‘We have one of the best run games in the country’: IU football’s ground attack steamrolls Maryland

Kaelon Black runs the ball against Maryland.

Roman Hemby was clobbered in the backfield. Maryland broke through Indiana’s offensive line on third down for a five-yard loss.

The Terrapins had the Hoosiers off balance early. Quarterback Fernando Mendoza threw an interception on the game’s third play and Indiana finished its first two drives with negative yardage.

Then, after the defense forced a punt, the run game came alive. The Hoosiers marched 93 yards for a touchdown, gaining 58 on the ground to take the lead. That drive sparked a dominant rushing performance.

Behind the tandem of Hemby and Kaelon Black, Indiana piled up a season-high 367 rushing yards and four touchdowns in a 55–10 rout of Maryland on Saturday afternoon.

After that early five-yard loss, Indiana didn’t lose yardage on its next 47 rushing plays.

“It was a combination of having a physical mindset and our backs running really hard,” head coach Curt Cignetti said. “It takes all 11 guys.”

The run game got off to a scorching hot start to the season, gaining over 300 yards in each of the first four games. However, over the next three games, the Hoosiers were unable to establish the run, averaging just 115.6 yards per game.

Indiana, desperate to revive its run game, looked to Hemby and Black for a breakout after last weekend’s outburst vs. UCLA.

Black, who led all rushers with 110 yards on 14 carries, was the first Hoosier running back to find the end zone on Saturday. Tightwalking the sideline, the redshirt senior scored his fourth touchdown of the season from 31 yards out.

The 110-yard outburst was the first time in his Indiana career that Black surpassed the century mark in yards in a game. His feat, he says, is a testament to the offensive lineman who created gaps with strong blocking.

“It means a lot,” Black said. “I got to give it all to the guys up front because I wouldn’t be able to do it without them.”

It was all the more impressive considering the reshuffled line in front of him. With Drew Evans a late scratch, Indiana had changes up front.

Indiana became the aggressors once Ohio State transfer Zen Michalski settled in at his left guard position. CBS analyst Gary Danielson used his telestrator to highlight just how good Bob Bostad’s offensive line was at creating holes.

“Our offensive line, they did their thing today,” Black said. “It makes our job easier when you have an o-line like that.”

Mendoza, who had rushing 24 yards and a touchdown run, continues to heap praise on the run game. With opposing defenses keying on the Heisman frontrunner, there is an opening for the ground game.

“We have one of the best run games in the country,” Mendoza said. “You wanna focus on our passing game, OK, we’ll run 360-some yards down your throat.”

Cignetti’s goal is simple: break the opponent’s will every week. The timing and how it happens may vary, but it’s become a hallmark of Indiana football.

The Hoosiers overwhelmed Maryland in the second half, mainly on the ground. When Hemby stumbled into the end zone to make it 41-10, the remaining Terp fans – and even the mascot – departed the stadium. As the crowd vanished, Indiana kept rolling, finishing with 236 yards and 3 touchdowns in the second half alone.

It was an effort that Cignetti almost saw as a total success.

“That’s the key to the drill to me is that you’re playing from the first play to the last play the same,” Cignetti said. “We’re getting close to getting that. You see guys laying it on the line every play.”

As the weather cools and Mendoza’s unofficial Heisman campaign heats up, the run game will carry the freight. Like Saturday’s performance, Indiana will go as far as Black, Hemby and the offensive line take it.

For all the talk about Mendoza’s rise, it’s the legs of Black and Hemby that may define Indiana’s success in its final three regular-season games and beyond.

(Photo credit: IU Athletics)

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