Entering today, Indiana football had never beaten Penn State on the road. This is why Indiana fans, Crimson Quarry readers, and seasoned bloggers alike knew that this was not a game to overlook.
However
badly Penn State’s season had gone to this point, the Nittany Lions still had most of the roster that was considered a National Championship contender in the preseason. They would have had to overcome James Franklin’s inability to win big games, but firing him amidst a losing streak would give them a chance to once again reach the roster’s potential.
The offense struggled, the officials interfered in more ways than one, and the injuries kept coming, and things looked worse for Indiana than they had at any other point this season. This has been a team of destiny, though, and today wasn’t going to be the end of Indiana’s undefeated season.
Here are three observations from the game:
Injuries
Last week Indiana was able to survive the absence of Drew Evans, Elijah Sarratt, and Aiden Fisher without much difficulty. This was not the case against Penn State.
Fisher was back this week, which arguably won Indiana the game, as he both recovered a fumble and intercepted a pass that led to 10 Indiana points in a 3-point win. Missing Evans and Sarratt definitely hurt Indiana today, though.
True freshman Adedamola Ajani played admirably as Evans’ replacement, but his lack of experience was evident and Fernando Mendoza felt the resulting pressure. When Khalil Benson missed a few plays for a second straight game, things deteriorated accordingly.
Omar Cooper Jr. ended up with a spectacular game-winning catch, but didn’t look like the same kind of threat when he was drawing the opposing team’s best defensive back instead of being the No. 2 guy behind Sarratt. He finished third on the team in receiving yards today with 25 on five catches.
I’m happy to see them beat a still-talented Penn State team without those two, but it’s clear that Indiana needs to get healthy if it wants to compete as one of the best teams nationally.
Fernando Mendoza
Before the last drive of the game, Mendoza’s Heisman campaign looked to be in serious jeopardy.
On what many assumed would be Indiana’s final offensive drive (myself included) Mendoza threw his fourth pick of the year to give the ball back to Penn State with under five minutes to go and a four point lead. At that point, he had one rushing touchdown and none through the air.
Penn State was able to pressure Mendoza in a way that other teams had not been able to this season, and his stats suffered as a result. He managed some positive momentum with his feet in both halves, but got sacked a season-high three times and looked unprepared for the moment for the first time all season.
All of that disappeared on the final drive of the game, when Mendoza led Indiana on a 10-play, 73-yard drive that kept Indiana undefeated. It wasn’t his best game of the year, but he performed when it was important against maybe the most talented defense he had seen all season.
Heismendoza remains intact.
Charlie Becker
While Cooper Jr. had the catch that will be remembered from this game, there was no way Indiana could have won without the performance it got from Charlie Becker today.
Becker led all Indiana receivers with seven receptions and 118 yards, including a 53-yard reception that set up Indiana’s first touchdown of the game. This is now his second straight game with a catch of over 50 yards.
A clear breakout candidate next season, with a less-crowded receiving room, Becker’s performance today will challenge defensive coordinators going forward. Even with Sarratt out of the lineup, he looked like a true No. 1 wide receiver today, which should open things up for Cooper Jr. and E. J. Williams Jr.
However his snap count is managed going forward, Becker has established himself as a high-major wide receiver capable of beating backs with his routes while also being able to go up and get contested passes with his strong hands.
Unsurprisingly, Cignetti appears to have another good one on deck.
