Curt Cignetti walked into Big Ten football media days with a national championship in hand and a familiar message in tow: Indiana is not changing its personality just because the outside world has changed around it.
That was the thread running through nearly everything the IU coach said Thursday afternoon in Chicago. The Hoosiers have climbed to the top, but Cignetti made clear that the climb is not over. The challenge now is staying sharp, staying hungry and not letting success soften the edge that got them there in the first place.
“I’ll be stalking complacency,” Cignetti said. “But I like what I’ve seen so far.”
That line captured the tone of his appearance. Indiana’s process, he said, will stay basically the same.
The meetings, the practice structure and the daily blueprint that he and his staff have used for years are not going anywhere. The program is not spending much time talking about championships or postseason results.
The focus remains on daily improvement, even with more attention and higher expectations heading into the season.
At quarterback, Indiana is turning to another one-year transfer in Josh Hoover, following Kurtis Rourke and Fernando Mendoza. Cignetti described Hoover as an accurate passer with natural instincts and quick processing, but he was just as clear about what the Hoosiers will not ask him to do.
“We’re not going to put the ball in his hand and say, go out and win the game and outscore people,” Cignetti said. “We’re going to give him a run game, defense and special teams.”
In other words, Hoover does not need to be Mendoza in a carbon copy. Indiana wants efficiency, ball security and a quarterback who can work within the support system around him. Cignetti said he is eager to see how Hoover looks once preseason camp gets rolling.
The bigger picture, though, is that Indiana expects to look familiar even with a roster that has changed. Cignetti said the team will be “more same than different,” and he laid out the formula in plain terms: protect the football, stop the run, establish the running game, win in the red zone and handle third and fourth down. He also wants all three phases working together.
The coach did leave room for schematic tweaks based on personnel, but he made it clear what matters most.
“The schematic part of it is really overrated,” he said. “Blocking, tackling, running, throwing and catching is the key to the drill.”
That emphasis becomes even more important with 17 new transfers in the mix. Indiana’s transfer class was built while the program was preparing for and playing in the College Football Playoff, and Cignetti said he believes the staff still did strong work under difficult conditions.
“I really like our transfer class,” he said. “I think we did extremely well under tough circumstances.”
One player he singled out was wide receiver Nick Marsh, who was productive in his first two college seasons. Cignetti also used Marsh to make a point about standards, noting that the receiver wore gold shoes during his first practice before adding, “Maybe we don’t do that where I coach.”
Marsh apparently got the message. Cignetti said he had a strong summer and said he expects “big things” from him. He also expects the rest of the transfer group to settle in more comfortably after spring practice and a full summer in the program.
On the offensive line, Indiana may start camp with a different look than the one it used last season. Cignetti said Adedamola Ajani is likely to open at guard, while Joe Brunner moves outside to tackle.
Ajani has played tackle before, but Cignetti said he seems more comfortable inside. Brunner, who was a guard last season, will get his first crack at tackle.
That setup is not final, and camp will determine the best five-man unit. Still, the move underscores the need for depth and flexibility up front.
After playing 16 games last season, Cignetti knows injuries are part of the equation, especially if Indiana is headed for another long run. The Hoosiers need more than five linemen who can handle meaningful snaps.
Cignetti’s sharpest comments came when he was asked whether the Big Ten’s grind helps prepare teams for the postseason. He called the league the best in college football and praised its physical play, coaching and road environments. Then he delivered a line that sounded like a shot across conference lines without naming names.
“We don’t run a hype machine up here in the Midwest,” Cignetti said. “When we fall short, we say we fell short.
We don’t cry a river, whine and complain. That’s why we’re the best.”
Whether that was aimed directly at the SEC or not, the point was unmistakable. Cignetti believes the Big Ten’s recent results, including back-to-back-to-back national championships, speak for themselves.
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