Curt Cignetti doesn’t hand out compliments casually, which is why his words about Iowa carried real weight at Big Ten Media Days.
The Indiana coach, known for saying exactly what’s on his mind, singled out the Hawkeyes in a way that stood out even for him. After facing Iowa in 2025, Cignetti made it clear he came away impressed.
“Iowa? Let me tell you: Iowa was one of the most underrated football teams in America last season,” Cignetti said at Big Ten Media Days.
Indiana had plenty of reason to know what Iowa was capable of. In a game at Kinnick, the Hawkeyes were tied with the Hoosiers 13-13 late and had Indiana on the ropes more than anyone else did during its 16-0 run to a national championship. Indiana still found a way to win late, but Iowa had shown it could stand toe-to-toe with one of the best teams in the country.
That wasn’t an isolated flash, either. Iowa also had Oregon down late before that one slipped away as well. Those near-misses told a bigger story: the Hawkeyes could hang with elite competition.
And what happened after those losses matters just as much. Iowa didn’t collapse.
It didn’t let the season unravel. Instead, the Hawkeyes regrouped, finished the regular season 8-4 and then closed things out by beating a good Vanderbilt team in the ReliaQuest Bowl.
So yes, Cignetti’s praise is warranted. Iowa proved it could battle the top teams and still keep itself together when those games went the other way.
At the same time, being called underrated is not the destination. It’s a sign that a team still hasn’t fully arrived. For Iowa, the next step is to stop living in that category and become a team everyone has to account for.
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Curt Cignetti Just Gave Indiana Fans A New Reason To Brag
CBS updated Big Ten head coach rankings gave Indiana fans another banner to wave, with Curt Cignetti climbing to No. 1 ahead of names like Ryan Day, Dan Lanning, Lincoln Riley and Kirk Ferentz. The move is striking not just because of the company he passed, but because it underscores how quickly Cignetti has changed the conversation around the Hoosiers since arriving in Bloomington.
In two years, he has taken Indiana to an 11-win regular season and a national championship, doing it without the kind of long Power Four head-coaching rsum many of his peers brought to the table. The rankings were shaped by recent performance and head-to-head results among Big Ten coaches, which makes Cignettis rise feel less like a novelty and more like a statement about where Indiana sits in the league now. [Read more 🡒]
Curt Cignetti Is Betting Indiana Fans Will Accept This Tradeoff
Indiana footballs rise under Curt Cignetti has come with a clear philosophy attached: if the Hoosiers are going to keep chasing the sports biggest prize, they may have to be selective about the path they take to get there. Indiana has gone 27-2 over the last two seasons, with both losses coming against teams that ended up playing for the national championship in 2024, a run that has changed how the program is viewed and what it can reasonably demand of itself.
The latest sign of that approach came when Indiana backed out of a two-year scheduling agreement with Notre Dame and moved toward a slate built around less traditional, lower-profile opponents. It is the kind of tradeoff that can test fan patience, especially in a state where big games carry obvious appeal, but Cignetti appears to be betting that Hoosiers supporters will accept the short-term hit in schedule glamour if it helps keep the program positioned for a longer stay among college footballs elite. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Defense Suddenly Has New Faces Fans Need To Watch
Fall camp has opened for Indiana football, and the early story on defense is the influx of transfers who could reshape that side of the ball right away. The Hoosiers brought in a mix of proven experience and upside, headlined by EDGE rushers Tobi Osunsanmi and Chiddi Obiazor from Kansas State, cornerback AJ Harris from Penn State, safety Preston Zachman from Wisconsin and EDGE Joshua Burnham from Notre Dame.
For a defense looking for immediate help, that group gives Indiana several new names to monitor as camp unfolds. The appeal is obvious: more depth at key spots, more competition across the back end and the edge, and the chance for a few newcomers to step into meaningful roles before the season even begins. [Read more 🡒]