PISCATAWAY — The Rutgers Scarlet Knights were demolished by the reigning national champion No. 6 Indiana Hoosiers 47-15 on Saturday night at SHI Stadium.
The Scarlet Knights hoped to continue their win streak after defeating the Howard Bison last Friday. Unfortunately, that was not the case, as the Hoosiers mopped the floor with RU.
Indiana won the coin toss and opted to defer, giving Rutgers the first possession of the game. Rutgers was unable to convert on the first drive of the game.
Indiana set the tone very early, driving up the field on its first series of the game. A 9-yard pass from quarterback Josh Hoover to wide receiver Charlie Becker, followed by a successful PAT, gave the Hoosiers a 7-0 lead with 8:24 remaining in the first quarter.
After Rutgers was unable to score again, Indiana made it down to the Rutgers 20-yard line before Josh Hoover was sacked on third down, forcing the Hoosiers to settle for a field goal and increasing their lead to 10-0.
At the end of the first quarter, the score remained 10-0 in favor of Indiana.
After Rutgers opened the second quarter with a scoreless drive, Indiana increased its lead after a long drive down the field that resulted in a passing touchdown to receiver Davion Chandler, making it 16-0, followed by a missed PAT attempt.
Indiana started to run away with the game after scoring another touchdown with 6:21 remaining in the second quarter, extending its lead to 23-0. This time, it was a 14-yard rush from running back Turbo Richard into the end zone.
Rutgers just couldn’t get on the board, and it seemed as if every time Indiana had the ball, the Hoosiers were due for a big drive. Turbo Richard put the Hoosiers in the red zone with a 57-yard rush. The Knights were able to push the Hoosiers to a field goal attempt, which was missed, and no points were scored.
At halftime, the Indiana Hoosiers led the Rutgers Scarlet Knights 23-0.
Indiana got the ball to start the second half, which resulted in yet another touchdown as Hoover threw a 12-yard pass to receiver Nick Marsh, followed by a PAT, to give the Hoosiers a 30-0 lead.
The student section began to clear out after the touchdown as the crowd began to look roughly 50% full, with #HoosierNation taking over the stadium.
With 5:36 remaining in the third quarter, the Hoosiers scored another touchdown, this time from Charlie Becker for his second of the game. Indiana now led 37-0. At this point, most of the student section had cleared out.
Rutgers finally scored a touchdown with 3:52 remaining in the third quarter after a 52-yard pass from QB AJ Surace to receiver Ben Black III, cutting the score to 37-7.
It was two consecutive touchdowns for RU as Clay Thevien ran in for the score, followed by a successful two-point conversion. The score was now 37-15.
Lee Beebe Jr. rushed for a touchdown to give Indiana a 44-15 lead.
Indiana put a field goal on the board for a 47-15 lead.
The Scarlet Knights would not be able to do much else and lost another game, now carrying a record of 1-4 on the season.
Rutgers’ next game will take place next Saturday on the road against the University of Maryland. Kickoff has not yet been scheduled for the contest.
