BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Kurtis Rourke and No. 8 Indiana's offence looked in sync through the first half Saturday.
Then the high-scoring Hoosiers needed their defense to bail them out for a record-breaking win in the second half.
Rourke threw two touchdown passes and navigated two late drives — one for a field goal, the other to run out the clock — as Indiana limited Michigan to just one touchdown in a 20-15 victory for the first 10-win season in school history.
“It tells you a lot about the resiliency of this team, it’s competitive character,” first-year coach Curt Cignetti said after Indiana beat Michigan for just the second time since 1988. “At the end of the day, they all count as one. Whether it’s 72-6 or 3-2, they all count as one. And you know what? We’re going to take the win over Michigan.”
And why not?
Indiana’s last win over Michigan came in front of a tiny home crowd during the 2020 COVID-19 shortened season. This time, they played in front of a sellout crowd, sung the school fight song with a student section that did not rush the field and kept their playoff hopes alive.
Rourke was 17 of 28 with 206 yards as the Hoosiers (10-0, 7-0 Big Ten, No. 8 CFP), college football’s losingest program, beat college football’s winningest program, Michigan.
The Wolverines (5-5, 3-4 Big Ten) also had their lowest scoring total in the series since Indiana’s 14-10 victory in 1987, generated one TD in three red-zone trips and came up a yard short on fourth-and-10 with 95 seconds to play.
“The story of the game is not scoring in the red zone. You can’t get down there and have it first-and-6, first-and-7 and not score,” Michigan coach Sherrone Moore said. “We weren’t getting any movement up front. They executed, and we didn’t.”
It showed as quarterback Davis Warren went 16 of 32 with 137 yards and Michigan rushed for just 69 yards.
Indiana took control when Rourke hooked up with Omar Cooper Jr. on a 7-yard TD pass late in the first quarter then followed that score with a 36-yard TD pass to Elijah Sarratt early in the second quarter to make it 14-3.
The Hoosiers added a 40-yard field goal late in the first half and Michigan started the second half with two field goals — a 22-yarder after picking off Rourke at the Indiana 7-yard line and a 56-yarder that made it 17-9. Dominic Zvada has five field goals of 50 or more yards this year.
Michigan had a chance to tie the score after Kalel Mullings converted a fourth-and-goal into a 1-yard scoring plunge with 9:35 left, but Warren's 2-point conversion trickled through a defender's hands and out of the end zone. Indiana used a 22-yard punt return to set up its final score, a 42-yard field goal, before stopping Michigan on downs.
“Championship teams find a way to win football games,” Cignetti said. “Do you get style points? This is probably the first one we haven't. But it's a pretty good win."
Takeaways
Michigan: While the Wolverines' defence was outstanding, especially in the second half, the offence continues to prove costly for a Michigan team that still is not bowl eligible.
Indiana: Cignetti's team added another chapter to its magical season, making it one of a handful of unbeaten teams still left.
Up next
Michigan: Hosts Northwestern on Nov. 23, following next week's bye.
Indiana: Has its second bye week next Saturday before heading to No. 3 Ohio State on Nov. 23.
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