STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — During the history-altering two years of the Curt Cignetti era at Indiana, the phrases ''never before'' and ''for the first time ever'' have been used often. But they've always been used in a positive tone.

Until Saturday. Or, to say it more fairly, for a few moments on Saturday.

The most important ''never before'' was actually a bad thing. The Hoosiers had blown a 13-point lead in the second half and they trailed Penn State by four points with just 1:51 to go. They needed to go 80 yards for a touchdown, or their perfect season would be over.

That was the challenge. Would they be up to it?

This was the first time the Hoosiers had their backs to the wall in the Cignetti era. After all the blowouts and routs, this game was different. This was even different from their two losses last year, to national champion Ohio State and national finalist Notre Dame.

Neither of those games came down to the wire. This one did.

The Hoosiers, two-touchdown favorites, were in the fight of their lives against a Penn State team that was once the No. 2 team in the country but was trying to break a five-game losing streak.

This was a problem. But not for long.

Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza simply marched the Hoosiers down the field despite constant blitzing from the inspired Penn State defense. And with just 36 seconds left in the game, he found Omar Cooper Jr. in the back of the end zone in what might go down as the greatest catch in Indiana history. He made an incredible toe-tap catch just inches inside the end line, giving the Hoosiers a thrilling 27-24 win over the Nittany Lions.

Amazing. Stunning. Incredible.

Yeah, all those things. And now the Hoosiers are 10-0 for the first time in school history.

"We refuse to lose, basically," Cignetti told reporters after the game. "I've seen a lot of stuff in my days, I've never seen anything quite like this."

The Hoosiers, who were 0-13 all-time at Beaver Stadium before Saturday, seemed to have this game well under control for most of the day, leading 20-7 late in the third quarter. But then Penn State, losers of five straight games this season and playing for interim coach Terry Smith, scored on three consecutive possessions to take the lead.

They got a 36-yard field goal from Ryan Barker to make it 20-10 with 3:36 to go in the third quarter. Indiana was forced to punt and then Penn State struck again, with Nick Singleton breaking free on a 59-yard run to the Indiana 2-yard line. The Hoosiers stopped them three straight times, but Singleton scored on fourth down, cutting the lead to 20-17.

Then Mendoza made a big mistake. On Indiana's second play, he tried to throw across the wide side of the field, but it was intercepted by safety King Mack with 10:47 to go in the game. The Nittany Lions marched right down the field and scored again. Quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer. making just his third career start, completed a 19-yard touchdown pass to Singleton to go ahead 24-20 with 6:27 left.

Indiana was forced to punt on its next possesson, but the Hoosiers defense stopped Penn State too. After the punt, Indiana had the ball again at its own 20-yard line with 1:51 left.

Penn State, blitzing heavily on every play throughout most of the fourth quarter, kept the pressure on Mendoza, but he kept his cool. He took the Hoosiers on a 10-play, 80-yard drive for the game-winning points. He completed a 22-yard pass to Omar Cooper, Jr., a 12-yarder to E.J. Williams, and a 29-yard completion to tight end Riley Nowakowsi got the Hoosiers deep into Penn State territory.

Charlie Becker — who had seven catches for 118 yards while replacing the injured Elijah Sarratt — , made a great catch along the sideline to get the ball to the 7-yard line. And then on third-down, Mendoza drilled a ball to Cooper in the back of the end zone. He jumped up to catch it, then tapped his toes just inside the end line for a touchdown.

After review, the call stood and the Hoosiers had their game-winning score. A Penn State Hail Mary was broken up, and the Hoosiers remained undefeated.

And Cooper's catch will go down as one of the biggest plays in Indiana school history.

“I knew where I was in the field,” Cooper told reporters after the game. “When I went up for the ball, I was just trying to get my feet as far inside as I could and make sure I came down with it."

Cooper had six catches on the day, but only for 32 yards as the Penn State defense worked hard to not let him get deep. Mendoza was 19-for-30 passing for 218 yards, and the Hoosiers rushed for just 108 yards on 31 carries,  their lowest total of the year.

But they did enough on that game-winning drive to keep their dream season alive. They play their last home game on Saturday against Wisconsin, a surprise 13-10 victor against Washington on Sunday. Then, after a bye week, the Hoosiers will close out the regular season on the Friday night after Thanksgiving at Purdue in the battle for the Old Oaken Bucket.