No thumbnail. Two screws. One custom glove. How Kurtis Rourke returned to dominate MSU.

EAST LANSING, Mich. — There was a point during the week leading up to Indiana football's 47-10 win over Michigan State when coach Curt Cignetti battled a rare moment of indecision over starting Kurtis Rourke.

Rourke was just days removed from undergoing surgery on a right thumb injury that sidelined him against Washington, and starting a quarterback with an injury to his throwing hand left room for plenty of uncertainty.

"Was there some curiosity in terms of how effective (he would be)? That's human nature," Cignetti said after the game.

Cignetti has become a media darling for his bravado — thanks in part to his "I win. Google me." catchphrase — with the No. 13 Hoosiers (9-0; 6-0 Big Ten) off to the best start in program history. He ultimately decided to trust those same instincts and publicly named Rourke the starter on Thursday.

"I decided at some point to just believe in our team, right?" Cignetti said. "Which is what you got to do as a head coach and leader. Just attack, attack, attack and feed off that."

The decision paid off with Rourke helping Indiana score 47 unanswered points and leave Spartan Stadium with the Old Brass Spittoon.

"I thought he was great," Cignetti said.

It was a wild two weeks for a program that came out of its game against Nebraska worried Rourke might miss an extended period of time. He never even received a recovery timeline from the trainers as he made his way back to the practice field in less than a week.

Rourke wasn’t going to let a broken thumbnail on his right hand knock him out of a game against Nebraska two weeks ago. 

He suffered the injury throwing a 12-yard completion to EJ Williams with 6:13 left in the half. His hand came down on an opposing defender — two snaps later he hit it again and the thumbnail came off completely — but he wanted to wipe the blood off and keep going. 

“I played through fingernail issues before,” Rourke said. “I just didn't want to come out.”

Those plans changed at halftime when x-rays revealed he suffered a broken bone in his thumb and that’s what caused his thumbnail to shatter. 

Rourke eventually made his way back to the sidelines. He kept his hand out of sight by keeping it in his coat pocket while cheering on the Hoosiers and backup quarterback Tayven Jackson as they closed out the 56-7 win. 

Jackson brought Rourke over to the student section to celebrate, but Rourke was concerned he might have played his last down of college football, but that feeling was quickly replaced with optimism. 

Rourke went under the knife within days for a procedure in Indianapolis to insert two screws into this thumb and once the swelling subsided he returned to the practice field. 

His focus during practice leading up to the Michigan State game was finding a way to protect his thumb and comfortably throw the ball. He experimented with a few different options before landing on a splint he covered up with a glove. 

“I lost a little bit of grip,” Rourke said. “I needed something that would be sticky enough that I could play with, but not inhibit throwing the ball."

The coaching staff increased his workload throughout the week and Cignetti noticed improvement in Rourke’s “zip and accuracy” each day. 

“We had a good plan, the training staff was really awesome,” Rourke said. “Lot of treatment sessions and everything, just able to progress every single day. It wouldn't be possible without the surgeon. Just a bunch of things coming together."

Rourke’s biggest fear was coming back too early and putting the team in “jeopardy.” He said he had discussions multiple times a day with IU’s coaches and trainers about the injury and how he was feeling. 

“Tayven has done a great job, he did a great job last week, I knew the team would be in good hands,” Rourke said. “I wanted to make sure I was at my best and to be able to go and help the team before anything else.”

Indiana’s offense opened the game with consecutive three-and-outs for the first time all season. Those have been a rarity for the Hoosiers in the first quarter — they had two all season through the first eight games — and Rourke was 1-of-4 with nine yards passing during that stretch. 

Rourke said the slow start had more to do with Michigan State’s defensive game plan than his thumb. 

"I just kind of got a feel for what their plan was for the game,” Rourke said. “... We just needed to settle down and just stick to the game plan."

Indiana didn’t look back after Rourke orchestrated a seven-play, 75-yard scoring drive at the start of the second quarter. The possession ended with Rourke hitting a wide-open Zach Horton near the goal line for a score. 

It was the first of four passing touchdowns for Rourke, who showed IU’s future opponents his thumb won't be an issue when he hit Omar Cooper and Elijah Sarratt for big gains on back-to-back deep throws in the third quarter. He finished the game with 263 yards on 19-of-29 passing attempts.

Rourke said he was a bit sore after the game — he took some medication to help with pain management before kickoff — but after the game, the thumb was the last thing on his mind as his team celebrated a rivalry win and historic 9-0 start. 

“I love the guys,” Rourke said. “I think this team is really special.”

Michael Niziolek is the Indiana beat reporter for The Bloomington Herald-Times. You can follow him on X @michaelniziolek and read all his coverage by clicking here.