Hoosiers Now

LIVE BLOG: Follow As No. 13 Indiana Plays at Michigan State

No. 13 Indiana tries for its first 9-0 record in school history as the Hoosiers take on the Spartans with the Old Brass Spittoon also on the line.

Todd Golden

Spartan Stadium as both Indiana and Michigan State warm-up before their Big Ten football game on Nov. 2, 2024.
Spartan Stadium as both Indiana and Michigan State warm-up before their Big Ten football game on Nov. 2, 2024. / Hoosiers On SI | Todd Golden
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EAST LANSING, Mich. - Hello everyone! The Hoosiers On SI live blog is finally ready to go! No. 13 Indiana tries to improve to 9-0 for the first time in school history as the Hoosiers take on the 4-4 Michigan State Spartans.

As Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said on his radio show on Thursday, quarterback Kurtis Rourke is expected to start today. Indiana had no one listed on its pregame injury report.

• Some final stats: Indiana outgains Michigan State 385-205. Indiana's defense had 15 tackles for loss.

Kurtis Rourke completed 19 of 29 for 263 yards and four touchdown passes. Ke'Shawn Williams had 6 catches for 86 yards.

Mikail Kamara had 4.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. Amare Ferrell had two key interceptions in the first half to really turn the worm for the Hoosiers.

• FINAL: Indiana 47, Michigan State 10. After going down 10, Indiana roars back and overwhelms the Spartans. The Hoosiers are 9-0 overall and 6-0 in the Big Ten. An absolute dream season.

• Indiana 47-10, 200 4Q. Are you ready for 9-0, Indiana fans? To boldly go where no Indiana team has been before.

• Indiana 47-10, 611 4Q. One of the videoboards just showed a mother taking her young daughters down the stairs at an emptying Spartan Stadium. It's come to that for the home folks. To be fair? Those kids did out-rush the Spartans as they walked down the stairs.

• Indiana 47-10, 803 4Q. Michigan State's current rushing total is minus-24. Tommy Schuster, who only came into the game in the second half, is at minus-44 yards on four carries. Total dominance by the Indiana defense after conceding yards early on.

• Indiana 47-10, 1052 4Q. Stop the fight! Throw the towel! Indiana demonstrating its usual late-game ruthlessness. Michigan State threw the towel in on itself not too long after halftime.

• Touchdown Indiana. Kurtis Rourke finds Elijah Sarratt on the left side of the end zone on an 11-yard touchdown connection.

• Indiana 40-10, 1057 4Q. Michigan State's total yardage by quarter in order: 128, 50, 27, minus-23. What a response by the Indiana defense after the Hoosiers looked vulnerable early in the game.

• Indiana 40-10, 1107 4Q. Indiana has the ball again. Kurtis Rourke's line so far: 18 of 27 for 252 yards, 3 TD and no interceptions. I'd say that thumb is just fine.

• Indiana 40-10, 1405 4Q. Once the boulder starts rolling downhill on an Indiana opponent, they just get flattened. The Hoosiers make Michigan State pay for the fake punt as Cooper scored on a 21-yard run. He fought for the final five yards or so to reach paydirt. We're up to 40 unanswered points for the Hoosiers.

• Touchdown Indiana. Omar Cooper Jr. with a 16-yard touchdown run.

• Indiana 33-10, 1454 4Q. Michigan State decided to fake a punt deep in its own territory. It didn't go so hot. Rolijah Hardy got to punter Ryan Eckley for a 9-yard loss when the Spartans needed 23 yards. Indiana ball at the Michigan State 21.

• End 3rd quarter - Indiana 33, Michigan State 10. That man again, Mikail Kamara, with a sack on the final play of a quarter where Indiana put itself in a position where it's very unlikely to be caught.

• Indiana 33-10, 243 3Q. Michigan State keeps Indiana out of the end zone, but not off the scoreboard. Nicolas Radicic boots a 29-yard field goal to raise Indiana's unanswered point tally to 33.

