Maryland football is still looking for its first Big Ten win of the season.

Billy Edwards Jr. continued to impress and the Terps forced four turnovers against one of the nation’s highest-scoring offenses, but Maryland couldn’t take advantage of those mistakes and fell apart in the second half in a 42-28 loss to host Indiana on Saturday.

Kurtis Rourke threw for a season-high 359 yards and three touchdowns and the Hoosiers never trailed on a soggy, windy day in Bloomington as the remnants of Hurricane Helene swept through the Midwest. Indiana (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) is off to its best start since 1967 and is unbeaten through its first five games for the third time in school history. The Hoosiers also have topped the 30-point mark in all five games, their longest streak since 2000.

Maryland (3-2, 0-2) suffered its first loss to the Hoosiers since 2020 despite another big performance from Edwards and a season-high 75-yard touchdown run from running back Roman Hemby.

The Hoosiers seized control late in the third quarter after Justice Ellison scored on a nifty 19-yard inside run to give Indiana a brief 21-14 lead. Hemby broke free on the next offensive snap to tie the score at 21.

Rourke broke the tie with a 13-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Sarratt with 40 seconds left in the third quarter, and the Hoosiers sealed the victory with a 12-yard touchdown pass from Rourke to Donaven McCulley. Ty Son Lawton added a 14-yard touchdown run to make it 42-21.

All Maryland could muster was a late 12-yard touchdown pass from Edwards to Hemby.

Here are three takeaways from Saturday’s game:

Billy Edwards Jr. needs more help: If not for their quarterback, things might be even uglier for the Terps.

Through five games, Edwards has completed 128 of 177 passes for 1,444 yards and has accounted for 13 total touchdowns. The Wake Forest transfer entered Saturday leading the Big Ten in completions and passing yards and was one of Pro Football Focus’ highest-graded quarterbacks.

Against the Hoosiers, he barely had any time to throw, yet was still able to finish 26-for-41 for 289 yards and three touchdowns. Edwards was sacked five times and was under constant pressure, forcing him to escape the pocket or throw quickly with a defender in his face.

While Maryland finished with an impressive 401 total yards of offense, it went just 5-for-15 on third down, including five three-and-outs on its first six possessions.

It didn’t help that Edwards was without star wide receiver Tai Felton, who hit his head on the turf early in the second half and did not return. Felton still finished with five catches for 38 yards, putting him in elite company among recent Big Ten receivers.

His 642 receiving yards are the most by a Big Ten receiver through his team’s first five games since Indiana’s Ty Fryfogle recorded 642 yards in 2020, and his 46 receptions are the most by a Big Ten receiver through his team’s first five games since Purdue’s Charlie Jones had 47 in 2022.

Making matters worse are apparent injuries to fellow wide receiver Kaden Prather and safety Dante Trade Jr. Trader, a McDonogh graduate, exited in the first quarter, and Prather left in the third. The Terps have a bye next week before hosting Northwestern on Friday, Oct. 11.

“A bunch of guys [got hurt], but that’s part of the game, man,” coach Mike Locksley told reporters after the game, according to The Washington Post, without providing further details. “I really don’t concern myself. I have to make sure I’m preparing those [second-string players], because this is what’s going to happen.”Missed opportunities keep costing Maryland: You couldn’t have scripted a better start for the Terps playing on the road in a pivotal conference game.

On Indiana’s opening drive, cornerback Jalen Huskey, a Bowling Green transfer, intercepted a pass from Rourke and returned it to the Terps’ 40-yard line. Maryland followed with a three-play drive that lost 4 yards, prompting a punt by Bryce McFerson.

Six plays later, Rourke threw another interception, this time to safety Glendon Miller. But Maryland mustered just 2 yards on its next three plays and punted the ball back to Indiana, who responded with a 12-play, 83-yard touchdown drive to take a 7-0 lead.

After tying the game at 7 on a 33-yard touchdown pass from Edwards to Prather in the second quarter, the Terps forced another turnover when Indiana running back Kaelon Black fumbled near midfield with 5:07 left before half.

The offense once again failed to capitalize, however, with two runs by Hemby gaining 7 yards before Edwards was taken down behind the line of scrimmage on third down, leading to another punt.

The Terps entered Saturday tied for second in the country with a plus-7 turnover margin, and that spiked to plus-11 after another fumble by Indiana in Maryland territory with 5:49 to go in the fourth quarter. Edwards was sacked on Maryland’s ensuing drive, and his desperation heave on fourth-and-17 from the Terps’ 27 fell incomplete.

Despite its struggles, Maryland had a chance to pull closer when Edwards found Prather for a 30-yard touchdown pass midway through the fourth to cut the lead to 35-27. But after replay review, the score was overturned when it was determined that Prather’s elbow landed out of bounds. The Terps subsequently turned the ball over on downs, and the Hoosiers closed out the game.

“We won the turnover battle, but lost the game,” Locksley said. “So to me, that shows that there are other areas for us. The first thing that jumps out to me is scheme-wise, are we doing the things that help our young [offensive] line? Are we doing the things that help our corners? And then we got to just keep looking at the personnel and making sure that we’re giving these guys the opportunity to compete.”

Penalties are still a problem: Maryland entered Saturday ranked 102nd in the nation with 30 penalties for 280 yards. After Saturday, it’s only going to get worse.

The Terps committed 10 penalties for 93 yards against Indiana, which was only flagged four times for 38 yards.

At one point, Maryland was penalized on three straight snaps in the second quarter, drawing a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, a 5-yard illegal snap penalty and a 15-yard facemask penalty that moved the ball from Indiana’s 28 all the way to the Terps’ 42. Ironically, Maryland ended that drive with a touchdown thanks to a pass-interference penalty against Indiana that gave the Terps an automatic first down on second-and-31.

Penalties are the most obvious example of an undisciplined team, and it hasn’t been cleaned up through the first five games. Even more scrutiny will be on Locksley and his staff to turn things around after a disappointing 0-2 start in conference play.

“We’ll get better. I know that we’ll get better,” Locksley said.

With No. 13 Southern California, No. 8 Oregon and No. 9 Penn State still remaining on the schedule, as well as a currently undefeated Rutgers squad and perennially tough Iowa, there will be plenty of opportunities to show improvement. Whether the fan base and those invested in the program believe it can be done remains to be seen.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.