BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (WISH) — The No. 5-ranked Indiana Hoosiers were one play away from putting the final dagger into No. 4 Ohio State on Saturday.
The Hoosiers trailed 19-7 early in the fourth quarter, put the score at 19-15 after a 16-yard Nick Marsh touchdown catch, but fell short on the game-winning drive.
On 4th and 4 of the game-winning drive and the Hoosiers down to their last play, IU quarterback Josh Hoover threw a 27-yard pass to a wide-open Nick Marsh in the end zone. Marsh caught what would have been the go-ahead touchdown, but his feet were out of bounds.
IU quarterback Josh Hoover described what he saw on that final throw to Nick Marsh.
“They brought the house; we knew they were going to pressure us right there,” Hoover said. “Nick [Marsh] ran a good route. I didn’t really have time to sit there and see where he was going, so I just tried to put it up in the air, put it to a spot and shoot, it’s a game of inches. I think Nick played awesome today. I’m so proud of him and unfortunately, the last play, when it comes down to it like that, it does stink. We ran 75 plays and had a lot of opportunities to score other times. It’s never about one play.”
Indiana’s first-year quarterback was 20 of 40 passing for 296 yards and a touchdown. Marsh added three catches for 57 yards and a touchdown that put the Hoosiers down 19-15 with 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter. Hoover expanded on the miscue he had with Marsh on the final offensive play of the game.
“It’s not Nick’s [Marsh] fault at all,” Hoover added. “If I put it a little bit further inside, it’s an easy catch. Nick’s an unbelievable player, but the best thing about Nick is who he is as a guy. That’s what people don’t see is who he is every single day. I couldn’t be more proud of him, and I’m glad he’s my teammate. I know he’s got my back and I’ve got his back too. We’re all going to go back and learn from this tape and try to get better every way we can. We’re going to have to move on to Michigan. We’re going to use this as fuel moving forward, and I think we’re going to be better as a football team moving forward.”
Even after two defensive interceptions by IU cornerback Amare Ferrell and rushing defense that held Ohio State to just 78 yards on 2.8 yards per carry, the Hoosiers fell one play short of completing a 13-point fourth-quarter comeback.
The loss snaps an Indiana 22-game winning streak that stems back to the 2024 College Football Playoffs.
The Hoosiers, now 6-1, will hit the road to play at Michigan next Saturday, October 24.
