Underestimate Indiana again at your own peril

Just a few measly years ago, the idea of Indiana winning nine football games in a single season was so ludicrous it spawned a portmanteau that turned into a semi-viral social media campaign.

Now, after the Hoosiers won their first — and college football’s most unlikely — national championship, their fan base feels slighted by checking in at No. 6 in the nation in the preseason polls.

And those fans are right. Indiana was disrespected both by the voters in the AP poll and the coaches who make up the coaches’ poll. The Hoosiers start the 2026 season ranked sixth in the nation in both —which is way too low.

I, myself, voted Indiana No. 1, so don’t blame me. Only eight of 63 voters put the Hoosiers in the top spot. I nearly fell into the trap that so many of my fellow voters did; I nearly defaulted to Ohio State. Honestly, it’s easy to default to Ohio State! The Buckeyes always have a loaded roster. Matt Patricia did a masterful job with the defense a year ago, so it’s easy to assume he’ll figure out this year’s version, too. And they return the quarterback who finished fourth in Heisman Trophy voting (Julian Sayin) as well as the actual best offensive player in the country (Jeremiah Smith).

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But here’s the thing. Indiana coach Curt Cignetti has given us zero reasons to doubt him. Quite literally, all he’s done since he got to Bloomington is win. We don’t need Google anymore to tell us the basics. He’s 27-2 in two seasons with the only two losses coming to the two teams that played for the national title at the end of the 2024 season. He took a school that had been home to the losingest program in college football history and turned it into the type of team that can bludgeon Alabama and Oregon in the College Football Playoff.

I wanted to be on the right side of history here. I was an early Indiana believer back in 2024. I picked the Hoosiers to win the title after the CFP bracket came out last December. I trust Cignetti and his staff, especially when it comes to talent identification and development. If Indiana thinks Josh Hoover is going to thrive in its offensive system, I trust that he will — especially behind a strong offensive line with a great rushing attack and elite receivers such as Charlie Becker and Nick Marsh. If the Hoosiers add defensive size, length and athleticism this offseason (which they did), I trust that they will still also be well-prepared and well-coached, always in the right position to make the play.

Others can doubt Indiana if they want. Feel free to question whether the Hoosiers can win big again without their Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback or the veteran leaders who followed Cignetti from James Madison to Indiana. Pick another team because their helmet is what you’re used to seeing when you think about the best teams in college football.

But I’ll be here, defending the defending national champions. Because I’ve been to their facility and seen them practice a few times this offseason, and it feels exactly the same as it did this time last year. I’ve seen the tiny little banner on the wall in the indoor practice facility that says “2025 Big Ten champions” and the matching tiny little banner on the other end that says “2025 national champions.” I’ve seen the brand-new trophy case that had to be built because the Indiana football program didn’t have any trophies until now. And it’s basically just the trophies themselves behind a glass wall.

Cignetti doesn’t do bells and whistles. He wears the same pullover from the first year’s CFP appearance because it’s more comfortable than all the merchandise he got during the national title run. He likes what he likes, and he doesn’t apologize for it.

That’s why his teams play the way they do. They’re disciplined. They’re efficient. They’re hard to beat.

And that’s why I wouldn’t overlook the Hoosiers if I were you. When Cignetti was asked what’s the biggest difference between his first game at Indiana and now, here’s what he said:

“Really more same than different, to be quite honest with you.”

Just like this year’s team. The faces and nameplates might be different, but this is the same Indiana that went from being the bullied to being the bulldozer. The Hoosiers are ready to put the key into the ignition once again.