Curt Cignetti had plenty to like after Indiana’s latest win, but he didn’t spend much time soaking it in. The defense was overwhelming, the offense piled up points, and still the message from Monday was clear: the Hoosiers have work to do before the Big Ten grind begins.
What stood out most was the way Indiana suffocated the opposition. The defense controlled the line of scrimmage from the start, stacking up eight three-and-outs and a four-and-out while keeping the other team from crossing midfield even once. It was the kind of day that makes a coach nod approvingly - 12 tackles for loss, five sacks, and even a defensive touchdown after a deflected pass.
Cignetti said the entire unit contributed, and he pointed specifically to improvement from week one to week two across the linebackers, defensive line and secondary. There were a couple of blemishes early, including an opening naked bootleg and an RPO, but after that the defense erased the run game and kept the quarterback under constant pressure.
Indiana’s offense did its part, too. The Hoosiers scored on seven of their first eight possessions and spread the ball around enough to empty the bench. Four different receivers caught touchdown passes, two running backs went over 100 yards, and Josh Hoover continued to put up strong numbers.
But Cignetti wasn’t interested in pretending a blowout meant perfection. He said there were still three or four basic reads that were missed on film, and he also identified nine or ten negative plays across offense, defense and special teams that need to disappear. That kind of nitpicking is part of the standard, no matter the final score.
Special teams gave him the loudest concern. Two muffed punts, including one turnover, drew his ire, and he was blunt about the issue: balls in the air have to be caught cleanly. On top of that, Indiana had two touchdown runs wiped out by holding penalties, even as the overall penalty total dropped from five to two.
With Western Kentucky next, Cignetti sees this week as a chance to clean up the self-inflicted mistakes before the schedule gets much tougher. The defense may have set the tone, but the coach’s focus remains on what still needs to be sharpened.
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