By Tom Luicci
ScarletKnights.com
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - For the rousing success that Senior Day turned into, Rutgers can thank a couple of true freshmen for jumpstarting it all.
Sparked by a 47-yard third-quarter touchdown run by Robert Martin and fortified by a nine-yard score later in the quarter from Josh Hicks, Rutgers became bowl eligible for the ninth time in the past 10 years with a 45-23 victory over Indiana today before a crowd of 47,492 at High Point Solutions Stadium.
Taking the lead for good at 17-16 on Martin's career-long scoring run, the Scarlet Knights saw a game-changing third-quarter spree of 21 unanswered points capped by Hicks' score. Both are true freshmen.
In between, quarterback Gary Nova tossed a 34-yard touchdown pass to Leonte Carroo as Rutgers rallied from a 16-10 deficit to take command at 31-16 heading into the fourth quarter.
The Scarlet Knights improved to 6-4 overall and 2-4 in Big Ten play with two games remaining, both on the road. They needed one of their better offensive showings of the season to overcome Tevin Coleman's 32 carries for 307 rushing yards - the most by a Rutgers opponent in Piscataway.
Hicks finished with 114 yards on 20 carries while Martin had 83 rushing yards on 11 carries and ran for three scores. It marked the first 100-yard rushing game of Hicks' career.
When Indiana (3-7 overall, 0-6 Big Ten) closed within 31-23 on Zander Diamont's 28-yard touchdown pass to Shane Wynn with 14:36 to play, Nova and Carroo had one more response, too.
Nova (16-of-27 for 217 yards and two touchdowns in his final home game) found Carroo open for a 56-yard touchdown pass with 11:50 remaining to make it 38-23.
Carroo finished with five catches for 125 yards and two scores, recording his fifth 100-yard receiving game of the season and seventh of his career.
The high-scoring affair and individual highlights could not have been predicted following a lethargic first half - at least until the final 6:12 before halftime.
One long run by Coleman and an unkind crossbar, with both surfacing in the final 18 seconds before halftime, proved to be the difference through the opening two quarters as the Hoosiers claimed a 13-10 halftime lead.
Coleman's 67-yard touchdown run with 18 seconds left in the half gave Indiana that slim first-half advantage, which held up when the crossbar prevented Kyle Federico's 46-yard field goal try from going through as the clock hit :00 for the half.
But the sleepy opening 23:48 of the game, dominated by both defenses, was nothing like the action-filled final 6:12 to end the first half.
Locked in a 3-3 game through most of the first 23-minutes plus, Rutgers started a wild final 6:12 of the first half by finishing a 44-yard drive with Martin's two-yard touchdown run for a 10-3 Scarlet Knights lead.
That opportunity was set up as a result of a fortuitous bounce and a head's up play by linebacker Steve Longa.
With Indiana back to receive a Joe Roth punt, the ball deflected off the Hoosiers' Andre Booker, with Longa there for the fumble recovery that would be converted into Martin's short scoring run.
Then the game started to pick up.
Coleman, held to 20 yards on his first nine carries midway through the second quarter, began finding a rhythm, helping Indian to a drive that ended with Griffin Oakes' 36-yard field goal, his second of the half. That cut Rutgers' lead to 10-6.
The Scarlet Knights appeared to be in control then, too, but a failed third and one run from the Indiana 33 yard line, followed by a failed fourth down sneak by Nova, gave the Hoosiers the ball with just 36 seconds left.
Where a kneel down seemed possible, a touchdown resulted instead, as Coleman bolted around the right side for that 67-yard touchdown run and the 13-10 Indiana lead just 18 seconds before halftime. That gave him 122 yards on 13 carries in a half when it appeared Rutgers had kept him in check.
But the action wasn't done.
Janarion Grant took the ensuing kickoff 71 yards to the Indiana 29-yard line with four seconds left, where Federico's field goal try to tie hit the crossbar and bounced back into the end zone.
