After becoming the first Indiana head coach to start his tenure with a 4-0 record, Curt Cignetti now shifts his attention to the Maryland Terrapins, who come into Bloomington for IU's second Big Ten conference game, but first at home.
This should be a battle, as this one is projected to be closer than the other games the Hoosiers have won so far, making for a more entertaining game, and hopefully a bigger crowd.
With all that being said, here are three keys to make sure IU gets it done at home and improves to 5-0, 2-0 in Big Ten play, with a win over Maryland.
PLAY PHYSICAL
Moving forward into Big Ten play, the competition will certainly get tougher, but also more physical.
In a conference that prides itself on being physical, with games being won in the trenches and teams that are just not physically ready falling behind, Indiana needs to be physical against Maryland in order to win this game.
The Maryland defense falls in the top 50 in opponent yards per rush and rush yards per game, meaning that this is a physical defense that can stop the run.
This should result in a battle at the line of scrimmage between the Indiana offensive line and the Maryland defensive line, both groups, especially that Indiana O-Line having already proven their physicality so far this season.
This is what should make physicality so critical, as its extremely likely that the group who plays more physically will will those battles in the trenches, potentially turning a first town conversion into a tackle for loss and vice versa.
The line of scrimmage won't be the only place where Indiana needs to be physical, as in the secondary, the defensive backs have to be physical against the Maryland receivers, while Indiana ball carriers would defintely benefit from physicality when breaking tackles.
This is something that coach Cignetti has preached all season and, while physicality is always important, this one may be decided a little more by who decides to be the tougher, more physical team on Saturday.
KEEP WINNING THE TURNOVER BATTLE
While Indiana has put up several impressive stats during its 4-0 start, the most impressive one may be their successes in the turnover battle.
IU has not turned the ball over on offense so far this season, being one of only three teams to not have a giveaway during the first four weeks, the others being Georgia and Louisville.
Being in the same class as a team that hasn't lost a regular season game since 2020 is certainly impressive, but being a group mostly comprised of players who hadn't played any football together and still not surrendering a turnover, may be even more impressive.
Expect IU to take great care of the ball again vs. Maryland, as the Hoosiers take immense pride in not turning it over, something that Cignetti has preached over and over again, and for good reason, as turnovers win and lose ballgames.
While the turnover battle hasn't mattered a whole lot against the lower non-conference completion, it certainly did matter in the Big Ten opener at UCLA.
On UCLA's first drive, the IU defense forced a fumble, leading to a quick Hoosier TD, making it a 14-0 game, a lead they never relinquished.
This defense has forced seven turnovers, all of them critical, but this one at UCLA shifted the momentum so that IU had control the entire game.
This is exactly what could happen against Maryland as, if the offense continues to control the ball, while the defense forces a major turnover, a similar result to the UCLA game may be in the cards.
MAKE BIG PLAYS THROUGH THE AIR
Another very important piece of this game lies in Indiana's passing game, a part of the offense that has been firing on all cylinders lately,
With quarterback Kurtis Rourke leading the way, the IU passing game has looked about as good as it ever has, with great performances from week two onward.
Something that jumpstarts this passing game, and the offense as a whole is the big play, something that IU hasn't done a whole lot of but when they do it pays dividends.
Looking back to the UCLA game, IU completed several passes over 20 yards, including two on its first drive, which set the tone for what was an incredibly impressive day for Rourke and the receiving corps.
Rourke followed that game up with another great showing, dicing up the Charlotte defense before he was subbed off because of Indiana's large lead.
Rourke showed off the deep ball a little bit in that game too, completing two passes back-to-back of over 25 yards on a drive, resulting in a touchdown.
Because of these last two games, I'd expect something similar when the Hoosiers take on the Terps, as Rourke should look for that big pass play that gives IU the momentum early.
With an expected larger crowd, these big plays should energize the Hoosier faithful, creating a true home field environment not commonly seen, but this is certainly the group that can get that done.
If the passing game makes the big plays, this should be another great Hoosier performance, putting IU in a great position to move to 2-0 in Big Ten play, 5-0 overall.
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