Indiana football earned arguably its biggest win in program history over then-No. 3 Oregon. And it didn’t just handle the Ducks on Oct. 11; it gave Oregon its first loss at Autzen Stadium in nearly three years.
The Hoosiers entered 0-2 in the Curt Cignetti era against teams ranked in The Associated Press’ top 10 away from Bloomington. Now, they’re 1-2.
But Cignetti said he wants his squad to rip off the rearview mirror. The Hoosiers’ victory over the Ducks is in the past — just like the previous five wins — and he doesn’t want his squad dwelling on it.
“Total focus on Michigan State,” Cignetti said during his press conference Monday. “I think the key now is our response coming off of this game. But that's always the key.”
The Hoosiers’ win made national headlines. No longer is Indiana the squad that can’t win big games, and prominent media members took notice.
ESPN’s Heather Dinich, who was outspoken last season regarding Indiana’s inability to defeat teams in the upper echelon of the sport, has since turned. Now, Dinich — a former writer at Indiana Daily Student — thinks Indiana is “for real.”
ESPN’s Paul Finebaum has also flipped his stance on Indiana. He was critical of the Hoosiers’ inability to compete with top teams. Not anymore.
Fox’s Joel Klatt said if a team like Ohio State, Penn State or Michigan went into Autzen Stadium and defeated the Ducks in the manner Indiana did, then that squad would be crowned the absolute national championship favorite.
Klatt said he’d been wrong about the Cream and Crimson all season. He thinks the Hoosiers are more than “for real,” deeming them national championship contenders.
Indiana has won five of its first six games by at least two possessions — the lone exception being a 20-15 road win against Iowa at Kinnick Stadium.
The Hoosiers have two top 10 wins, one at home and one on the road.
Cignetti’s squad has met every challenge head-on this season and conquered each of them because of the hallmarks Cignetti has built his program on. The ones he’s talked about since the day he became Indiana’s head coach.
The Hoosiers have been humble and hungry. They’ve prepared properly, Cignetti said, and displayed it on the field. Indiana has eliminated outside noise and clutter. Controlled the controllables. Put itself in the best position for success. Confidence comes with proper preparation. Cignetti said it also “brings out your best.”
Still, prior results don’t matter to the Hoosiers.
“So, this game gives you nothing,” Cignetti said. “You got to earn everything, and it's all about our mindset and our preparation.”
Indiana has six games remaining in its second season of the Cignetti era. Three games at home and three on the road.
“Now, it's really important that we understand who we really are,” Cignetti said, “and what's got us to this point, always, last year, this year, all the years in the past, you know.”
The Hoosiers’ offense has asserted itself as one of the nation’s best. So has redshirt junior quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who’s tossed 17 touchdown passes and just two interceptions. He followed both fourth-quarter interceptions, which came at Iowa and at Oregon, with game-winning touchdown drives.
Indiana’s defense largely halted Oregon’s high-flying offense. It notched six sacks, eight tackles for loss and two interceptions. The Hoosiers allowed just 267 yards to the Ducks, a team that entered the contest averaging 503.8 per game.
To Cignetti, it's not the statistics that have gotten Indiana to No. 3 in the AP Poll or to the national championship-contending level national media pundits deem it’s at.
It all goes back to the characteristics of Cignetti’s programs, which are now present in the Hoosiers after he installed his proven successful blueprint.
“You got to have commitment, you got to make sacrifices,” Cignetti said. “You get out what you put in. You got to have discipline to do what you have to do when you have to do it and do it right. You got to have work ethic, attention to detail. You got to control the controllables, eliminate the noise and clutter, which you guys (reporters) do a great job of providing a lot of that, and stay humble and hungry.”
Now, the Hoosiers are tasked with retaining the Old Brass Spittoon against Michigan State at 3:30 p.m. Saturday inside Memorial Stadium in Bloomington.
The Spartans (3-3, 0-3 Big Ten) enter the contest after a 25-point loss to UCLA in East Lansing, Michigan. They’ve also dropped games against USC and Nebraska, which are both ranked.
Cignetti sees Michigan State as a “big-time opponent.” The Hoosiers reclaimed the Old Brass Spittoon last season with a 47-10 victory over the Spartans in East Lansing.
Led by second-year head coach Johnathan Smith, Michigan State averages 276.6 yards per game in conference play. Conversely, the Spartans have allowed their Big Ten opponents to gain 400.7 yards per contest.
Indiana possesses the No. 8 total offense and No. 4 total defense in the Football Bowl Subdivision. Michigan State’s offense is the 108th-best. Its defense is the 71st-best.
But for all the success Indiana has enjoyed through its first half of the season, it’s just halfway through its 12-game marathon. No win is guaranteed. That’s why 60 minutes are played on the gridiron.
“We also understand we're in a production-oriented business, and what we did yesterday doesn't mean squat,” Cignetti said, “because next week's news will be largely determined by what we do today (Monday), tomorrow (Tuesday), Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and then obviously Saturday from 3:30 to 6:00, from play one to 150.”
Follow reporters Dalton James (@DaltonMJames and jamesdm@iu.edu) and Conor Banks (@Conorbanks06 and conbanks@iu.edu) and columnist Quinn Richards (@Quinn_richa and qmrichar@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana football season.
