Indiana dominates third quarter, rallies past Idaho 35-22

Updated Sep. 11, 2022 12:04 a.m. ET

Associated Press

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Indiana scored 29 consecutive points, including 23 in the third quarter, to rebound from a sluggish start in a 35-22 victory over FCS-member Idaho on a rainy Saturday night.

The game was delayed 35 minutes by a lightning warning, and the Hoosiers didn't show up at the outset against the three-touchdown underdog Vandals, who led 10-0 at halftime.

Then everything clicked, and rather quickly, for Indiana.

Backup quarterback Donaven McCulley started the comeback with a 4-yard TD rush. After a bad Idaho snap resulted in a safety, Connor Bazelak threw touchdown passes of 43 yards to A.J. Barner and 26 yards to D.J. Matthews Jr. The latter three scores came in a span of 5:10.

Much like his team, Bazelak improved dramatically after the break. The junior transfer quarterback completed 10 of 12 throws for 148 yards and two TDs in the third quarter. He connected on just 6 of 17 passes for 49 yards with an interception before the break.

Indiana amassed 239 yards in the third period after gaining just 110 in the first half. The Vandals, who had dominated time of possession with 170 first-half yards, managed just 10 yards in the quarter.

Josh Henderson scored on an 8-yard TD run to push Indiana's lead to 29-10 just 5 seconds into the final quarter.

Idaho's Gevani McCoy threw TD passes to Jordan Dwyer, Roshaun Johnson and Michael Graves.

THE TAKEAWAY

Idaho: One week after blowing a 10-0 lead in a 24-17 loss at Washington State, the Vandals suffered a similar collapse. The visitors dominated the first half with a goal-line stand at the 1-yard line and two forced turnovers. Once again, there were positives to build upon, albeit in a loss.

Indiana: At least the Hoosiers didn't wait until the final minute to prevail, as was the case in an opening home win over Illinois. Whatever the reason for the lousy opening half against a team Indiana dominated 56-14 on the same field last year, the Hoosiers finally rebounded. The last time Indiana scored 35 points in a half was against Idaho last year, although those were before halftime.

TWO GAMES, TWO SCORES

Dwyer, a true freshman, has scored in his first two college games for Idaho. He debuted with a 23-yard TD reception at Washington State and had a 1-yard scoring grab to start the scoring against Indiana.

UP NEXT

Idaho: The Vandals host Drake on Saturday.

Indiana: The Hoosiers host Western Kentucky on Saturday.

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