Indiana goes toe to toe with the top-ranked team in the nation

For Indiana fans, it seemed a bit like a pipe dream.

A date with No. 1 Ohio State in Bloomington and the Hoosiers led on Saturday heading into the locker room for halftime.

And Indiana ran it down to the wire.

The Buckeyes took the eventual 34-27 win after a big scare in the final Hoosier drive in front of an announced crowd of 52,929.

The Hoosiers took a shocking 10-6 lead in the first half, with a field goal from Griffin Oakes in the first quarter and a touchdown from Devine Redding in the second.

Once Ohio State (5-0, 1-0 Big Ten) returned from the locker room, it was a different ball game. Two touchdowns from Ezekiel Elliot in the third quarter started the OSU run.

Indiana (4-1, 0-1) held tough late, with a 79-yard touchdown run from Zander Diamont in the fourth quarter that brought the Hoosiers within seven.

A forced OSU punt late in the fourth put IU down seven with possession, pushing the last drive to the 9-yard line. An incomplete pass from Diamont on a misplaced snap at the buzzer gave Ohio State the win.

“We’ve got a lot of strengths, and we’re just trying to build on them,” IU coach Kevin Wilson said. “Offensively we’ve got to keep coming along.”

Nate Sudfeld was benched in the third quarter after tweaking his ankle and Diamont burned his redshirt to fill in against the Buckeyes. Diamont threw for 76 yards and ran for 79.

“I’ve been ready to go,” Diamont said. “I’ve felt confident since training camp. The experience from last season really prepared me for this situation.”

Elliot’s 286 total yards let the way for the Buckeyes, after starting cold, running for only 31 yards in the first half. A bulk of his yards came from his three touchdowns, which were 55 yards, 65 yards and 75 yards respectively.

This was the first sellout crowd in Memorial Stadium since 2010, which gave Indiana the strength they needed to push the top team in the country to its limits.

“It means a lot to finally get a crowd out here,” Diamont said. “But we don't want that just to be for this week coming off an undefeated game. We appreciate it; it really makes a difference in how we play.”

Jordan Howard, the usual powerhouse running back, was taken off the field in the second quarter due to an ankle injury. Howard saw a few plays here and there after returning in the second half, but only gained 34 yards on 14 attempts.

Regardless of the score, Hoosier fans and players noticed how good the IU squad was.

“I think we can play with anyone in the country,” Diamont said. “I think people around here are starting to realize that this is a very good football team and a good football program, and we've known that for the past few years. When we play as a team we are really good. We came here to win."

The closeness of this matchup sprung up a lot of questions regarding Ohio State, Indiana and the Big Ten.

Was Ohio State overrated?

Was Indiana really good enough to hold with the Buckeyes until the end?

Is the Big Ten deeper than everyone thought?

All of these questions will, of course, be answered during the coming weeks when the Big Ten teams face off against the rest of the league. With No. 2 Michigan State only escaping a Purdue visit with a 24-21 victory, Ohio State leaving Bloomington with a scare and Iowa securing a 5-0 start, the Big Ten looks wide open.

The Hoosiers will be on the road against Penn State for their next contest on Oct. 10 and will come back home for the matchup against Rutgers for homecoming on Oct. 17.