The Indiana Hoosiers are one of college football’s biggest surprises this season. First-year head coach Curt Cignetti has the team out to a 4-0 start, tying or bettering their win total in the past three seasons under Tom Allen.
The Hoosiers last got out to a 4-0 start in the 2020 COVID-shortened season, but their last 4-0 start to a “real” college football season was in 2015.
Cignetti was hired by Indiana after coaching the James Madison Dukes from 2019-2023, during which time he went 52-9.
Indiana’s offense has been explosive so far this season, averaging 513 yards and 50.5 points per game in their four wins, one of which came in the team’s Big Ten opener against the UCLA Bruins.
Hoosier hysteria is reaching a fever pitch, and on Friday morning, Cignetti sent an email to Indiana students expressing how important it is for them to show up, be loud, and root for the team in Saturday’s noon showdown against the Maryland Terrapins.
.@CCignettiIU we are there, and might never leave.
See ya Saturday. pic.twitter.com/rWPoGEt6uz
— Henry Thuss (@HenryThuss) September 27, 2024
“We need you there for the opening kick. We need you there in the stands being loud in the first quarter, the second quarter, the third quarter, and most importantly, the fourth quarter,” Cignetti said in the message shared by Henry Thuss of Big Ten Plus.
The head coach’s call to action continued, saying, “The tailgates can wait. The parties can wait. If you need to study, that can wait, too.”
The Indiana/Maryland game will air on the Big Ten Network.
