What Curt Cignetti Had To Say As No. 23 Indiana Prepares For Northwestern

Indiana plays a Big Ten game as a ranked team for the first time since 2021. Here's what Curt Cignetti had to say about the Hoosiers, the Maryland game and the Northwestern contest to come.

Indiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti after a game against the Maryland Terrapins at Memorial Stadium. / Robert Goddin-Imagn Images

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana football coach Curt Cignetti spoke to the media during his weekly press conference at Memorial Stadium on Monday.

Here's everything he had to say.

Opening statement ...

Cignetti: Good win Saturday. Hard-fought game against a good football team. I was really proud of the way we overcame sort of the adversities of the game, so to speak. Offense turned it over three times in the first half and defense responded every time. And then the offense throughout the game responded to Maryland's scores. Would like to finish the game a hair better. I thought we really could have made a statement at the end, but it's a good win.

Northwestern, they're a tough challenge. This will be the best defensive team we've played. Really extremely well-coached, in the right places. They know what they're doing. They make you earn your points. They're not going to lose the game. You'll have to win it.

Offensively, struggling a little bit to get their rhythm going. Quarterback position's been a little inconsistent for them but have some dynamic guys.

Kickoff return guy (Joseph Himon II), a 96-yarder against Washington, plays some running back, too. Looking forward to having a good week in preparation for this next game.

On how fighting adversity manifests itself ...

Cignetti: To me, part of coaching, you're sending those messages in spring football practice, fall training camp, how are we going to respond when this happens, that happens. It's the way we play the game: Never too high, never too low.

You're not emotional about the circumstances of the football game. You're focused on the here and now and what's your job, keeping your poise and composure. When you get 11 guys doing their job consistently, that can happen.

Are there any team strengths that surprise him ...

Cignetti: I mean, I don't really look at it like that. To me, all the areas have to improve because you do get better or you get worse.

I think we've played fairly consistently for the most part in all three phases, but definite improvements that can be made.

With every success comes belief, and this is a team that's a little bit on a mission, and Northwestern is the next one up.

How do you recruit the kind of players who will buy in and how do you maintain it?

Cignetti: It's all about the people you hire and recruit. In recruiting, talent's important but character is equally important.

I sit down with all of them in my office because you want people that can kind of buy into the team concept, understand commitment and discipline, hard work, that are moldable and not necessarily totally self-centered type people. It's all about people.

On the quality of play from both lines ...

Cignetti: I thought our defensive line needed to have a big win in this game because it's one of our strengths going up against one of their weaknesses. I felt like they did. We put really good pressure on the quarterback, and I was glad to see that.

The offensive line, I think, has done a nice job game in game out. I think certainly you could see in the second half the push we were getting in the run game.

On how Kurtis Rourke responds to adversity within games ...

Cignetti: I think it's just more being around him since he's been with us since the spring. He doesn't really seem to get fazed by a whole lot of stuff and he's on to the next play.

Those turnovers were avoidable. Sometimes you've got to cut your losses, but I never had -- nor did anybody on the staff -- have any kind of doubt that he wouldn't bounce right back, which he did.

How has wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. stood out ...

Cignetti: You know, his big thing is day in, day out consistency, because he has talent. I really like him a lot.

He's an explosive player with good ball skills that has just improved from spring to fall camp throughout the season and that's why we're putting him in position to make the plays. He made a couple big ones on Saturday, couple nice throws, contested catches. I liked him a lot.

Is there a shared trait his teams have had in winning ...

Cignetti: Well. Yeah. You've got a blueprint and a plan and you're creating a culture, an identity and a team mindset. We want to be a tough, physical, relentless competitor that plays really hard one play at a time, smart, disciplined and poised. Never too high, never too low.

That's how all the teams have played. That's how we're trying to get this team to play.

More on the offensive and defensive lines ...

Cignetti: I mean, it's all to me the same. Today's got to be a great day of preparation, mental and physical preparation for the opponent coming up.

You stack good days and hope you can keep your people healthy because that's a big part of it too. We're deeper in some areas than others. Keep improving.

How has Indiana shortened its "margin for error" ...

Cignetti: I think just in our mindset and how we approach the game and some of the questions were directed to overcoming adversity or the highs and lows of the game is that this team has sort of absorbed that message, tried to apply it where they're not overly affected by success or failure.

On wide receiver Myles Price ...

Cignetti: He's a really good player. He's a great teammate, too, has a lot of positive energy. Derek Owings knew him from his time at Texas Tech. Derek had been at Texas Tech.

We liked what we saw on his tape and in our conversations with him. I think he's done a tremendous job.

On whether Cignetti worked "close connections" whether assistant coaches say this is a guy that maybe stands out?

Cignetti: The guys are in the portal, you evaluate the tape. I think Derek came to me said this is a guy we ought to look at real hard; he's a great teammate, great for the locker room, which he is, yeah.

On offensive line coach Bob Bostad's approach ...

Cignetti: You know, Bob's a really good football coach. He's a fundamentalist. He's tough. He's hard-nosed. His guys embody that. Kind of a blue-collar work ethic. He makes them tough and physical, and he coaches them that way every single day. And I see it show up on Saturday.

On how the Indiana defense responded after Indiana turnovers ...

Cignetti: Well, yeah, I was really pleased to see that, right? It gave us an opportunity to be successful. I'm not surprised by it because I think we have a good defense, a very capable defense.

I wish we didn't turn the ball over like we did, but sometimes you're going to have things throughout the season, and it was great to see them do that. Again, I just think every win builds team confidence.

On Elijah Sarratt ...

Cignetti: He loves ball. He's very competitive. He's got good talent. He's got great ball skills. He's really good at contested catches. He's always up. He's got a great personality, and he's eager to practice, eager to play and loves ball.

On being aware of Sarratt's nickname, "Waffle House" (because he's open all of the time) ...

Cignetti: I heard that he had created that name. I can't attest to the validity of Waffle House Always Being Open. But even when he's not, he'll find a way to come down with the ball.

On whether Cignetti is surprised by Indiana's 5-0 start and what fan reaction should be ...

Cignetti: I'm not surprised. I pretty much told everybody when I got hired that this is what was possible, and I felt strongly about that after we brought the 2022 transfers in December and added a few more at the end of spring ball and saw the culture come together the way it did.

But we had to put it on the field. So I knew it was possible because I'd kind of been a part of something like this before.

I think people are getting excited, which is a natural part of that process, too, when you win, right, the stadium fills up more, it gets louder, and the team understands how fragile success can be and how important preparation is on a daily basis and I'm confident we'll handle today and this week the way we need to.

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