300 rushing yards in each of its four games, which Cignetti said is an extension of the team's culture.

"It's a mentality," Cignetti said postgame. "I mean, our guys -- we're tied in together. We don't talk a lot. We're pretty much -- we hit the field, it's all business. I know I stirred things up last year media-wise because I felt I had to. This place, the fan base was dead and needed to set some expectations.

"We kind of go about our business. Kind of a blue-collar outfit. And I think there was a point in that game where we broke their will."

Special teams, special moment

Mendoza described D'Angelo Ponds as a lockdown corner, and his All-American accolades last season certainly validate the claim. But Ponds made a critical special teams play five-and-a-half minutes into Saturday's game, blasting off the left edge and blocking a punt from Illinois senior Keelan Crimmins.

Once he realized the ball landed in his vicinity, Ponds scooped it up and ran to the endzone for an 11-yard score. It gave the Hoosiers a 7-0 lead and sent Memorial Stadium into a frenzy.

"It was great, just to hear the crowd roar," Ponds said postgame. "It was just surreal."

In addition to Ponds, the rest of Indiana's special teams unit performed well.

Punt returner Jonathan Brady made several quality reads and had a 27-yard return. All but one of Brendan Franke's 10 kickoffs were touchbacks, and the lone exception was during a brief period of rain. Kicker Nico Radicic went 9 for 9 on extra points. Punter Quinn Warren pinned Illinois at the 2-yard line.

Illinois coach Bret Bielema said Monday special teams are a tell-tale sign of well-coached teams, and the Hoosiers were excellent in the game's third phase Saturday night.

Statement win? Depends who you ask

Cignetti twice said he doesn't control the national narrative surrounding his team, as his job requires him to get the Hoosiers ready to play each week and see where they stack up by season's end.

There are three sentiments Indiana's players stressed postgame.

The Hoosiers weren't surprised by Saturday night's lopsided result — Fisher said they know they have an elite team that plays well together. Three of Indiana's players — Ponds, Cooper and Tucker — said the team should be ranked in the top 10.

Yet the Hoosiers aren't irritated that national respect hasn't followed.

"I just control the controllables with it," Tucker said. "I know they're going to do all the external factors.If I get wrapped up in that, then man, it starts eating at me. So no, I just control what I can control. Let the world do what they're going to do, and then we're going to keep doing what we do. And then they're going to have no choice but to acknowledge it."

Mendoza said he feels Indiana proved it's a quality Big Ten team capable of winning games on the ground and through the air. Cooper added he hopes the Hoosiers become more nationally respected.

Perhaps nobody more passionately defended the stance of Saturday being a statement win than Ponds, who said Indiana wanted to prove its dominance.

The Hoosiers checked that box. And if attention, or external belief, doesn't follow? No big deal.

"It is what it is," Sarratt said. "I've said it before: People are going to doubt us if we win every single game, if we don't. We know what we're capable of in the locker room, and that's really all that matters."