Everyone loves to get a report card after what they know was a good performance.
And by-and-large, Indiana was solid once again on Saturday in their 42-28 win over Maryland. Below are snap counts and notable grades for the Hoosiers as they moved to 5-0 for the first time in 57 years.
Through five games, Indiana’s overall PFF grade is No. 4 in the nation, behind only Miami, Fla., Ohio State and Ole Miss. Their overall offense is tied for fourth, and their overall defense is ninth.
Next up for Indiana (5-0) is PFF No. 71 Northwestern (2-2), a team that to this point has been much better on the defensive side of the ball.
OFFENSE
Top overall offensive player with meaningful snaps — Omar Cooper, Jr. He was targeted six times and caught four passes for 83 yards and big late first half score. He had 28 yards after catches and no drops. The redshirt sophomore still has no drops on the season. Elijah Sarratt was right behind Cooper for the second-best overall offensive grade.
On the season, Cooper is graded as the fifth-best receiver in the nation among those with 25 targets.
Quarterback Kurtis Rourke’s grades were hampered by three turnovers (two interceptions and a fumble). He was pressured six times, sacked three while playing in rainy and windy conditions. One of his receivers even registered a drop — the first of the season. But he still finished the game with 20 completions on his last 27 attempts, with over 300 yards and 3 touchdowns. His response to the slow start is difficult to grade but the real standout here. For the season, Rourke grades out as the eighth-best passing QB among those with 100 dropbacks.
The tackles stood out along the offensive line, as Carter Smith registered the best pass blocking grade, and Trey Wedig the best run blocking marks. Among the offensive linemen, Bray Lynch earned the lowest marks in both categories.
Among the running backs, Ty Son Lawton just edged out Justice Ellison, but both earned respectable scores, save for pass blocking where PFF says both struggled. Kaelon Black‘s fumble hurt his running grade, but he did score well as a receiver.
Zach Horton once again dominated the tight end snaps. His grades were fairly average across the board, with his best marks coming as a pass blocker.
Snap counts (75 total) —
- Drew Evans – 75
- Bray Lynch – 75
- Mike Katic – 75
- Trey Wedig – 75
- Carter Smith – 75
- Kurtis Rourke – 75
- Elijah Sarratt – 61
- Miles Cross – 56
- Zach Horton – 55
- Ty Son Lawton – 39
- Omar Cooper, Jr. – 37
- Myles Price – 35
- Justice Ellison – 31
- Ke’Shawn Williams – 29
- Tyler Stephens – 12
- Andison Coby – 10
- Kaelon Black – 9
- Donaven McCulley – 1
DEFENSE
One thing that really stood about IU’s defense on Saturday — they did not rotate heavily at all. Perhaps the relatively cool and and cloudy conditions helped keep the starters fresh.
The best overall defensive grade went to linebacker Aiden Fisher, who earned especially high marks as a pass rusher, with three pressures, including a sack and two hurries. Fisher had 10 tackles for the game and now has 50 on the season. His worst mark vs. Maryland came in pass coverage.
Edge Lanell Carr earned the top run defense grade, with Fisher right behind him. The raw numbers suggest Carr was even better as a pass rusher, with five pressures — four QB hurries and one hit — in 35 pass rush snaps. And in the run game he cleaned up the snaps that came his way.
The top tackling grades went to defensive backs D’Angelo Ponds and Josh Sanguinetti. Presumably Ponds wasn’t punished for running into the umpire on Maryland’s 75-yard running score. He had an impressive 10 tackles from the corner position. IU used Ponds in the box as a defender on six snaps.
Ponds also posted the best pass coverage score despite getting beat on a touchdown, a play where the receiver may have gotten away with a stiff-arm to gain separation. He was targeted 11 times and Maryland completed six balls against him. No one on IU had a great pass coverage mark.
The pass rush is where Indiana really stood out. The Hoosiers totaled an eye-catching 25 QB pressures, including five sacks, three hits, and 17 hurries. Linebacker Jailin Walker had the top overall score, with four hurries. Fisher was right behind him, and Mikail Kamara, five pressures (a sack, two hits, two hurries) and James Carpenter with three pressures (two sacks and a hurry) also received very good marks.
On the season, Kamara grades out nationally as the sixth-best pass rusher among those with 100 pass rush snaps.
Snap counts (78 total) —
- Amare Ferrell – 78
- D’Angelo Ponds 78
- Aiden Fisher – 78
- Jailin Walker – 78
- Jamier Johnson – 78
- Shawn Asbury II – 78
- Mikail Kamara – 76
- Lanell Carr – 76
- Josh Sanguinetti – 72
- James Carpenter – 56
- CJ West – 41
- Marcus Burris, Jr. – 30
- Tyrique Tucker – 26
- Isaiah Jones – 6
- Terry Jones – 4
- Mario Landino – 3
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