Indiana football cruised to a 56-9 win over Kennesaw State University on Saturday afternoon at Memorial Stadium in a dominant week two showing. A much-improved offensive display earned high marks across the board while one defensive unit regressed from a productive week one.
Here’s how each position group scored on this week’s Richards’ Report Card.
Quarterbacks
Grade: A-
Explanation: While redshirt junior Fernando Mendoza is mostly responsible for the group’s improved grade in week two, his younger brother, redshirt freshman Alberto Mendoza, capped off the room’s performance. Fernando’s 18-of-25 outing yielded 245 yards and four touchdowns — his best showing as a Hoosier. Still, inconsistent ball placement and some poor decisions blemished the elder Mendoza’s otherwise elite display. Fortunately for Fernando, Alberto’s late touchdown was a good sign for the depth in Indiana’s quarterback room and enough to bump the final grade up an extra notch.
Running Backs
Grade: A+
Explanation: For the first time since 2014, Indiana posted over 300 rushing yards in back-to-back games. Last week against Old Dominion University, redshirt senior Roman Hemby led the way with 23 carries for 111 yards. This week, redshirt junior Lee Beebe Jr. mounted the charge with an even more efficient 90 yards on 11 attempts. The Hoosiers averaged eight yards per carry — the most in a game since 2014 — and consistently gashed Kennesaw State’s defense on early downs.
Receivers
Grade: A-
Explanation: One of Indiana’s goals entering Saturday afternoon’s matchup was obvious — get the ball to senior wide receiver Elijah Sarratt. He lived up to his nickname “Waffle House” and was always open, recording nine catches for 97 yards and three touchdowns. While Sarratt headlined the receivers, 10 different Hoosiers caught passes against the Owls. Sixth-year senior E.J. Williams Jr. and freshman Lebron Bond dropped catchable passes, which keeps the final grade from being perfect, but a combined 280 receiving yards makes the group’s efforts difficult to critique.
Offensive Line
Grade: A-
Explanation: Another dominant performance in the trenches opened up holes in the run game and gave Mendoza plenty of time to get through progressions in the pass game, paving the way for 593 yards of total offense. The Hoosiers’ offensive line didn’t allow a single sack and just one quarterback hurry. However, they did give up three tackles for loss due to various miscommunications in run blocking assignments. Regardless, for the second week in a row Indiana had its way with a weaker opponent up front. That trend will likely continue against FCS-opponent Indiana State University next week before the real tests arrive in the form of Big Ten competition.
Defensive Line
Grade: A-
Explanation: The Hoosiers’ defensive line turned things around after getting a C- for its role in Old Dominion’s pair of long touchdown runs. Senior Kellan Wyatt and redshirt senior Mikail Kamara were constantly in the Kennesaw State backfield and combined for 4.5 tackles for loss. The Owls totaled just 89 rushing yards on 32 carries. The only negative is that three carries accounted for 70 of those yards. Preventing big plays isn’t a responsibility that falls solely on the defensive line, but it’s enough to keep the unit at an A- in this week's grades.
Linebackers
Grade: A-
Explanation: Senior Aidan Fisher stuffed the stat sheet with seven total tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack, a dominance that's become routine for the 2024 first-team All-American. While Fisher shined, his teammate — sophomore Rolijah Hardy — was kept rather quiet. The comparatively inexperienced Hardy recorded just three tackles in the 46 snaps he played. Fortunately for the linebacker unit, Fisher’s success alone is enough to improve this grade from last week’s C+.
Secondary
Grade: B
Explanation: Indiana’s secondary took a small step back from its week one excellence against the Monarchs. The Hoosiers allowed 182 passing yards and a trio of receptions for over 30 yards against the Owls. While redshirt junior cornerback Jamari Sharpe produced the unit’s only turnover — a fumble he stripped and recovered in the third quarter — the 66 yards he allowed in pass coverage was a team-worst so far this season. On the other hand, sixth-year redshirt senior Louis Moore — who recorded an interception for the second straight game — and junior D’Angelo Ponds locked down their responsibilities in coverage, giving the unit a respectable overall grade.
Special Teams
Grade: B+
Explanation: Special teams coordinator Grant Cain’s unit didn’t have an electrifying 91-yard punt return touchdown this week but still played a fairly clean game. A delay of game penalty early in the second quarter set the Hoosiers out of field goal range in a drive that ultimately ended in a turnover on downs. Aside from that small slip up, Indiana was perfect on extra points and sophomore Quinn Warren downed one of his two punts inside the five-yard line. Senior wide receiver Jonathan Brady took the only punt he returned for a sizable 35 yards.
Follow reporters Conor Banks (@Conorbanks06 and conbanks@iu.edu) and Dalton James (@DaltonMJames and jamesdm@iu.edu) and columnist Quinn Richards (@Quinn_richa and qmrichar@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana football season.
