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Rapid Reaction: Peyton Ramsey, Indiana bounce back in big way against UConn
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Final score: Indiana 38 UConn 3
Brief recap: Indiana’s defense hasn’t been able to tackle well through three weeks. The offense sputtered against Ohio State. Neither of those things were issues against UConn on Saturday. The Hoosiers got off to a bit of a sluggish start, leading just 10-3 through the first 28 minutes of the game. But a late first half touchdown gave IU a two-touchdown advantage and Indiana pulled away after that. The Huskies couldn’t move the football against the Indiana defense and the Hoosiers didn’t have nearly as many missed tackles this week. This was a sound performance from Indiana, and exactly what it needed after a blowout loss to Ohio State last week.
Key moment: A nine-play, 68-yard drive to take a 17-3 lead with just under two minutes was the confidence booster IU needed heading into the half. Peyton Ramsey hit Peyton Hendershot for a four-yard touchdown pass to take a two-score lead into the break. It helped create some separation in the game.
Key stat: UConn’s run game was completely stopped, totaling just 51 yards on 22 carries. That’s how you win football games.
Key player: Ramsey completed 23-of-27 passes for 247 yards with three touchdowns and just one interception in the game. That’s a nice bounce-back performance after struggling against Ohio State last week.
What it means: As ugly as a 51-10 loss was to Ohio State, Indiana is still 3-1 through four games, which is exactly where everyone expected it would be at this point in the season. And the Hoosiers looked like a true B1G team in the win, which is what you want heading into the meat of the schedule. The injury to offensive lineman Coy Cronk is significant, especially considering how poorly Indiana’s running attack has been. That’s probably the biggest concern for Indiana moving forward.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB