Road To 10-0: Indiana Didn’t Mess Around With FCS Strugglers Western Illinois

Hoosiers On SI looks back game-by-game at the path Indiana football took to create a dream season. How did this game inform what we know now that we didn't know then?

The final score up on the scoreboard after the Indiana versus Western Illinois football game at Memorial Stadium on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024. / Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana’s football team is in the midst of its second bye week of the season. It wasn’t long ago that bye weeks were looked at as respites from gridiron misery for the Hoosiers, but Curt Cignetti’s 2024 team has flipped the script.

Indiana has had an unprecedented season. The 10-0 record amassed by the Hoosiers has never been achieved in program history. With the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff in place in just the knick of time to give a historic season its possible proper reward, a world of possibilities is in front of Indiana in a way no one would have dreamed of in August.

The bye week provides an opportunity to reflect on what has been with just two regular season games left, at No. 2 Ohio State Nov. 23 and at home against Purdue Nov. 30. Hoosiers On SI will take a look at each game and put into context how each fits into the puzzle of what has been a perfect season.

We’ll continue with Indiana’s second game of the season, a Friday night home contest against Western Illinois on Sept. 6.

Narrative Entering The Game – By college football scheduling standards, where games are sometimes set up a decade or more in advance, this was a shotgun marriage of convenience for the Hoosiers.

A three-game series with Louisville was canceled after the 2023 game was played at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Western Illinois, a FCS team, was hastily scheduled in Louisville’s place.

Given that Western Illinois was on a 25-game losing streak (it would reach 27 before it was finally snapped), there was little doubt of an Indiana victory. But given that the Curt Cignetti regime was so new, there was still an air of mystery about this game.

It boiled down to how good could Indiana look? And how meaningful would it be if they did look good considering the low caliber of competition?

Pregame Coverage

• THREE KEYS, SCORE PREDICTION: Hoosiers On SI forecasts the three keys for the game and a score prediction. CLICK HERE.

• WHY DOES INDIANA PLAY FCS SCHOOLS? A look into why these games occur. CLICK HERE.

• MEET THE OPPONENT: The state of the Western Illinois football team as they prepared for Indiana. CLICK HERE.

The Result – Indiana crushed Western Illinois, 77-3. The point total was a single-game school record that eclipsed the previous high set in 1901. Indiana also set a single-game record for total yards in a game with 701. Ten different Hoosiers scored touchdowns in the rout.

Indiana's Elijah Sarratt (13) runs for a touchdown during the Indiana versus Western Illinois football game at Memorial Stadium on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024. / Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

Player Fans Learned To Love – WR Elijah Sarratt: The wide receiver was one of the most highly anticipated transfers to come with Cignetti from James Madison. He had 81 catches for 1,191 yards and eight touchdown catches in his sophomore season with the Dukes.

In his first game with the Hoosiers against Florida International, he had just two catches for 12 yards. He would make up for lost time in a hurry against Western Illinois.

On Indiana’s second series of the game, quarterback Kurtis Rourke found Sarratt over the middle for a 71-yard touchdown connection. Sarratt beat his man deep, and Rourke patiently waited to drop a perfect deep ball into his hands.

Sarratt would go on to have a six-catch, 137-yard performance against the Leathernecks. This was the game where Rourke and Sarratt really began to develop a chemistry.

While Rourke has certainly been able to establish a similar bond with Indiana’s other receivers, he and Sarratt seem to do particularly well on challenging sideline routes. Rourke is very good at the back shoulder-style on medium-to-deep routes where Sarratt can take advantage of his good cutting ability on routes.

Sarratt has also been adept at pulling in Rourke’s higher throws on deep routes. The throws are high by design, and Sarratt has the athletic ability to pull in those kind of passes.

Since his Western Illinois breakout, Sarratt has had two other games with at least seven receptions and at least 128 yards, but this is the game where Indiana fans finally got to see Sarratt in full flower.  

Trend That Would Stick – Indiana Efficiency: Indiana currently ranks in the NCAA FBS top 10 in scoring offense (2nd, 43.9 ppg), first downs gained (3rd, 243), red zone offense (6th, 94.6%) and third down conversion percentage (10th, 49.1%). All of those traits were on display against the hapless Leathernecks.

The scoring offense speaks for itself – Indiana amassed a school-record 77 points.

Obviously, if the points were coming in bunches, then the red zone offense was clicking, too. It wasn’t perfect – Indiana was 6 of 8 in the red zone, but six touchdowns is a very good haul.

Indiana's Omar Cooper Jr. (3) celebrates with Charlie Becker (80) during the Indiana versus Western Illinois football game at Memorial Stadium on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024. / Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Hoosiers rolled up 33 first downs – 18 by the run, 14 by the pass – and on the rare occasions they were forced into third down? The Hoosiers converted seven of nine.

The numbers were more extreme against an over-matched Western Illinois team, but the Hoosiers have consistently been efficient all season, and it's one reason why Indiana is undefeated.

Any Postgame Worries? – Nothing from the game itself – a complete destruction of an inferior opponent. Wide receiver Donaven McCulley did not play after he was injured the week before against Florida International. Otherwise, Indiana was as healthy as could be expected.

Narrative Exiting The Game – Indiana was 2-0, but it had taken care of one struggling FBS program (Florida International) and one very poor FCS team (Western Illinois). How much would any of this matter once the Hoosiers entered Big Ten action? Indiana’s third game would be at UCLA. The numbers looked good, but were they transferable to a peer team?

Pro Football Focus stars (top 5 scoring players in each unit, 10 plays or more)  – Offense: WR Omar Cooper (93.6), QB Kurtis Rourke (92.6), WR Elijah Sarratt (89.9), RG Bray Lynch (86.1), LG Drew Evans (83.9); Defense: DT Tyrique Tucker (90.4) DE Mikail Kamara (86.8), SS D.J Warnell Jr. (85.1), FS Shawn Asbury II (76.1), Edge rusher Lanell Carr Jr. (75.6).

Postgame Coverage

• INDIANA ROLLS PAST WIU: Indiana set a single-game scoring record in a 77-3 win over Western Illinois. CLICK HERE.

• TODD'S TAKE: Good game on scoreboard, bad game for fans. CLICK HERE.

• WHAT CIGNETTI SAID: Indiana coach Curt Cignetti's postgame comments. CLICK HERE.

Next game – Indiana heads to UCLA for its first Big Ten contest.