Silence.
Before the Marching Hundred pulled their instruments in close and began to play the fittingly-named “Heartbreaker” to a nearly-empty Memorial Stadium only occupied by somber faces and shock-filled eyes, there was nothing but silence.
Maybe an hour earlier the crowd was about to see a homecoming victory. But IU football found itself on its heels and fighting for air as those feelings of optimism quickly vanished.
Fifty-two points, 627 yards of offense and a 25-point lead — none of it was enough to secure a victory. Rutgers scored 28 unanswered points and defeated IU 55-52 on a 26-yard field goal that sailed through the uprights as time expired.
So how can a team that outscored its opponent by 22 in the third quarter allow the opponent to do the same to them in the fourth?
They got comfortable.
“I saw some smiles I didn’t like,” IU Coach Kevin Wilson said.
There were feelings of security that the Hoosiers would be advancing to 5-2, one win away from a bowl berth. But it never worked out that way.
It began with a 43-yard touchdown by Rutgers star receiver Leonte Carroo. Then senior quarterback Nate Sudfeld let the clock run out in the third quarter going into an IU fourth down with a 52-33 lead.
Nineteen points.
That fourth quarter began with the type of turmoil that encapsulated the rest of the game. A botched snap on the punt was recovered by Rutgers defensive end Kemoko Turay and returned for 26 yards and another Scarlet Knight touchdown.
Thirteen points.
Then Sudfeld, who passed for a career-high 464 yards, threw his second interception of the season. Rutgers led a seven-play, 68-yard drive to find the endzone yet again.
Six points.
Sudfeld’s first pass since the first interception succumbed to the same fate. The deep pass was intercepted. Running back Paul James ran for a 40-yard touchdown. The extra point was blocked.
Tie game.
IU was then stopped on third-and-short and punted back to Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights ran a long, grueling 13-play drive that concluded with the aforementioned game-winning field goal.
Rutgers wins.
And when asking players what happened, the answer tended to be just about the same.
“I think we got a little relaxed,” junior receiver Ricky Jones said.
“We kind of eased off the gas pedal a little,” freshman running back Mike Majette said.
“There was a lack of focus and kind of a feeling that we had it,” Sudfeld said.
Those smiles that Wilson didn’t like might have led to the loss, but Wilson does not view this as a lack of maturity, IU just didn’t keep playing and Rutgers did, he said.
He said the defense got boring, and they allowed Rutgers to convert on 12-of-20 third down attempts.
Sudfeld said this is a mature team, but it just got exposed tonight. This is the first time Sudfeld has lost with a lead this big.
“This is pretty new,” he said. “It hurts.”
Now IU has to rebound from three consecutive losses and face a No. 7 Michigan State team that just beat Michigan on a last second play.
Wilson and players said the Hoosiers have to get this loss off their minds and prepare for a difficult challenge.
Wilson is confident they will be able to.
“Kids are much more resilient than coaches,” he said. “They’ll bounce back tomorrow, and they’ll be good to go.”
