Samuel Brown V racked up 101 rushing yards on 28 carries and scored the go-ahead touchdown to lift Rutgers to a 24-17 victory over Indiana on Saturday in Piscataway, N.J.
Rutgers (4-3, 1-3 Big Ten) won a home conference game for the first time since Nov. 4, 2017. The Scarlet Knights gained 192 yards on the ground to send the Hoosiers (3-5, 1-4) to their fifth consecutive loss.
Indiana raced out to a 14-0 lead in less than eight minutes, but Rutgers scored 24 straight points and controlled the rest of the game. With Rutgers holding a narrow lead in the fourth quarter, Wesley Bailey chased Indiana quarterback Connor Bazelak into the end zone, Bazelak got rid of the ball and Christian Braswell intercepted it for a 12-yard touchdown return.
Rutgers quarterback Noah Vedral completed 12 of 24 passes for 113 yards and a touchdown. Receiver Aron Cruickshank added 64 rushing yards on five carries.
Bazelak went 10-for-10 passing in the first quarter but finished 23-for-41 for 210 yards, one pick and one rushing touchdown.
Jaylin Lucas returned the game’s opening kickoff 93 yards for a Hoosiers touchdown. Rutgers punted on its opening drive, and Indiana engineered an 11-play, 91-yard drive capped off by Bazelak’s option run left for a 7-yard score, making it 14-0 with 7:05 left in the first quarter.
Rutgers got on the board in the second quarter at the end of an 86-yard drive. Samuel Brown V ran up the middle to convert a fourth-and-1 from Indiana’s 16. On the next play, Vedral floated a pass to Sean Ryan in the back-left corner of the end zone and he managed to get one foot in bounds for the agile 15-yard touchdown catch.
Indiana led 14-7 at halftime after the teams traded punts the rest of the half.
The Scarlet Knights opened the third quarter with a 49-yard field goal by Jude McAtamney. They forced a quick three-and-out and produced another long drive. Brown’s 2-yard touchdown run gave Rutgers its first lead, 17-14, with 38 seconds left in the quarter.
Rutgers had possession for 13:39 of the third quarter and held Indiana to two three-and-outs for a net loss of 2 yards.
In the fourth quarter, McAtamney missed a 56-yard field-goal try, and Indiana’s Charles Campbell hooked a 52-yard attempt wide left before Braswell’s pick-6 made it 24-14.
Indiana drove late and Charles Campbell made a 39-yard field goal with 1:18 left on the clock, but the Scarlet Knights recovered the ensuing onside kick.
–Field Level Media
