Indiana football closed out its 2025 regular season slate with a dominant 56-3 road victory against Purdue on Friday at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette.
The Hoosiers carried just a 7-3 lead after the first quarter but scored 49 unanswered points to secure the Old Oaken Bucket. The win clinched a Big Ten Football Championship appearance for the Hoosiers –– the first in school history.
On the game’s second play from the line of scrimmage, Indiana junior defensive back Amare Ferrell secured an interception. However, the Hoosiers failed to capitalize, going 3-and-out on their first possession.
After the Indiana defense forced a second stop, redshirt junior quarterback Fernando Mendoza connected with senior wide receiver Elijah Sarratt for an 18-yard completion, placing the Hoosiers in the red zone. Redshirt senior running back Kaelon Black finished the drive with a one-yard rushing touchdown to grant Indiana a 7-0 lead.
Indiana and Purdue traded punts following the Hoosiers’ score. After failing to advance the ball past its own 30-yard line across their initial three possessions, the Boilermakers generated offense during their fourth series. Purdue drove the ball down to the Indiana 5-yard line, before converting a 22-yard field goal.
But Indiana responded during its ensuing possession. The Hoosiers leaned on their run game, rushing the ball on eight of their 11 plays during the 65-yard drive. Mendoza kept the ball on a seven-yard rushing touchdown to cap off the possession, bringing the score to 14-3.
Two possessions later, the Hoosiers’ running back room continued their dominance. Black took a carry up the middle and shook off a Purdue defender with a spin move before reaching the end zone for a 16-yard score.
Meanwhile, redshirt senior running back Roman Hemby outran the Boilermakers en route to an 82-yard rushing touchdown. Hemby’s rushing touchdown marked Indiana’s fourth of the first half, as the Hoosiers took a 28-3 lead into the halftime locker room.
The Hoosiers carried this offensive momentum coming out of the halftime break. Mendoza found Sarratt and redshirt junior wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. in the third frame for a pair of touchdown passes.
Holding a 42-3 lead with under a minute remaining in the third quarter, redshirt freshman quarterback Alberto Mendoza took over signal calling duties for the Hoosiers. Alberto led Indiana to two more scoring drives on the evening.
After struggling for much of the first half, Fernando finished with 117 passing yards and two touchdowns through the air. The Hoosiers orchestrated a dominant rushing attack Friday, combining for 355 ground yards and five rushing touchdowns.
Indiana secured its first 12-0 regular season in program history Friday and now sets its sights on a Big Ten title on Dec. 6 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
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.
