Sports Illustrated
In terms of encores, Indiana has the highest bar to clear across college football to match, or potentially exceed, what it accomplished in 2024.
To call it a dream campaign might be underselling it. It made a traditional hoops school a football-mad one. The Hoosiers went from winning three Big Ten games in three years to going 8–1 in league play and making the College Football Playoff. Perhaps most remarkable of all, Indiana was one of the talking points in the sport for nearly two months (even in SEC country, who seemed particularly affronted by the team’s success).
As head coach Curt Cignetti deadpanned on more than one occasion, it was the greatest season in program history, No. 1 out of 126. No pressure going into 2025 living up to all .
“I get questions, how are you going to sustain it? We’re not looking to sustain it. We’re looking to improve it,” Cignetti said. “Consistency is huge so that we can play fast, physical, relentless, smart, disciplined, poised, not be affected by success, not be affected by failure, and never ever be satisfied until the game is over.”
With preseason camp underway and as Week Zero draws near, people are asking who this season’s Indiana can be—that team which comes out of nowhere to surprise and make a run to the CFP. Well, for those in Bloomington, Ind., there’s a little bit of confusion because the Hoosiers think they are, well, this year’s Indiana. Maybe not a group that comes out of nowhere, but one perfectly capable of getting back to the postseason.
“The theme of this year really is humble and hungry versus noise and clutter. Humble and hungry. If you are humble and you are hungry and you’ve got that fire burning inside your belly and you’re committed to high standards, and the leadership has a good plan … then you’re going to reach your full potential,” Cignetti said. “If you are resting on your laurels and you got the warm fuzzies based on what social media is telling you or what you read on social media and you think it’s just going to happen again because it happened before, you ain’t going to be a very happy camper when the season is over. My job is to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
It helps that a slew of starters are back, including tackling machine Aiden Fisher, lockdown corner D’Angelo Ponds and dangerous wideout Elijah Sarratt. The transfer portal gifted several other key players expected to start and new quarterback Fernando Mendoza is already being discussed as a potential first-round pick if he plays up to his potential. The schedule is more daunting than a year ago, but the Hoosiers should still be favored in all but two games (at Oregon and at Penn State).
That sure seems like a recipe for decent success on the field, even at a place where the bar has been moved considerably higher under a head coach who no longer needs folks to Google who he is or what he can do.
Fast Facts
2024 record: 11–2, 8–1 Big Ten
Offense: 41.3 ppg (second in FBS), 6.51 yards per play (15th)
Defense: 15.6 ppg (sixth in FBS), 4.28 yards per play (second)
On the HeadsetCurt Cignetti, entering Year 2 in Bloomington, 130–37 overall record, 11–2 with the Hoosiers
Meandering is a good description of Cignetti’s career, but it’s difficult to argue with his path to success or how he’s achieved results with good, old-fashioned hard work.
He left Nick Saban’s staff at Alabama to go build up Indiana University of Pennsylvania into a consistent Top 25 program in Division II before stepping up to do the same at Elon. At James Madison, he guided the Dukes into becoming a top-five FCS team before going 19–4 in his first two years at the FBS level. While some thought Cignetti was a bit foolish for taking the Indiana job off so much success, the marriage has turned out to be perfect between a confident strider and a program that needed someone to pick it up and focus on the future.
Last season underscored just how good Cignetti is at everything that goes into being a modern head coach, from the roster building to firing up the fan base to pushing the administration for more resources. He rightfully earned several national coach of the year honors, a big new contract and seems primed to keep things rolling at a place where consistent success has been fleeting for its entire existence.
“I’m really good at a couple of things. I know I got to improve in a lot of ways, but I’m really good at keeping the main thing the main thing and being a watchdog for complacency and stomping it out,” Cignetti said. “When we go to camp and we get ready for that first game, these guys will be thinking like we need them to think.”
It’s not often that a coach will shy away from raised expectations, but if there’s anybody who wants his team to embrace them going into a big season, it’s Cignetti.
As much as the Hoosiers offense drew attention last season for blowing out opponents with regularity, their defense was also stellar and saw only national champion Ohio State finish with fewer yards per play allowed in 2024. The Hoosiers return All-Big Ten caliber players at every level but what really makes the entire group tick is when Kamara is coming off the edge with a vengeance. He’s not the biggest guy out, there but he’s got a relentless motor and could very well top last year’s sack total (10.0).
Key TransferQB Fernando Mendoza, from California
Former starter Kurtis Rourke surprised many folks when he let it slip during the run up to the draft that he played the season with a torn ACL yet still posted an impressive 27-to-4 touchdown-to-interception ratio. As good as he was for the team with that injury however, there’s optimism that Mendoza is a massive upgrade under center that should add another dimension to an offense that was already among the most potent in the sport. The ex-Golden Bear had to do a ton of work with inferior talent in Berkeley and yet still showed enough flashes that he could be a first-rounder given his frame, arm strength and ability to make plays. This is a pure upside type of transfer and Mendoza’s play will go a long way in keeping Indiana in the playoff hunt.
Key DepartureDL CJ West, fourth-round NFL draft pick by the San Francisco 49ers
The Hoosiers had a terrific run defense last season and West played a big role in that given how he could eat up space and force his way into the backfield. He was far from the most hyped of the additions in Cignetti’s first year having come from Kent State but he would pop every time it felt like Indiana needed a play. While the defense won’t lack for other playmakers, West’s presence will be missed and difficult to replace.
Circle the Dates Sept. 20, vs. IllinoisSept. 27, at IowaOct. 11, at OregonNov. 8, at Penn StateBottom Line
Write off Indiana’s success as a one-year wonder at your own peril because there’s a lot to like between the players coming back to make another run, the incoming transfers and Cignetti’s track record in charge. The schedule is undoubtedly harder than last season but reaching double-digit wins again to remain in the CFP discussion is perfectly reasonable at a place that will be discussed much differently in 2025 than it was a year ago at this time.
