BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Eventually, Elijah Sarratt made his way back to the bench designated for Indiana’s receivers — but only after high-fiving his way through the Hoosiers’ sideline, taking helmet taps from fellow wideout Omar Cooper Jr. and waving into a videographer’s camera.
It was a celebration fit for Sarratt’s third touchdown of Indiana’s 56-9 victory over Kennesaw State on Saturday at Merchants Bank Field inside Memorial Stadium.
And perhaps more important to the remainder of the Hoosiers’ campaign — and Sarratt’s college career — Saturday served as a return to form after an offseason, and season-opener, that lacked productivity.
“I was glad to see him get going a little bit,” Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said postgame. “Last year in camp, he really didn't have a lot of catches, but he got them during the season. Same thing in camp, he didn't have a ton of catches, not in the first game, either.
“So, I was glad to see him bust out and (Sarratt and quarterback Fernando Mendoza) kind of hook up a little bit.”
In 2024, Sarratt overcame a quiet fall camp — and a two-catch, 12-yard performance against Florida International in Week 1 — to lead the Hoosiers with 53 catches for 957 yards and eight touchdowns en route to third-team All-Big Ten honors.
Now, history is repeating itself.
Sarratt didn’t get a target in the first half of Indiana’s 27-14 win over Old Dominion in Week 1. He finished with three catches for 44 yards, an unspectacular start after earning preseason All-American recognition.
But after his first two targets fell incomplete, there was nothing quiet or unspectacular about Sarratt’s performance against Kennesaw State.
Through Indiana’s first eight drives, Mendoza completed 12 of 18 passes. He’d targeted Sarratt 12 times, completing eight for 77 yards and two touchdowns. They connected once more with three minutes left in the third quarter as Mendoza delivered a 20-yard strike to Sarratt over the middle for a touchdown.
Sarratt’s afternoon ended with nine catches for 97 yards and three touchdowns, tied for the most in his career and the most by an Indiana player since Ty Fryfogle in 2020.
“Fantastic,” Mendoza said about Sarratt’s performance. “He's Waffle House. I didn't target him enough the first game, and, evidently, I think I targeted him enough today. We still have great playmakers around him, spreading the defense because we give so much stress that they're able to give Elijah those one-on-one matchups.
“And when he has those one-on-one matchups, he's, like they call him, Waffle House.”
Sarratt attributed his success to better execution, though he believes he could’ve produced even more.
“I feel like, of course, I left some stuff out there. I could have had a better game than what I had,” Sarratt said. “[It was] executing on stuff I didn’t do well last week, and then making an emphasis throughout practice this week going into the game this week.”
Cooper said Sarratt was “more determined this week” at practice after his lack of involvement in the Hoosiers’ passing offense against Old Dominion.
“Just trying to get better each and every day and obviously build that relationship with Fernando,” Cooper said. “I was proud of him.”
Mendoza and Sarratt spent additional time after practice working through fade passes. Mendoza acknowledged he missed a pair of back-shoulder throws to Sarratt, who specializes in contested catch situations, against Old Dominion.
Both players wanted to right their wrongs Saturday. It’s fair to say they did.
“We saw it show up today,” Mendoza said. “So, I think that extra work, that preparation, that intentionality, that, ‘Hey, we're going to get this. [These are] the looks we're going to see in the game. And, hey, we're going to watch the film after practice and get this down, really put in.’ And we got to keep on doing that to keep the momentum rolling.”
Mendoza targets perfection. He still thinks about a few missed throws to Sarratt in Week 1 and other inaccurate passes in Week 2. To make up for it, he said, he’ll take them out to eat.
But Mendoza has competition for the bill.
“He’s the one throwing me the rock. So, I told him I owe him one,” Sarratt said, smiling. “One day, I’m going to take him out. He always says he owes me one, but I owe him one for sure.”
Sarratt’s order at Waffle House hasn’t changed. When he’s back home in Virginia, he frequently stops by and gets the All-Star breakfast, which features grits, bacon and eggs.
His quarterback situation hasn’t been as constant.
Mendoza is Sarratt’s fourth different quarterback in as many college seasons. Sarratt forged strong chemistry with last year’s starter, Kurtis Rourke, who Cignetti said started similarly to Mendoza.
“All these new quarterbacks, they build on their successes early in the season,” Cignetti said. “You win, they play well, they build on it. Same thing happened last year with Kurtis. He didn't have the greatest opener. He sure played good the second game, and obviously lights out the third.”
Rourke finished with second-team All-Big Ten honors after setting single-season program records with 29 touchdowns and a 69.4% completion rate.
The Hoosiers believe Mendoza is on an encouraging arc. Though he targeted Sarratt on 52% of his passes, he distributed the ball to seven other players.
And as Indiana’s many offensive playmakers continue building chemistry with Mendoza, Sarratt figures to be a prime beneficiary.
“I always tell the tight ends, running backs, receivers, ‘If y’all catching passes, it’s going to make it easier for me,’” Sarratt said. “I realize now how a lot of defenses are going to try to stop me, so as long as my other guys are eating, then it’s going to make it easier for me.
“We have guys that can go out there and make plays. So, I’m happy they’re on my team.”
Still, Indiana’s passing offense needs Sarratt at his best. The 6-foot-2, 209-pounder is among the nation’s top receivers. He’s caught passes in each of his 40 career games, the longest active streak in the FBS, and he’s now the active leader with 32 touchdowns.
The Hoosiers hope Sarratt keeps padding his lead in both categories — and as his relationship grows stronger with Mendoza, there’s plenty of reason to believe he will.
“Mendoza to Sarratt,” Cignetti said, “[is] going to be an important hook-up.”