Canadian quarterback Kurtis Rourke is continuing to prove he deserves to be counted among college football’s elite.
On Saturday, the Oakville, Ont. native led the University of Indiana to a 41-24 victory over Northwestern, improving their record to 6-0. He completed 35-of-33 passes for 380 yards and three touchdowns as the Hoosiers pulled away in the fourth quarter.
At the mid-way point of his season, Rourke has now completed nearly 73.7 percent of his passes while throwing for 1,752 yards, 14 touchdowns and two interceptions. That’s good enough to place him fifth among FBS quarterbacks in passing yards, trailing only Miami’s Cameron Ward, TCU’s Josh Hoover, Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart, and Syracuse’s Kyle McCord.
The Canadian pivot transferred to Indiana this offseason, joining a program that had gone 7-17 over the past two years. They are now undefeated through six games for the first time since 1967 and were ranked 18th in the NCAA by the latest AP Poll — their highest appearance on the list in a non-COVID year since 1993.
The younger brother of B.C. Lions’ quarterback Nathan Rourke previously attended Ohio University, where he surpassed his sibling to reach second all-time on the school’s passing yardage list. He led the Bobcats to a 9-3 regular-season record in 2023, completing 63.5 percent of his passes for 2,207 yards with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions while also carrying the ball 67 times for 219 yards and four touchdowns.
The six-foot-five, 223-pound passer threw for 3,256 yards and 25 touchdowns during the 2022 season, leading Ohio to their first 10-win season since 2011, their first MAC Championship game appearance since 2016, and their first bowl game since 2019. Despite tearing his ACL late in the season, he became the first Bobcat to win the Vern Smith Leadership Award as the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Most Valuable Player.
Rourke is in his final year of college eligibility and was recently named the No. 1 player on the 2025 CFL Scouting Bureau rankings. However, he is expected to generate interest in the 2025 NFL Draft and will have a chance to inflate his stock against a murderer’s row of opponents down the stretch. The Hoosiers’ remaining schedule includes Nebraska, Washington, Michigan State, No. 24 Michigan, No. 2 Ohio State, and Purdue.
Indiana (6-0) goes on a bye this week before returning to action on Saturday, October 19 against the Nebraska Cornhuskers (5-1).