Rutgers football (4-3, 1-3) defeated Indiana (3-5, 1-4), 24-17, on Saturday afternoon at SHI Stadium. The Scarlet Knights scored 17 unanswered points against the Hoosiers on homecoming for their first Big Ten Conference victory of the season.
Freshman RB Samuel Brown V produced 28 carries for 101 yards and a touchdown to pace RU's offense, while QB Noah Vedral found WR Sean Ryan for a 15-yard touchdown pass.
Rutgers' defense held IU to just 85 yards in the second half, as LB Deion Jennings and DB Christian Izien added nine tackles apiece. DB Christian Braswell recorded three pass breakups and an pick-six in the fourth quarter, while DL Aaron Lewis contributed two tackles-for-loss.
Indiana scored two touchdowns to open the game before Rutgers responded with its first scoring drive of the day. The Scarlet Knights orchestrated an 11-play, 86-yard scoring driving, capped by a 15-yard touchdown pass from Noah Vedral to WR Sean Ryan to make it 14-7 with 9:53 left in the half.
RU's defense held strong for the remainder of the quarter, as Rutgers headed into the locker room trailing just 14-7. The Scarlet Knight's held IU to just 44 total yards in the second quarter, while P Adam Korsak drilled three punts in the final seven minutes of the half to help RU control field position prior to the midway point.
Rutgers scored on its opening drive of the second half, as PK Jude McAtamney drilled a 49-yard field-goal attempt to cut the lead to 14-10 in favor of Indiana. The Scarlet Knights then added a touchdown on their next possession, as Brown V scored on a two-yard rush up the gut to give RU its first lead of the afternoon at 17-14 with just under a minute to go in the third. The running touchdown highlighted a 12-play, 56-yard scoring drive, with Brown accounting for 34 yards on six carries.
RU forced a three-and-out right before the end of the third quarter to hold onto its three-point lead with 15 to play. Rutgers dominated time of possession in the third quarter, as IU had the ball for just 53 seconds in the quarter and accounted for -2 yards on offense in the frame.
The Scarlet Knights continued its impressive effort on defense in the fourth quarter. Indiana attempted a 51-yard field goal with 7:37 left in the game, but the try went wide left to keep the score at 17-14.
With the Hoosiers looking to put together a go-ahead drive, the RU defense came up big again. Braswell intercepted a pass at the IU 12-yard line and returned it for a touchdown to make the score 24-14 with 5:12 remaining.
While Indiana kicked a field goal with 1:18 left, RB Kyle Monangai recovered the ensuing onside kick to clinch to victory for Rutgers.