Jack’s Take: Indiana Looks Legit, Must Avoid Complacency With Greater Challenges Ahead

Indiana football has put together four impressive performances to begin coach Curt Cignetti’s tenure. But with Big Ten play the rest of the way, Indiana can’t feel content with what it’s accomplished so far.

Jack Ankony | Sep 22, 2024

Indiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti talks with wide receiver Andison Coby (0) against Western Illinois at Memorial Stadium. / Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

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Indiana Hoosiers

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Curt Cignetti shared a similar message after Indiana’s last two wins, part of its red-hot start.

“We'll enjoy this one for 24 hours.”

But after Saturday’s 52-14 win over Charlotte, Cignetti – the first Indiana football coach to begin his tenure 4-0 – repeated that mantra with one important addition.

“And get ready for conference play,” he said.

Indiana already has one Big Ten game under its belt, a 42-13 win over UCLA at the Rose Bowl

which confirmed that the Hoosiers’ early season dominance could translate against a Power Four opponent. But in its other three games, Indiana demoralized Florida International, Western Illinois and Charlotte as a heavy favorite.

Through one third of the 2024 season, Indiana has averaged 50.5 points and 513.7 total yards. Its opponents have averaged 9.2 points and 199.2 yards. The utter dominance, offensively and defensively, was perhaps expected in three of its first four games. But Indiana deserves credit for looking near-perfect so far.

“We know we can battle against anybody,” Indiana safety Shawn Asbury II said. “The real test is coming up these next few weeks, but so far we know if we play our game we can beat anybody in the country.”

Indiana's Bryson Bonds (24) celebrates his fumble recovery against Charlotte at Memorial Stadium. / Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Often how a team wins says more about its talent than the simple fact that it won the game, or even who it beat. Indiana has checked nearly every box. It hasn’t turned the ball over. It has forced seven turnovers. It has scored 20 touchdowns in 24 red-zone trips. The list goes gone. No complaints on special teams, either.

“I think it's a pretty decent start,” Cignetti said Saturday.

At the same time, Cignetti knows Indiana can’t let these early season wins go to its head and feel it doesn’t have to work as hard. Because moving forward, things are going to get more difficult with eight Big Ten opponents.

Indiana appears to have a favorable Big Ten schedule in a league where teams will only play half of the conference every year. Indiana won’t play fellow undefeated teams like Penn State, Oregon, USC, Illinois and Rutgers, plus a solid Iowa team. ESPN ranks Indiana’s strength of schedule 119th, accounting only for the games it has played so far, and its remaining strength of schedule ranks 34th.

“I don’t want to say it’s been easy, but almost it’s felt like it’s been easy to kind of move the ball up and down the field,” wide receiver Myles Price said. “Everybody’s been doing their job.”

From the team’s perspective, a 4-0 start is a good confidence builder, and it helps Cignetti earn buy-in from his players. But feeling satisfied at this point could lead to complacency and endanger what has the early makings of a special season. Cignetti and the team’s leaders will be challenged to eliminate any hint of that sentiment.

“I think this team has learned a lot, and I think they've developed some pretty strong intangibles,” Cignetti said. “We certainly have strong character on this football team and a lot of really good guys as well as good players. We're looking forward to what's ahead. I think the whole key right now is maintaining our focus. We can't have any distractions, and we got to stay focused, humble, and hungry.”

Cignetti is no stranger to success from his time as the head coach at James Madison, Elon and Indiana University of Pennsylvania, as well as assistant coaching stints at Alabama, NC State and Pittsburgh. He’s had to manage this dynamic before, where gaining confidence after wins is a good thing as long as players and coaches stay focused.

It could be an even greater challenge with a roster consisting of so many players who haven’t been teammates before, but Cignetti senses this team is past that hurdle.

“There were a lot of guys on the [Indiana] team last year who have bought in,” Cignetti said. “We have great unity and character on this football team. That's easier to have when you're having success. We haven't really had a whole lot of adversity since the season started, but when you do, it should make it stronger.”

Indiana's Ke'Shawn Williams (5) runs against Charlotte at Memorial Stadium. / Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke – who won Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week after the UCLA game and put together another impressive outing against Charlotte – said adversity has come in small bits so far this season. But he knows that will increase as with stiffer competition.

He’s working to keep this team locked in.

“We have a tougher schedule probably coming up now, but we still gotta come out, prepare the same way we have been, and just prepare for a different defense, different look kind of thing,” Rourke said. “But complacency is gonna hurt us, so we gotta be able to lock in from when we start practice again on Monday, all the way to game time next week."

A strong start and a manageable schedule have Indiana fans envisioning the third nine-win season or seventh eight-win season in program history. The most optimistic ones may even be planning for a College Football Playoff berth. But to make those dreams a reality, Cignetti and the Hoosiers can’t be content with what they’ve accomplished so far.

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