• Indiana 30-10, 739 3Q. Mikail Kamara is unreal for the Hoosiers. On fourth down, he came up the middle and hammered backup QB Tommy Schuster for a 7-yard loss. Kamara has 6 tackles, 3.5 for loss and 1.5 sacks.

• Indiana 30-10, 820 3Q. Michigan State quarterback Aidan Chiles is injured. He was trying to escape Mikail Kamara and Rolijah Hardy. Kamara caught up to him and he went down. The Spartans had just crossed midfield after Chiles completed a 23-yard pass on fourth down.

• Indiana 30-10, 1139 3Q. Michigan State looks like a beaten team. Hoosiers march 65 yards in 6 plays. A 21-yard pass to Omar Cooper Jr., a 35-yard pass to Elijah Sarratt and the 18-yard beauty to Price, who was wide open on the play-action fake.

• Touchdown Indiana. On a textbook play-action pass, Kurtis Rourke finds Myles Price wide-open on the left sideline for an 18-yard TD connection.

• Indiana 23-10, 1328 3Q. Before the safety, Indiana had successfully snuffed out a pair of Michigan State screen pass attempts, so the trouble that Indiana had with that play in the first quarter is history. Aidan Chiles was flushed into James Carpenter for a third down sack. D'Angelo Ponds was unblocked on the punt and he didn't miss on the block attempt.

• Safety Indiana. Indiana blocks a punt deep in Michigan State territory. D'Angelo Ponds was all over it. Michigan State P Ryan Eckley bats the ball out of the back of the end zone for a safety.

Halftime stats: Indiana has a 196-178 edge in total yards and the Hoosiers have two takeaways.

Kurtis Rourke has completed 11 of 16 passes for 139 yards and 2 TDs. Ke'Shawn Williams (3-65) and Justice Ellison (3-22) are tied for the most receptions. Ellison has 26 rushing yards.

Aiden Fisher, per usual, has 6 tackles to lead the Hoosiers. Mikail Kamara, per usual, has 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack.

• Halftime: Indiana 21, Michigan State 10. Hoosiers spotted the Spartans a 10-point lead, but Indiana kept its cool, got its offense executing to normal capacity and took advantage of Michigan State mistake to wrest control of the game away from Sparty.

• Indiana 21-10, 104 2Q. Mikail Kamara is so good. On 3rd-and-1 from the Michigan State 34, he stuffs Aidan Chiles for a 4-yard loss. Good Michigan State punt puts the Hoosiers at their own 14.

• Indiana 21-10, 210 2Q. Indiana is the last team you want to give an easy chance to, but that's just what the Spartans did. After the interception, the Hoosiers needed six plays to find the end zone. Good job by Kurtis Rourke on the touchdown pass. Just dropped it into Elijah Sarratt's hands gently and without threat of being picked off.

• Touchdown Indiana. On a scramble, quarterback Kurtis Rourke finds Elijah Sarratt in the middle of the end zone on a 4-yard pass.

• Indiana 14-10, 455 2Q. Good Aidan Chiles was on the field in the first quarter. Bad Aidan Chiles is out there in the second quarter. On a 3rd-and-9 from their own 31, he tries to throw a sideline route, but Amare Ferrell was all over it. His diving interception gives the ball back to Indiana in Spartan territory.

• Indiana 14-10, 622 2Q. Hoosiers respond with a pair of big plays to take the lead for the first time. The 38-yard catch by Ke'Shawn Williams was a simple slant route, but Indiana had so many receivers on the field, it stretched the Spartans' secondary thin. The end around was an inspired call on a short field. Good blocking on the left edge helped spring Price loose. Both Kurtis Rourke and Ty Son Lawton nearly the lost the ball on goal line runs, but they held on, and Indiana is in front.

• Touchdown Indiana. Ty Son Lawton rumbles in off left tackle for a 1-yard TD run.

• Michigan State 10-7, 725 2Q. Review puts the ball on the 1-yard line.

• Michigan State 10-7, 725 2Q. Indiana gets clever with an end around by Myles Price. He runs it 24 yards to the 2-yard line. Review to see if he got into the end zone.

