Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza did something very few FBS signal-callers have ever done in Indiana’s 56-9 win over Kennesaw State on Saturday: After completing 18 of his 25 passes for 245 yards and 4 touchdowns, he watched his younger brother, Alberto, complete a touchdown pass of his own, cementing the duo as one of the first pairs of brothers in FBS history to do so in the same game.
The 23rd-ranked Hoosiers (2-0) played with their food in the first half, taking a 21-6 lead into the locker room, but a 35-3 scoring advantage over the final 30 minutes of play cemented a much more decisive victory over Kennesaw State than week one’s 13-point win over Old Dominion. The Mendoza brothers were a combined 21-for-28 passing, throwing for 280 yards and 5 touchdowns, three of which were thrown by the elder Mendoza to wide receiver Elijah Sarratt, who hauled in nine passes for 97 yards after just three receptions against the Monarchs.
Other key performers included running back Lee Beebe Jr. (11 rushes, 90 yards, 1 touchdown) and wideout Omar Cooper Jr., who had just two touches on the afternoon, but he made them count. Cooper caught a 40-yard pass from Mendoza and ran for a 75-yard touchdown on a designed reverse, tiptoeing down the sideline and galloping towards paydirt just over an hour after he was seen heading to the locker room with members of the athletic training staff.
“Last time we really waxed somebody was Purdue,” Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti said postgame. “That was a long time ago. It was good to get back to that.”
A lot has changed in the 280 days since Indiana’s historic 66-0 win over Purdue, and it was clear that Indiana’s new-look offense was not firing on all cylinders in week one against Old Dominion. Red zone struggles were plentiful and Cignetti noted that Fernando Mendoza was out of rhythm. Indiana’s 47-point win over Kennesaw State showed progress: The Hoosiers scored on all seven of their trips to the red zone while out-gaining the Owls 593-271 – amassing 313 rushing yards to Kennesaw State’s 89 – despite possessing the ball for just five more minutes. Three of Mendoza's seven incompletions were drops and one was a throwaway. He looked decisive and comfortable when scanning the field.
“It was good to empty the bench,” Cignetti said, giving a shoutout to sophomore wide receiver Charlie Becker, who caught his first-career touchdown pass Saturday. Becker was a freshman in high school when fellow Indiana wideout E.J. Williams Jr. caught his last touchdown pass prior to Saturday. The Clemson transfer, now in his third season at Indiana, had not hauled in a TD since he was catching passes from Trevor Lawrence in 2020, but he has eight receptions through two games for Indiana this season.
Williams’ touchdown catch came at the start of the fourth quarter and gave Indiana a 49-9 lead. With the game already in hand, some may have been surprised that the Hoosiers still had their first-team offense on the field, but with so many new faces in the fold and a high-profile matchup against Illinois just two weeks away, live reps are crucial.
“We haven’t executed over a long period of time as well as we need to,” Cignetti said. “We need game reps.”
Indiana scored 14 points off of a pair of Kennesaw State turnovers, as defensive back Jamari Sharpe forced a fumble on a Charles Tillman-esque “Peanut Punch” and Louis Moore intercepted a poorly-thrown pass over the middle from backup Owls quarterback Amari Odom. Former Indiana signal-caller Dexter Williams II started the game but was benched after two drives, completing one pass for a loss of one yard.
“At the end of the game, I was pleased,” Cignetti said. “Our guys understand that we’re not happy with how they played last week, and they responded.”
Indiana's head coach is never satisfied, though.
“On the field, I’m never relieved,” he added. “I’m going to be relieved when I go up to my office and crack a beer.”
Indiana concludes the non-conference portion of its schedule with a home game versus Indiana State at 6:30 p.m. Friday. The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network, the IU Sports Radio Network and WIUX Sports.
