Instant recap: Indiana 56, Kennesaw State 9

Aiden Fisher makes a tackle.

Quick thoughts on IU football’s 56-9 win against Kennesaw State at Memorial Stadium in front of 43,801 fans:

Three key plays in IU’s win

A successful first trip to the red zone – In a reversal from week one, IU’s first red zone trip ended with a touchdown. The Hoosiers completed an eight-play, 81-yard drive over 3:33 with a one-yard touchdown run by Riley Nowakowski.

Quarterback Fernando Mendoza was sharp on the drive, completing four passes for 73 yards, and quickly moved the ball down the field. After last week’s failure to convert on several red zone trips against Old Dominion, it was a welcome change for the Hoosiers to put seven points on the board early against the Owls.

Beebe’s second-quarter touchdown run – After a sluggish start to the second quarter, running back Lee Beebe Jr. found the end zone with an 11-yard touchdown run with 3:40 to play in the first half.

Earlier in the drive, Beebe Jr. had a 24-yard run to move the ball into Kennesaw State territory. The touchdown run pushed the IU lead to three scores at 21-3. The transfer from UAB carried the ball seven times for 62 yards in the first half.

Jamari Sharpe’s incredible strip sets up Omar Cooper Jr.’s touchdown – Redshirt sophomore defensive back Jamari Sharpe’s forced fumble and recovery on Kennesaw State receiver Lyndon Ravare set the Hoosiers up with possession on the IU 25-yard line with 6:30 to play.

One play later, receiver Omar Cooper Jr. took a reverse play 75 yards for a touchdown, which broke the game open and pushed the IU lead to 35-9 with 6:05 remaining.

Offensive standouts

It was a quiet week one performance against Old Dominion for Elijah Sarratt, who caught three passes for 44 yards in the week one win against the Monarchs.

Sarratt made his presence felt on Saturday against Kennesaw State as he caught nine passes for 97 yards and three touchdowns. He became the 14th Hoosier in program history to catch three touchdowns in a game and the first since Ty Fryfogle against Ohio State in 2020.

The senior wideout extended his streak of consecutive games with a catch to 40, which leads the country.

Mendoza was equally impressive, throwing for 245 yards and four passing touchdowns. His quarterback rating was 207.1.

Defensive standouts

Linebacker Aiden Fisher anchors the IU defense and the senior put together a solid Saturday afternoon. Fisher had seven tackles, including a sack.

Defensive lineman Mikail Kamara recorded a sack, Kellan Wyatt had seven tackles, Sharpe had the aforementioned forced fumble and Louis Moore had an interception for a second straight week.

Red zone success

After last week’s red zone struggles, Indiana converted its opportunities when it got the ball deep into Kennesaw State territory.

In the first half, the Hoosiers scored touchdowns on each of their three trips to the red zone.

The success continued in the second half as Mendoza’s three-yard pass with 8:45 left in the third quarter to Sarratt made IU four-for-four on red zone opportunities.

Indiana finished the win 7-for-7 in the red zone, all touchdowns.

What’s next for the Hoosiers

Indiana will be back in action next Friday at Memorial Stadium against Indiana State. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. ET on BTN.

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