• Michigan State 10-7, 821 2Q. Ke'Shawn Williams with a 38-yard catch on Indiana's first play, but of equal importance is that Michigan State's Charles Brantley had to be helped off the field afterwards after he was hurt on the tackle.

• Michigan State 10-7, 835 2Q. Michigan State moved it 20 yards, but a Rolijah Hardy tackle on a costly 3-yard loss on first down put the Spartans behind the 8-ball. Myles Price had a solid 16-yard return on a 54-yard punt by Michigan State P Ryan Eckley. Indiana starts at their own 35.

• Michigan State 10-7, 1209 2Q. Hoosiers go three-and-out again, but all the credit to Michigan State cornerback Charles Brantley, who made an acrobatic play to tip the ball away on an Indiana deep route. A really good punt by James Evans pins the Spartans at their own 7.

• Michigan State 10-7, 1311 2Q. You know the candy commercial where things are sour then they're sweet? That's Indiana right now. Shawn Asbury II was called for unnecessary roughness on a tackle for loss, a penalty that helped the Spartans cross midfield. On the next play, as Indiana's sideline was getting a warning from the officials, an Aidan Chiles pass was tipped by Aiden Fisher and Amare Ferrell snagged it at the Indiana 30. He returned it to the 45. Hoosiers ball on an odd variance of fortune.

• Michigan State 10-7, 1413 2Q. Indiana got back to its RPO game as Kurtis Rourke masterfully picked the right times to pass and used the threat of the pass to set up effective runs for both Justice Ellison and Ty Son Lawton. On the touchdown, Rourke was patient, as Indiana's wide receivers were covered. Zach Horton got loose under the secondary and Rourke found him for an easy 17-yard score. That drive was more like what Indiana has demonstrated all season.

Touchdown Indiana. Zach Horton with a 17-yard touchdown catch.

• End 1st quarter: Michigan State 10, Indiana 0. Hoosiers on the march as they're in Michigan State territory for the first time.

• Michigan State 10-0, 239 1Q. Kind of a sum of all fears kind of drive for the Spartans, who went 71 yards in 13 plays. Michigan State was able to exploit Indiana pressure on a couple of screen passes that went for double-digit yardage. QB Aidan Chiles can run and he demonstrated it to devastating effect twice. Once when he escaped Lanell Carr Jr. to run for a 9-yard first down on 3rd-and-8 and then again on the touchdown pass as he scrambled right and delivered a perfect strike on the run to Marsh. Work to do for the Hoosiers.

• Touchdown is confirmed. Indiana has used up its challenge for the game. Wasn't really that close. Not a good challenge by the Hoosiers.

• Touchdown Michigan State. QB Aidan Chiles scrambles and delivers a pass to Nick Marsh on the right side of the end zone. Indiana is challenging the play. Marsh tiptoed the sideline to make the play.

• Michigan State 3-0, 857 2Q. Uncharacteristic failure on third down for the Hoosiers. Miles Cross was wide open on a sideline route, but the ball bounced off of his hands. Not sure if the sun played a role, but it's catch that needs to be made. Rare back-to-back three-and-outs for Indiana. Spartans take over at their own 29.

• Michigan State 3-0, 958 1Q. Indiana trails! After a three-and-out series to start the game, Michigan State got into Indiana territory via a 33-yard catch by Nick Marsh. Indiana held the Spartans out of the red zone, but Jonathan Kim provided the Hoosiers with their first deficit of the season with a 47-yard field goal.

Indiana starters: Offense - QB Kurtis Rourke, RB Justice Ellison, WR Myles Price, WR Miles Cross, WR Elijah Sarratt, TE Zach Horton, C Mike Katic, G Bray Lynch, G Drew Evans, T Carter Smith, T Trey Wedig.

Defense - LB Aiden Fisher, LB Jailin Walker, EDGE Lanell Carr Jr., DT James Carpenter, DE Mikail Kamara, DT CJ West, DB Terry Jones, CB Jamier Johnson, CB D'Angelo Ponds, S Amare Ferrell, S Shawn Asbury II.

