The Indiana Hoosiers are having a tremendous season. Historic by their standards, in fact.
The Hoosiers are a perfect 10-0 and they’re ranked No. 5 in the country. They haven’t played any ranked teams this season but they are 7-0 against Big Ten competition and with a game coming up against No. 2-ranked and 9-1 Ohio State, they have a chance to really make a name for themselves.
Ohio State lost earlier this season to now-No. 1 ranked Oregon so there would be a scenario in which Indiana could lose this one but still remain a College Football Playoff team in the new 12-team format.
That’s certainly a possibility and that’s what Hoosier fans will have to tell themselves if they end up losing in Columbus this weekend, but that’s not the mindset head coach Curt Cignetti is taking into this contest.
The Hoosiers may be an underdog and they may absolutely get some credit for playing OSU tough, but Cignetti is going into this game expecting to win. He’s playing for keeps.
He discussed his mindset recently on “The Triple Option” podcast.
“Well you know, I’m kind of an early morning guy, so if we start at 7 a.m, I’m normally in here 4:30 a.m. or 5 a.m. to kind of organize the day. And one of the first things I do is I kind of create the message of the day, right? And one of the keys of the drill is getting everybody to think alike, players and coaches,” Cignetti explained (h/t On3). “I think it was Monday morning I came and the first thing I wrote down was, ‘We don’t prepare to play it close.’ Right? That’s not what we do. And so we’re excited about the opportunity and looking forward to it.”
If he’s going for it he’s going for broke, and that’s exactly the type of attitude that has helped Indiana go undefeated so far.
Cignetti has been a winner everywhere he’s coached. He was the Sun Belt Coach of the Year two seasons in a row after leading James Madison to an 8-3 record and 11-1 record in 2022 and 2023, respectively.
