Fernando Mendoza threw for five touchdowns and No. 19 Indiana took ninth-ranked Illinois behind the woodshed for a 63-10 Big Ten spanking in Bloomington, Ind. Saturday night
Mendoza was nearly perfect, completing 21 of 23 passes for 267 yards as the Hoosiers (4-0, 1-0) rolled up 579 total yards and dominated in every facet of the game. Kaelon Black added 89 yards on 10 rushes and a touchdown.
Indiana’s defense stifled the Fighting Illini (3-1, 0-1), who entered the game averaging 45 points per game. Illinois managed only 161 total yards and nine first downs, gaining two yards on the ground in 20 attempts. Quarterback Luke Altmyer hit 14 of 22 throws for 146 yards and a score but was sacked seven times.
The pregame hype concerned the fact this was the first time in 75 years these teams met as ranked foes. It lived up to the hype for a quarter before the Hoosiers exerted their will in all three phases.
They initiated scoring at the 9:26 mark of the first quarter when D’Angelo Ponds lugged a blocked punt 11 yards for a touchdown. The Illini responded 62 seconds later on Altmyer’s 59-yard strike to Collin Dixon.
Mendoza put Indiana ahead for good with 4:41 left in the period on an 11-yard touchdown pass to Omar Cooper Jr. It became 21-7 with 11:05 remaining in the half on Mendoza’s 11-yard scoring strike to E.J. Williams Jr.
Next came a 43-yard touchdown toss to Riley Nowakowski and a 9-yard strike to Elijah Sarratt that made it 35-7 at the 1:09 mark. David Olano’s 46-yard field goal as time expired trimmed the margin to 35-10 at halftime.
Any thoughts of a miracle rally for Illinois lasted long enough for Black to sprint 40 yards with 11:38 remaining in the third quarter for a 42-10 Hoosiers cushion. Mendoza and Surratt hooked up again for a 5-yard touchdown at the 5:02 mark.
Indiana tacked on two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Khobie Martin peeled off scoring jaunts of 31 and 8 yards, enabling him to finish with 107 yards on 12 carries.
