Indiana football entered Saturday with three players ruled out for the season, two listed as questionable and one listed as out.
However, the No. 2 Hoosiers exited SECU Stadium in College Park, Maryland, after a 55-10 beatdown of the Terrapins with a few more injured players. Some fought through their ailments and remained in the game, while others left the contest.
Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti said postgame the Cream and Crimson have players with “some bumps and bruises.”
“So, we came out pretty good,” Cignetti said. “Now, we got some guys that are sore. We played a few games in a row now, but we came out good.”
Here’s what to know about each injury:
LBs Fisher, Turner
On Monday, Cignetti deemed senior linebacker Aiden Fisher “probable” after he suffered a left knee injury against UCLA on Oct. 25. Fisher missed most of that contest “precautionarily.”
However, as the week wore on, Cignetti said it didn’t look good for Fisher’s chances of playing. He was listed as questionable Saturday and went through portions of pregame warmups in full uniform but didn’t play in the contest.
In Fisher’s absence, redshirt junior linebacker Isaiah Jones took over as the quarterback of the defense with the coach-to-player in-helmet communication.
Redshirt junior linebacker Kaiden Turner slid into the third linebacker role before going down with a calf injury during a second-quarter interception. Redshirt junior linebacker Jeff Utzinger replaced him for the remainder of the game.
“It's just next man up mentality,” Jones said. “And no matter who's down, it's always the next guys up got to keep the standard.”
WR Sarratt
Elijah Sarratt was redshirt junior quarterback Fernando Mendoza’s intended target on his lone interception. The senior receiver exited the contest in the first quarter and made multiple trips to the injury tent on the sideline.
Cignetti said Sarratt’s hamstring “tightened up.”
Still, Sarratt stood on the sideline with his helmet off, a towel over his head and his hamstring wrapped as he hoped to re-enter the matchup. However, he never did.
Sarratt entered the game having made a reception in all 46 career games, a mark that led the nation for the most consecutive games with a catch. That streak came to an end Saturday.
CBS sideline reporter Jenny Dell said, just after halftime, Sarratt’s ailment isn’t believed to be long-term, but he didn’t return as a precaution.
OL Evans
When Indiana’s availability report was released two hours before kickoff, Drew Evans made a surprise appearance under the “out” designation. The redshirt junior left guard previously missed the final four games of 2024 with a torn Achilles.
Saturday marked Evans’ first missed contest of this season. And per Cignetti, Evans will be out for “a few weeks” with an undisclosed injury.
Redshirt senior offensive lineman Zen Michalski slid into Evans’ right guard position. Despite Evans’ absence, the Hoosiers still dominated the Terrapins at the line of scrimmage. Indiana’s rushing attack notched 367 yards — a season high — while its pass protection allowed just one sack.
“However, Zen went in and he’s played in big games at Ohio State, and that’s what he’s brought here to do: play in big games,” Mendoza said. “And I think he did a fantastic job.”
OL Benson, WR Williams Jr.
Sixth-year senior offensive lineman Khalil Benson suffered an apparent left leg injury while sixth-year receiver E.J. Williams Jr.’s right foot was rolled up on. Both players missed a handful of plays but returned to the contest.
KOS Franke
Brendan Franke went down on the opening kickoff against UCLA on Oct. 18 with an apparent lower-body injury. Cignetti described the sixth-year senior kickoff specialist as questionable Monday, and he was under that designation Saturday.
Franke didn’t play against the Terrapins, as redshirt sophomore Nico Radicic and redshirt freshman Quinn Warren handled the kickoffs.
DL Wyatt
Unlike running back Roman Hemby, senior defensive lineman Kellan Wyatt couldn’t make his Maryland homecoming with the knee injury he previously sustained Oct. 18. Wyatt was listed under the “out” designation on the availability report versus UCLA; however, he moved to the “out for season” spot Saturday.
It appears Wyatt’s collegiate career has officially come to an end.
In Wyatt’s absence, senior defensive lineman Stephen Daley has slotted into his role. Across the last two games, Daley accumulated two tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss.
What’s ahead?
Indiana will now travel to Penn State on Nov. 8 before returning home to face Wisconsin on Nov. 15. Then, the Hoosiers will have their second and final bye week of the regular season before facing Purdue on Nov. 28.
No matter who’s sidelined throughout the final three games of the regular season slate, the Hoosiers remain confident in who they have on their roster.
“So, whether it's defense, offense, we have a lot of confidence in all our guys, and the depth, and just the whole Indiana team, it's next man up, next man mentality that they're going to go and do their job,” Mendoza said. “And not just be a filler, but they're going to excel at their job.”
Follow reporters Dalton James (@DaltonMJames and jamesdm@iu.edu) and Conor Banks (@Conorbanks06 and conbanks@iu.edu) and columnist Quinn Richards (@Quinn_richa and qmrichar@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana football season.
