The Northwestern Wildcats posted a school-record 704 yards of offense in a 44-29 rout over the Indiana Hoosiers on the opening weekend of Big Ten play at Ryan Field in Evanston. The Wildcats moved to 5-0 on the season, while the Hoosiers fell to 2-2. In even more consequential developments, Indiana is now the losingest FBS program of all time.
After a slow start for both teams, Wildcats quarterback Kain Colter opened the scoring with his first of four rushing touchdowns on the day with 5:52 remaining in the first quarter. The floodgates then opened for Northwestern, who held a 27-0 lead at one point in the third quarter.
The Hoosiers finally got things going in the third quarter, scoring three touchdowns in the frame, with one coming via 96-yard kickoff return by Tevin Coleman. Indiana would close to within 37-29 early in the fourth, but Colter's fourth score of the day with 5:07 left would prove to be the nail in the coffin.
Box Score Hero: Colter did very little passing on the day, as most of those duties were held by Trevor Siemian. But Colter ran for 161 yards and the four scores while also catching nine passes for 131 yards.
Rankings Ramifications: Neither of these teams entered the weekend ranked, but Northwestern had received the most votes for a team outside the top 25. Depending on other outcomes, the Wildcats could find themselves in the rankings next week.
But Did They Cover?: Northwestern was a 12.5-point favorite according to several betting services, and with the 15-point victory, they covered. The over/under was set around 60 by most services, and the game easily went over.
For More On This Game: Check out the Northwestern blog Sippin' On Purple or head over to Indiana's Crimson Quarry.
Next Week's Schedule: Northwestern goes on to the road to take on Penn State. Indiana will host Michigan State.