After Maryland opened up a 21-3 lead in the first quarter, Indiana stormed back to a 47-28 win that keeps its postseason hopes alive heading into the final week of the regular season.
The Hoosiers (5-6) reeled off 27 unanswered points, including 20 in the second quarter to erase the Terrapins' early lead. Quarterback Nate Sudfeld threw for four touchdowns and ran for another to help boost an offense that lost star running back Jordan Howard to a knee injury after only three carries in the first quarter.
Howard led the way for a rushing attack that racked up more than 300 rushing yards against Michigan’s defense last week. In his absence, sophomore Devine Redding stepped in and had a career day, running for 130 yards on 24 carries.
The Terrapins were missing both their starting quarterback and running back this week. Perry Hills missed the game with mononucleosis. Running back Wes Brown was suspended indefinitely earlier this week for breaking team rules. The Terps got 250 yards rushing and three touchdowns from backup running back Brandon Ross to keep the game competitive.
What the win means for Indiana: The Hoosiers snap a five-game losing streak and are now in position for the bowl bid that has eluded them since 2007. A win at Purdue next Saturday will get Kevin Wilson's team to six wins and keep their coach comfortably in charge of his program.
What the loss means for Maryland: The same can’t be said for interim coach Mike Locksley. The Terps (2-9) have one more shot at a conference win next week at Rutgers, but after another mistake-filled performance, a clean start is almost certainly in Maryland’s future.
The game turned when: Indiana executed an onside kick during the second quarter. The Hoosiers spotted a big gap in Maryland’s kick return team and took advantage. Sudfeld had just connected on a 59-yard pass to start momentum swinging in Indiana’s direction. The onside kick, and ensuing touchdown drive, gave the Hoosiers a 24-21 lead and put them back in the driver’s seat. Maryland tried its own onside kick in the second half after pulling back within a possession, but the ill-fated attempted went out of bounds and helped set up another Indiana touchdown.
Player of the game: Maryland’s Brandon Ross broke off not one, but two 75-plus yard runs to keep his banged-up team in the mix into the third quarter Saturday. He started the game with a 79-yard sprint through the Hoosier defense. He pulled Maryland back within a field goal with a 75-yarder on his first touch of the second half. Ross had 540 yards coming into the game and added 250 more to that total against Indiana.