FOOTBALL GAMEDAY: Indiana State (Week 3)

Setting The Scene

• Indiana is set to host Indiana State on Friday (Sept. 12) at 6:30 p.m. on Merchants Bank Field at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Indiana.
• The matchup will mark the eighth ever meeting between the two programs and first since 2023, when they also played on a Friday night. The Hoosiers own a 7-0 advantage in the series history.
• The home contest marks the third of seven home games for the Hoosiers on Merchants Bank Field at Memorial Stadium this season and the third of four in a row to begin the 2025 campaign.
• Indiana State moved to a 2-0 start for the first time since the 1986 season when it opened with wins over St. Cloud State and Missouri State. .

News & Notes

• Indiana enters the game with a 2-0 record after a 56-9 win in Week 2 against Kennesaw State (9/6). The Hoosiers are 2-0 in back-to-back years for the first time since 2019-20.
• Friday's game will be the 12th Friday game in program history for the Hoosiers and the fourth consecutive season that Indiana has hosted one. Indiana owns a 6-5 record on Friday and has won three in a row (2022-24).
• Indiana Football is nationally ranked in the first three polls (counting preseason) for only the fourth time in the history of the AP poll (1944, 1945, 1968). Indiana has also been nationally ranked 15-straight weeks during the 2024 and 2025 seasons, the most weeks nationally ranked in any two seasons in program history.
• Curt Cignetti has the fourth-best winning percentage among active FBS head coaches with an .821 winning percentage in his career. MORE ON PAGE 4
• Indiana's 313 yards rushing against Kennesaw State marked the third game of 300-plus rushing yards under Cignetti. It was also the first time that Indiana posted 300-plus rushing yards in back-to-back games since 2014 (363, North Texas; 316, at Iowa). MORE ON PAGE 8
• The 593 yards of total offense mark the seventh game of the Cignetti era with 500-plus yards of total offense. It is the second-most yards Indiana has gained under Cignetti.
• Fernando Mendoza threw a career-high four touchdown passes while recording an 18-for-25 passing day with 245 yards. He and Alberto Mendoza became the first set of brothers to throw a touchdown pass in the same game of the same team since 2015 when Arkansas' Brandon Allen and Austin Allen did so against UT Martin (10/31/2015). MORE ON PAGE 7
• Elijah Sarratt and Roman Hemby both carry impressive streaks of consecutive games with a reception. Sarratt leads the nation with 40-straight games with a catch while Hemby has notched 28-straight games with a reception to lead all running backs. MORE ON PAGE 4
• Sarratt had his eighth career multi-receiving touchdown game and third at Indiana with three scores on the day, it was his third career 3-touchdown game and first since 2023 (at Coastal Carolina). MORE ON PAGE 9
• Riley Nowakowski's first touchdown as a Hoosier came on a 1-yard rushing score in the first quarter. MORE ON PAGE 10
• Kellan Wyatt had a career-high and team-high nine tackles and matched a career-high 2.5 tackles against Kennsaw State (9/6). MORE ON PAGE 12
• Jamari Sharpe had the first forced fumble of his career and second fumble recovery in the win over Kennesaw State. MORE ON PAGE 13

GAME 3

Setting The Scene

News & Notes

Week 3 Links