'He’s open right now': Elijah Sarratt keeps delivering for Indiana

Elijah Sarratt didn’t give himself the nickname “Waffle House.” It found him — the way defenders so often do a beat too late.

“He’s open right now,” Sarratt’s father, Donnie, said with a smile while filming an interview for Big Ten Network’s The Journey.

Whether the Indiana wide receiver actually was open at that exact moment almost didn’t matter. The idea did. Like the restaurant, he’s available at all hours, in every situation, no matter the moment or the stakes.

Indiana football’s rise to 13-0 and No. 1 in the nation has been built on a lot of things. But it doesn’t happen without its most dependable constant. When the game tightens and the margin thins, Sarratt is where the ball goes.

The resume backs it up. Across his college career, Sarratt has piled up 228 receptions, 3,535 yards and 41 touchdowns. In two seasons in cream and crimson, he has delivered 104 catches for 1,644 yards and 20 scores, carving out a place among the most productive receivers in program history.

But numbers alone don’t explain why Indiana keeps ending nights with celebrations instead of regrets after looking his way. Just look at the moments.

SEE ALSO: Why Indiana made an exception for Rolijah Hardy — and how it’s paying off

At Iowa, with the game tied late and the Hawkeyes bringing heavy pressure, Sarratt slipped across the formation, caught a shallow slant and broke free. Forty-nine yards later, the silence inside Kinnick Stadium told the story.

At Oregon two weeks later, it was different. No space. No cushion. Just size, strength and timing, as Sarratt bullied his way to separation for another fourth-quarter, game-winning score in one of the loudest environments in the country.

Then came the Big Ten Championship against Ohio State — one of Indiana’s biggest stages in generations. Back shoulder. Tight coverage. End zone. Touchdown.

Three different plays. One receiver.

“He always seems to be at his best in those big moments,” offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan said Sunday. “I feel like he kind of has a clutch factor about him. His ball skills — he’s a really intelligent receiver. He can diagnose coverages, anticipate well, understand when to find voids in the zone, and then separate versus man-to-man and make tough catches.”

That feel for the moment wasn’t handed to him. It was earned through a path few elite receivers ever travel.

Out of high school, Sarratt had no FBS offers. A quick search of his recruitment still turns up almost nothing. He began at Saint Francis (Pa.), a tiny FCS program, and immediately made himself impossible to ignore. From there, he climbed again to James Madison, where head coach Curt Cignetti saw exactly what he needed: a gamer who produced, no matter the level.

When Cignetti took the Indiana job, bringing Sarratt wasn’t optional. He needed reliability. Sarratt provided it from the moment he stepped on campus in Bloomington.

His impact hasn’t been limited to game days. In summer workouts, when teammates were emptying the tank, Sarratt added one more rep. When others followed, he added another. Soon, the extra rep became the standard.

“I always tell them, do that one championship rep,” Sarratt said. “Now all my receivers do it every single day.”

Tight end Riley Nowakowski sees it up close.

“He’s just always trying to push everybody around him, but doing it from a point of leadership,” Nowakowski said. “He’s not gonna ask you to do something that he’s not doing himself.”

That mindset has carried into Saturdays, too. Until a hamstring injury late in the year, Sarratt caught at least one pass in 46 consecutive games, the longest active streak in the country. Whether it was the first snap or the final drive, his approach didn’t change.

“I pride myself on making plays when the pressure comes,” Sarratt said. “But I put a lot of hard work in behind the scenes that allows me to be ready for those moments.”

Bloomington has noticed, and the city has embraced him. From his growing connection with quarterback Fernando Mendoza to his playful “Sarrattcha Sauce” appearances at Mother Bear’s, Sarratt has become a fixture around town.

“It’s been nothing but love and support from Hoosier Nation,” Sarratt said. “I consider this a home for myself.”

‘Bama is still Bama’: Indiana knows the test Alabama’s defense presents

Now comes one of the biggest tests yet: No. 1 Indiana against No. 9 Alabama in the Rose Bowl, the program’s first trip to Pasadena in 58 years. The moment once felt like something out of a video game. Now it’s real, and Sarratt will almost assuredly be at the center of it, just as he has been all season.

“When those moments come, I just take a little time to myself,” Sarratt said. “Trust your training and do what you do.”

As his chapter in Bloomington nears its end, Sarratt isn’t chasing validation. He’s chasing fulfillment — one last promise to the place he calls home.

“I want to continue to go out there and win these games for Hoosier Nation,” Sarratt said.

Always open. Always ready. And when the pressure arrives, Sarratt keeps delivering.

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