“A little thumb thing, I feel good about it, I really do,” Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said of Rourke. “It was precautionary (to take him out).”
The Hoosiers (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten) have yet to trail this season and each victory has been by double digits. The 49-point margin of victory was the biggest in conference play since a 49-0 win at Minnesota in 1945. The last time Indiana started with seven consecutive wins was 1967, when it opened 8-0.
Cignetti is the first coach in program history to win his first seven games. He's never had a losing season in 14 years as a head coach.
“I'm not going to let 'em get complacent, and not the coaches, either,” Cignetti said. “I was a maniac in the fourth quarter.”
The Cornhuskers (5-2, 3-2) were supposed to be the stiffest opposition to date for Indiana. But the only defense in the country to not allow a rushing touchdown surrendered five, including Ellison's 5-yard TD on the opening possession.
“We've got some real blue-collar guys up front,” Cignetti said. “They put a good day's work in.”
Ellison, a senior transfer from Wake Forest, added a 31-yard TD rush for a 28-7 lead just before halftime. His 105 yards came on just nine carries.
“This happened on my watch,” Nebraska second-year coach Matt Rhule said. “And I'll be honest, I didn't see this coming. I'm not embarrassed of our players, but I'm embarrassed about the job I did.”
Rourke completed 17 of 21 passes for 189 yards with one TD and one interception. He threw a 7-yard TD pass to Myles Price for a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter.
“You keep winning, people are going to come,” Cignetti said after Indiana’s first sellout since 2021.
Jackson added a pair of scoring passes to Miles Cross and Elijah Sarratt.
Ty Son Lawton ran for 64 yards on eight carries with a 1-yard TD. The Hoosiers averaged 9.3 yards per offensive play in the first half.
A Nebraska defense that had limited five of six opponents to 10 points or less allowed a season high in points to the nation's No. 2 scoring offense, which entered with a 47.5-point average.
Nebraska freshman Dylan Raiola completed 28 of 44 passes for 234 yards with three interceptions and a lost fumble.
The takeaway
Nebraska: A slow start coming off an open date kept getting worse as the Cornhuskers suffered their most lopsided loss since Ohio State beat them 62-3 in 2016. The defense couldn't get stops and the offense failed to score on three red-zone drives.
Indiana: The schedule looks to be more challenging with home games against Washington and Michigan as well as a road trip to Ohio State, but the Hoosiers' confidence continues to rise. Projected to finish 17th in the 18-team league, the upstart Hoosiers have established themselves as legitimate title contenders.
Poll implications
The Hoosiers could earn a big promotion in the Top 25 depending on how teams ahead of them fare Saturday.
Up next
Nebraska: visits Ohio State next Saturday.
Indiana: hosts Washington next Saturday.
__
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP