Indiana manages to 'keep the standard' amid mounting injuries in win over Maryland

Missing a veteran offensive lineman, a stud linebacker who runs the defense and a preseason All-American receiver would derail most teams.

Saturday in College Park, Indiana played like none of it mattered.

No. 2 Indiana went on the road to take on Maryland without All-American linebacker Aiden Fisher and starting left guard Drew Evans from the opening kick. The Hoosiers then quickly lost All-Big Ten wide receiver Elijah Sarratt and Fisher’s replacement, Kaiden Turner, before the game even found its middle frame.

Right tackle Kahlil Benson pushed through ankle and foot pain until the margin made his presence unnecessary. Yet Indiana walked out of College Park with a 55-10 road win — and with the program’s lofty standard looking untouched.

“No matter who’s down, it’s always next guy up,” linebacker Isaiah Jones, who has taken over for Fisher as the de facto captain of the defense, said postgame. “Gotta keep the standard, and that’s something we are proud about on defense, is having a standard and playing to that standard — no matter who we’re playing, no matter who is playing.”

Coach Q&A: Curt Cignetti reacts to Indiana’s Week 10 win over Maryland

This wasn’t scraping or improvising. This was a program expressing that its identity is portable regardless of who is in uniform at any given moment.

Offensively, Indiana did not gain a first down on its first two possessions. After those two empty opening drives, the Hoosiers shifted into a 13-play, 93-yard drive that was essentially a declaration of intent: nine runs, no wasted motion. Quarterback Fernando Mendoza finished that march with a 7-yard keeper as Indiana redirected the entire game plan toward the ground attack.

Indiana ran for 367 yards — its most in a game since 2016 — and averaged 7.1 yards per carry against a Big Ten defense while down multiple offensive starters. Three different backs reached 80 yards. Four different players ran for touchdowns.

When the game was already decided, backup signal caller Alberto Mendoza ripped off a 53-yard run for the longest rush of the afternoon, a flourish that felt symbolic of how thoroughly the roster has absorbed depth into its competitive personality.

The Hoosiers scored on their final eight full drives. They ran the ball 52 times, threw it 23 times and recorded their fifth game this season with more than 300 yards on the ground.

That’s what a self-sustaining identity looks like. That’s what truly keeping the standard looks like. It translated on the defensive side of the ball, too.

Turner, starting in place of Fisher, intercepted a pass on the opening snap of the second quarter and injured himself making the play.

Without Fisher and Turner, Indiana mixed personnel packages, leaned less on three-linebacker structure and increased the usage of Devan Boykin and Byron Baldwin Jr. at the rover spot. When three linebackers were needed, fifth-string linebacker Jeff Utzinger stepped in. The result? 10 points conceded and 37 rushing yards allowed — both of which were season lows for the Maryland offense.

“We have a lot of confidence in all our guys and the depth,” Mendoza said. “The whole Indiana team, it’s next man up, next man mentality that they’re going to go and do their job and not just be a filler, but they’re going to excel at their job.”

Head coach Curt Cignetti didn’t sugarcoat the accumulation of injuries. He knows it matters. But he never ceded the premise that Indiana must maintain who it is regardless of personnel volatility.

“We’ve had some guys step in, step up, and that’s what you’ve got to have,” Cignetti said. “We’re going to need more people to step up, because we don’t have an off week for a couple more weeks yet.”

Cignetti added that he doesn’t think any of Saturday’s injuries were serious.

“We came out good,” he said.

Evans will be out a few weeks. Fisher warmed up but did not play. Sarratt’s 46-game catch streak ended because Indiana made a precautionary choice to sit him. Turner’s health is now something worth monitoring moving forward.

MORE: Indiana able to break Maryland’s will after rocky start: ‘The key is always your response’

But, as the injuries continued to mount, so did the number of underclassmen that continued to step up and make plays in the absence of those ahead of them on the depth chart.

“You’re always looking down the road at your 2026 team and 2027 team,” Cignetti said. “To have young guys step up like that, it’s good to see.”

That forward vision is what makes Indiana’s present moment so fascinating. Most of college football is fragile this time of year. Most top-five teams are barely clinging onto the depth charts that held together through September.

Indiana, though, keeps weaponizing its depth in real time. The Hoosiers keep blowing teams out while players who, on paper, define the ceiling of the roster are watching from the sidelines.

Indiana has national championship ambitions this season. If the health holds, those ambitions are legitimate. If the health wobbles again, that may be the critical test.

For now, though? Indiana continues to “keep the standard,” no matter the 11 on the field.

Not yet a member of TheHoosier?  Join our community for Just $1 for your first week and get a complimentary year of The Athletic included with your membership. Join here!

Use the code “IND20” on Rhoback.com for a generous 20% off for all new customers through the end of this week. Rhoback — Best Fit, Best Feel.