BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Indiana coach Curt Cignetti sent a message to his players this week.
He expected them to play their brand of football -- from start to finish. They delivered in a record-breaking way.
Kurtis Rourke threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score -- all in the first half Friday night -- as the Hoosiers broke the school's single-game scoring record with a 77-3 rout of Western Illinois that didn't exactly come by design.
"I was trying to get a lot of people into the game. We were trying to run there and I wanted to give the third quarterback a chance to throw it once, so we did what we could to keep [the score] down," Cignetti said. "But I didn't want them to play down to their standard, and I thought we responded [to the message] really well."
How lopsided was it?
The Hoosiers (2-0) broke the previous mark of 76 points, set in a shutout of Franklin College in 1901, on the extra point after Charlie Becker's 3-yard touchdown run with 9:10 to play. They also set a school record with 701 total yards, and the margin of victory was second to only that game against Franklin.
Cignetti also became the fourth Indiana coach since 1948 to win his first two games at the school.
Western Illinois (0-2) extended the longest losing streak in Division I football to 26 straight. The Leathernecks' last win came on Oct. 30, 2021.
This one was never close. Indiana scored touchdowns on each of its first six possessions, produced 415 yards on 38 plays in the first half and led 42-3 at halftime.
Rourke, the 2022 Mid-American Conference Offensive Player of the Year, was sensational in his second game with Indiana. He finished 15-of-17 passing for 268 yards while rushing three times for 13 yards. Justice Ellison ran nine times for 117 yards and two touchdowns. Elijah Sarratt caught six passes for 137 yards, including a 71-yard touchdown.
"He was pretty sharp, and the receivers were making plays," Cignetti said.
Andison Coby got the scoring started with a 38-yard touchdown catch on the fifth play of the game. Ellison's 2-yard touchdown run made it 14-0 before Sarratt's long scoring play. And Ty Son Lawton's 19-yard touchdown run gave Indiana a 28-0 lead late in the first quarter.
Western Illinois' only score came on a 31-yard field goal in the final minute of the first half.
"It's unfortunate to get off to such a slow start here for two weeks in a row and not generate any momentum on either side of the ball," Western Illinois coach Joe Davis said. "It just puts us in such a massive hole early that is hard to dig yourself out of."
Ellison sealed it with a 47-yard touchdown run to open the second-half scoring, and kicker Nicolas Radicic's record-breaking 11th extra point of the game gave Indiana the scoring mark.
"I thought we played physical, with a nasty attitude, and we were never satisfied," Cignetti said.
THE TAKEAWAY
Western Illinois: This season certainly has not started well for the only active FBS or FCS team with two straight winless seasons. Both of this season's losses came in blowouts, and the Leathernecks have lost eight of their past nine games by 39 or more points.
Indiana: The Hoosiers are off to a solid start that has been helped by a soft early-season schedule. Things get much tougher next week in their Big Ten opener at UCLA.
POWER OUTAGE
It wasn't just Western Illinois lacking power Friday night. During warmups at halftime, both of the stadium's scoreboards faded to black. After a short delay, the referees announced they would keep the official time on the field. A few minutes later, the scoreboards rebooted, showing about 10½ minutes left in the third quarter.
UP NEXT
Western Illinois: Visits former conference foe Illinois State next Saturday.
Indiana: Makes its first appearance at the Rose Bowl since 1968 next Saturday against UCLA.