Indiana has its history, punching its first-ever 10-0 start in program history — and delivering it in dramatic fashion!

On Saturday, the Hoosiers and Michigan squared off in non-traditional roles for either program. Michigan, fresh off a national title, entered unranked while Indiana’s top-10 ranking and 9-0 start had the Hoosiers as a two-touchdown favorite in this one.

At halftime, Indiana had carved out that 14-point lead at 17-3. Even with some injury concerns mounting, it looked like the Hoosiers might run away with another double-digit victory this season.

However, that was not meant to be. Sherrone Moore’s team battled back with a gritty ground game on offense and an improved defense after halftime, and the Wolverines even had a chance at a 2-point conversion to tie the game.

Yet, once again, Curt Cignetti’s squad answered the call. The defense made the plays when it mattered most, a crucial punt return jumpstarted a lifeless offense and the Hoosiers hung on for a 20-15 win, proving they can also win a low-scoring, hard-fought affair.

Here are the key takeaways from this one:

Indiana gets rare win in series

Fans of these two teams do not need a reminder of the historical nature of this series. Michigan has overwhelmingly dominated the head-to-head matchup with a 62-10 all-time record vs. the Hoosiers.

Indiana did pull off a win in the shortened 2020 season. But without that result, the last win for the Hoosiers in that series came in 1987. Overall, the Hoosiers had just 3 wins against the Wolverines since 1967 coming into Saturday’s game.

Early on, it looked like Indiana might be rolling to its biggest win in the series. (The biggest win for the Hoosiers in the series was a 20-0 shutout in 1944.) But even in a down year for the Wolverines, they had enough fight to make this one dramatic.

Michigan held Indiana to just 3 points in the second half to carve into the lead and make the score 20-15 with less than 3 minutes to play. It set up a do-or-die series for the Wolverine offense against an IU defense that was gassed after playing most of the second half on the field.

Fortunately for IU, that defense had one more stop in them. The Wolverines would get a first down before the 2-minute warning, but the Hoosiers stood up and forced a turnover-on-downs to effectively end the game.

This goes down as IU’s first true close game of the season, and the Hoosiers answered the bell. No one on the Hoosier sideline is going to worry about style points against a program they have struggled with and a physical unit up front.

Kurtis Rourke chasing IU history

Rourke entered Saturday tied for the Big Ten lead with 19 passing touchdowns on the season. Keeping pace with Will Howard and Dillon Gabriel will be tough, but Rourke has a chance to become the first Indiana QB to lead the B1G in passing touchdowns since Nate Sudfeld threw 27 in 2015.

Either way, Rourke is already the first Hoosier to throw for 20+ touchdowns since Sudfeld did, reaching 21 overall on Saturday. The single-season program record for Indiana came in 2007 when Kellen Lewis threw for 28.

At this point in the season, team success trumps anything Rourke might do individually, and the Hoosiers still have a legitimate shot at advancing to the College Football Playoff. But the prospect of Rourke making a serious run at Lewis’s mark is worth monitoring.

Michigan’s defense wakes up after halftime

In the first half, Indiana was able to find its groove offensively. That’s because quarterback Kurtis Rourke was efficient and distributing the ball at a high level, leading to 17 points before the break.

After halftime was a completely different story, and it started with a takeaway. Zeke Berry intercepted Rourke’s first pass of the second half, and that set the tone for what became a strong defensive effort.

On Indiana’s first 4 drives of the second half, the results were an interception and 3 punts. Two of those drives included negative yardage overall by the Hoosiers.

That effort from the defense allowed the Wolverines to carve out 12 straight points to make things interesting midway through the fourth quarter. Michigan’s defense also did enough to keep the team in the game and get the offense a chance to win things late. The offense just could not deliver.