Grant Wilson, Indiana boost CFP, Big Ten hopes with win vs. USC - ESPN

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — On his way home from Indiana's Oct. 31 overtime win against Minnesota, Hoosiers coach Curt Cignetti decided he would start Grant Wilson at quarterback for the team's next game two weeks later.

He slept on it and felt the same way the next morning. Early this week, Cignetti informed Wilson of the decision.

«He pulled me to the side while out there at practice, and he goes, 'You're going to go with the ones,' and then turned around and walked away,» Wilson said.

Cignetti's decision paid off in not only Wilson's performance in Saturday's 27-13 win against No. 18 USC, but a more aggressive slant from the entire offense. Indiana didn't pull back with Wilson, a seventh-year player who had not started since 2024 with Old Dominion but replaced Josh Hoover in the second half against Minnesota. Instead, the Hoosiers pushed the pedal down, recording their highest points total since Oct. 3 at Rutgers. Indiana averaged 17.9 yards per pass and got a jolt in the run game from Khobie Martin, who missed the first half of the season after an injury in the opener.

After dropping five spots in the latest College Football Playoff rankings despite not playing last week, the No. 9 Hoosiers looked more like a complete team in its best win of the season.

«We've been kind of playing in the tent, so to speak, the last two weeks, conservative,» Cignetti said. «We all hated it, and we wanted to attack this team.»

Indiana had not eclipsed 20 points or 400 yards in regulation since the Rutgers game, but immediately looked downfield with Wilson, whose first completion went for 47 yards to Shazz Preston. Wilson later connected with Nick Marsh for 65 yards and sealed the win on a 42-yard touchdown strike to Charlie Becker with 3:30 to