BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Fernando Mendoza completed 24 of 28 passes for 332 yards and four touchdowns and No. 3 Indiana celebrated its highest ranking in program history with a 38-13 rout of Michigan State on Saturday.
The Hoosiers (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten), who have won all but one game by double digits, kept pace with No. 1 Ohio State atop the conference standings with touchdowns on their first five possessions.
Mendoza threw a pair of TD passes to Elijah Sarratt, and also hit E.J. Williams Jr. and Omar Cooper Jr. for scores.
Sarratt’s first touchdown on a 24-yard play put Indiana ahead 14-10 in the second quarter. Sarratt’s 27-yard TD reception gave the Hoosiers a 35-10 lead in the third quarter.
Mendoza, a redshirt junior transfer has 21 touchdown passes and just two interceptions this season.
Cooper finished with eight receptions for 115 yards. Kaelon Black added a 29-yard TD rush.
Michigan State (3-4, 0-4) lost its fourth in a row by double digits despite twice taking first-half leads. Spartans quarterback Aidan Chiles completed 27 of 33 passes for 243 yards and one TD.
Poll implications
Expect Indiana to move up a spot in the rankings after No. 2 Miami lost to Louisville on Friday.
The takeaway
Michigan State: Mired in a Big Ten slump after its 10th conference loss in 12 games, second-year coach Jonathan Smith is searching for any positives. The Spartans monopolized the clock with time-consuming scoring drives of 8:07 and 9:22 for a 10-7 lead in the second quarter to provide a glimmer of hope that this team can compete with the elite.
Indiana: An offensive juggernaut that averages 44.8 points per game ensured this outcome as the Hoosiers drove 75 yards on three of their first four scoring drives and 80 yards on the other. Three of those possessions lasted just 1:47, 1:51 and 2:40. The only thing that stopped the Hoosiers temporarily was a 20-minute halftime delay because of lightning.
Up next
- Michigan State: Plays host to Michigan on Saturday.
- Indiana: At home against UCLA on Saturday.