Indiana football likes, dislikes of win vs Illinois, score today, stats

Zach Osterman

Indianapolis Star

BLOOMINGTON – No. 17 Indiana football grabbed its first chance at a statement win with both hands Saturday night, putting No. 8 Illinois through the floor to the tune of a 63-10 demolition on national television.

Here's what I liked, what I didn't, and what it means.

What I liked in Indiana football's win vs Illinois

Fernando Mendoza's Big Ten debut was outstanding. He passed for 267 yards and five touchdowns, at times making Illinois look as straightforward as Indiana State. These two quarterbacks entered Saturday's game mirror images of one another statistically, but while Luke Altmyer spent most of the evening running from IU's pass rush, Mendoza projected calm and poise, and ran his offense with the precision that has NFL scouts high on his upside. This was a player-of-the-week performance.

An Indiana pass rush serving up mixed reviews through the season's first three weeks went to work on Altmyer early Saturday and never let up. The Hoosiers finished with seven sacks and 10 tackles for loss, their domination at the line of scrimmage setting the stage for their domination on the scoreboard. TFL numbers in recent weeks, coupled to Illinois' pass-protection troubles, foreshadowed this performance. IU (4-0, 1-0) delivered in a big way when it needed to.

If the Week 1 Old Dominion win left something to be desired, it was the specific brand of ruthlessness Indiana showed week in, week out last season. There was no such concern here. The Hoosiers were lethal, at one point scoring touchdowns on six straight drives. Even their backups punished Illinois, when coach Curt Cignetti handed his reserves the fourth quarter. There was no doubting the quality of this performance.

What I didn't like in Indiana football's win vs Illinois

Illinois' only sign of life exploited what still ranks among the few remaining doubts about this team, when an apparent coverage mixup allowed Collin Dixon to break loose for a 59-yard touchdown reception. With concerns over Louis Moore's eligibility coming back into focus next week, depth and communication both remain issues at the back end of IU's defense.

We're really, really nitpicking here. But if you're looking for teaching points, Cignetti will always want to see unforced penalties like false starts cleaned up.

The late start? The TV/streaming mixup? It's disingenuous to force it here. Indiana was largely flawless Saturday night.

What it Indiana football's win over Illinois means

Indiana will be impossible to ignore now. Gripes about the Hoosiers' nonconference schedule were fair, to a point, but the attendant concerns proved dramatically unfounded. The Illini were meant to be a trendy dark-horse College Football Playoff pick, and they got comprehensively undressed in primetime for their trouble Saturday night.

Maybe IU returns to the playoff field this fall. Maybe it doesn't. But college football doesn't get to ignore the Hoosiers anymore.

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