Revisiting Indiana Football's Only Win Against Penn State

Former Indiana receiver Kofi Hughes retells the emotions and mood around the program when Indiana got its first win ever over Penn State.

Dylan Wallace | Oct 17, 2020

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — It's been seven years since Indiana football last defeated Penn State.

Prior to that victory in 2013, Penn State was an unbeaten 16-0 against the Hoosiers.

Now that Indiana is exactly one week from its season-opener against the ninth-ranked Nittany Lions, we take a look at the Hoosiers' lone win in 2013 through the eyes of one of Indiana's captains that season, Kofi Hughes.

***

Hughes knew. The whole Indiana football team knew.

Penn State was coming to Bloomington on Oct. 5, 2013, as the Hoosiers' first conference opponent after Indiana went 2-2 in the nonconference slate.

Though Penn State was on its second (and final) year of bowl sanctions from the NCAA, they were fresh off an impressive 8-4 campaign in 2012 and had high expectations with freshman quarterback Christian Hackenberg leading the charge.

It was a gloomy morning in early October, and Indiana was highly motivated to put on a show. They knew that the program didn't hold a victory over the Nittany Lions.

"Oh yeah, we were definitely aware of that," Hughes said. "It's no elephant in the room those were some rough years for the program. Bro, at that point in the season, especially getting out of nonconference, we were so amped up to put on a good game."

The Hoosiers took the field with one of Indiana's best offenses in program history. Most of the weapons they had in 2013 are in the NFL today.

At quarterback, Indiana had Nate Sudfeld, but they also had Tre Roberson as a dual-threat guy. In the backfield, they had Tevin Coleman and Stephen Houston. Along with Hughes at the receiver position was Cody Latimer and Shane Wynn.

"You look at that roster — Tevin Coleman, Cody Latimer, Shane Wynn, Nate Sudfeld, Jason Spriggs, Dan Feeney — it was unreal," Hughes said.

It was Indiana's defense that always struggled and made things difficult for the Hoosiers to close out games.

But this specific Saturday in Bloomington, everything seemed to be clicking on both ends for Indiana.

The Hoosiers got on the board first as Sudfeld found Isaiah Roundtree for a four-yard touchdown pass with 3:05 left in the first quarter.

Nate Sudfeld winds up a pass during the Indiana versus Penn State game in 2013. — Nate Sudfeld winds up a pass during the Indiana versus Penn State game in 2013 / Indiana Athletics

Five minutes into the second quarter, Penn State struck back. Hackenberg found Allen Robinson for a short pass, but after some poor tackling, Robinson was able to take it 46 yards to the house to even the score.

It was a slow game during the first half. Indiana went on to take a 13-7 lead midway through the third quarter.

But then Hackenberg found Robinson for his second touchdown grab of the day, putting the Nittany Lions up 14-13.

On the Hoosiers' ensuing possession, Coleman took it 44 yards up the middle to quickly put Indiana back on top.

Tevin Coleman breaks open a 44-yard touchdown run against Penn State in 2013. — Tevin Coleman breaks open a 44-yard touchdown run against Penn State in 2013 / Indiana Athletics

Heading into the fourth quarter, Indiana was only up 21-13. Historically, it was no secret this is when things would go awry for the Indiana football program, but on this day, it was the complete opposite.

First, Roberson ran a QB sneak into the endzone on a third and goal to put Indiana up 11. Then, the Hoosiers defense got a big stop on fourth down, giving Indiana the ball in good field position.

Two plays and 33 seconds later, on a 2nd & 13, Sudfeld scrambled out of the pocket and dropped a perfect dime into the hands of a sliding Hughes, who had a Penn State defender at his back. It was a 36-yard touchdown catch to put Indiana up 35-17.

Kofi Hughes catches a pass during the Indiana versus Penn State game in 2013. — Kofi Hughes catches a pass during the Indiana versus Penn State game in 2013 / Indiana Athletics

"I always just like big plays. I told Nate when we left the huddle, 'hey look for me,'" Hughes said. "The harder the catch the easier it was for me. It was just a big time play at a big time, and I prided myself on that. Great ball, great catch and it kind of sealed the deal for us."

But there was more.

Penn State fumbled the following kickoff, and Indiana recovered at the nine. Roberson scored on the very next play, and just like that, Indiana had a 42-17 lead and scored 14 points in 12 seconds.

The Nittany Lions would score again, but the game was officially sealed when the Indiana defense forced Hackenberg to fumble in the endzone, resulting in a safety.

"Guys were dialed in, and that's just what it looked like when we put on a good game," Hughes said. "Unfortunately, that just didn't happen that often."

But this specific Saturday in early October was the perfect storm for the Hoosiers. Indiana defeated Penn State for the first time ever with a 44-24 victory.

"Just on cloud nine," Hughes described the feeling. "It was unreal. Getting a win against a team we never beat before, it really gave a lot of hope."

Hughes admitted it was hard during his years with Indiana football. In his first three seasons, the team won a combined 10 games, including a 1-11 season in 2011.

He calls the win against Penn State one of the high moments throughout his career, as well as in program history.

In that moment, celebrating that victory, all the tough games in the past seemed irrelevant for a change.

"That was one of the biggest wins in our time at IU," Hughes said. "Everything just seemed right in that moment. We had hope. "

***

Now, the program has hope once again.

They are coming off their best season since 1993 and returning a solid core of both offensive and defensive players.

Penn State remains a powerhouse across the nation, and Indiana's returned to its days of not being able to top the Nittany Lions.

Last season, the Hoosiers lost a close game, 34-27, in Happy Valley.

This season is going to look a lot different. One week from today, there won't be the 42,125 fans that were in attendance in 2013. There will just be family members and some piped in crowd noise.

But head coach Tom Allen has kept his team focused, and many players believe they have what it takes to shock the world this season.

For Hughes, who now owns a gym for trainers and athletes to use, he said they were planting the seeds during his playing career and now fans are seeing the fruit form.

"Everyone is going to see how far the program has come," Hughes said. "Indiana isn't just a basketball school, but it's a football school, too."

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