Pregame

• Pregame injuries: No one for Indiana is listed. It's Nov. 2 and everyone is healthy? Pretty remarkable. No one significant on the Michigan State report either.

• Indiana loses the toss again. Hoosiers will get the ball first. I think Indiana has only won one toss all season. Indiana having the ball first has worked just fine all season.

• Fashion report: Indiana never deviates from their default uniform. All white with red helmets. Michigan State is wearing all black. Since green is my favorite color, not a fan.

• I pride myself in being on it as far as traffic and most optimal driving routes are concerned, but I slipped today. I stayed with my son in Muncie last night to get a head start on the trip. I cruising along I-69, it's an easy drive to East Lansing, when I see a line of cars in front of me at about 12:15-ish just southwest of Lansing. Of course, it was right after I passed an exit.

OK, it happens. I waited for a bit, made incremental progress as one does in these situations, but then stopped dead in my tracks about a half-mile shy of the next exit. Nothing was moving. Apparently, there was a fatal accident that closed I-69 in both directions. Eventually, I made my way off the freeway, but by then, there were two traffic jams. The original on I-69 and the one caused by the I-69 closure.

Anyhow, I saw quite a bit more of "Pure Michigan" than I ever intended to. Comedy further ensued when my alternate route took me to an on-ramp that was closed. I ended up driving into Lansing proper and eventually made it via back routes to Michigan State's campus.

Probably lost 90 minutes trying to get around everything. Sigh.

Old Brass Spittoon
Indiana's Donaven McCulley celebrates with the Old Brass Spittoon trophy after beating Michigan State on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. / Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

• The Old Brass Spittoon ... let's discuss.

The trophy itself is pretty normal ... if you didn't know it was a spittoon, you might think it was a cup, but we know it's a spittoon, allegedly from a Michigan trading post dating to the pioneer days of the Midwest.

In a league full of weird trophies, it's up there on the weird list. A spittoon isn't exactly the first thing I'd want to possess, much less a possibly used spittoon. Was it actually used? Was there the 1800s version of Skoal Bandit in it?

And what makes a spittoon appropriate for Indiana and Michigan? Since the trophy was conceived in the 1950s, surely something automotive could have been used? Maybe Studebaker or Oldsmobile would still exist if the trophy was named after one or the other?

• First time at Spartan Stadium for yours truly. It's more vertical than I expected. I'm not sure what I thought it would be like. Some great retired numbers in my view. Kirk Gibson, whom I had a weird distaste for when he played, among them.

Related stories on Indiana football

  • CIGNETTI'S SUCCESS AT INDIANA WAS MIRRORED AT ELON: The head coaching job Curt Cignetti has previously had the most closely approximates what he's done at Indiana was his stint at Elon. Hoosiers On SI talked to some of Cignetti's Elon colleagues to find out how he makes it all work. CLICK HERE.
  • HOW TO WATCH: Everything you need to know on how to watch Indiana's game against Michigan State on Saturday. CLICK HERE.
  • MEET THE OPPONENT: Michigan State is next for Indiana football. Find out about the Spartans. CLICK HERE.
  • ROURKE TO START ON SATURDAY: Curt Cignetti said on his radio show that Kurtis Rourke will start at quarterback on Saturday at Michigan State. CLICK HERE.
  • THREE KEYS AND PREDICTION FOR MICHIGAN STATE: How does Hoosiers On SI see the Michigan State game? CLICK HERE.
  • BOSTAD COACHES UP THE LINE: Offensive line coach Bob Bostad has melded the Indiana offensive line into a force. CLICK HERE.
  • INDIANA IN THE POLLS: TOO HIGH, TOO LOW OR JUST RIGHT? The Hoosiers are 13th in the AP football poll. Are they where they should be? CLICK HERE.
  • PONDS GETS NATIONAL AWARD: Indiana cornerback D'Angelo Ponds got a major national honor on Tuesday. CLICK HERE.
  • GAMES TO WATCH FOR: Here are the games to watch for around the Big Ten, in the top 25, and that has an impact on Indiana's strength of schedule. CLICK HERE.
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Todd Golden
TODD GOLDEN

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