Indiana went from a team trying to prove itself to a team being asked to prove it can stay on top. That shift is behind the new challenge facing head coach Curt Cignetti. According to Barstool analyst Brandon Walker, the defending national champions should change the way they schedule their non-conference games.
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“Curt Cignetti loves to be boisterous… and he loves to say ‘Google me I win,’ but then when it comes time to act like they’re the big dog in college football, they run from competition,” Walker said on October 7 in a podcast on Barstool Sports.
The issue centers on who Indiana plays before the Big Ten season starts. The Hoosiers will not face a Power Four non-conference opponent over the next five years, and Walker sees the same pattern as far out as schedules go. This season’s non-conference slate was Howard, North Texas, and Western Kentucky.
“They are the defending national champs. They’ve won 21 games in a row. They have put themselves at the top of college football,” Walker continued. “I feel if you’re going to do that, you should act like it… You shouldn’t run away like cowards from the Power Four teams of the world.”
Walker pointed to games elsewhere as a contrast and cited Texas playing Ohio State and Michigan playing Oklahoma, noting that neither Michigan nor Oklahoma is strong this year, but they are still facing each other. He also said the SEC now plays nine conference games and has a mandate to play 10 Power Four games a year.
Back in 2023, during the introductory press conference as Indiana’s head coach, Cignetti famously set the tone for himself and said, “It’s pretty simple. I win. Google me,” and the results did back it up.
Indiana went 11-2 in 2024, then 16-0 in 2025, and beat Miami for its first national championship. That is 27-2 over two seasons, with a Big Ten title and a national title.
This season, Indiana is 5-0 overall and ranked No. 7 in the AP Poll. The Hoosiers beat North Texas 52-16, Howard 55-0, and Western Kentucky 38-0, along with Northwestern 29-23 and Rutgers 47-15. Indiana has outscored opponents 221-54 through five games.
The 2027 schedule fueled the latest criticism. Indiana and UMass mutually canceled their game set for September 18, 2027, which had originally been scheduled for 2023 before being moved.
The contract reportedly had a $1.25 million guarantee clause, but neither school paid a penalty. Indiana then added Jacksonville State, so its 2027 non-conference opponents are Kennesaw State, FCS member Indiana State, and Jacksonville State.
Analyst T-Bob Hebert called the strategy “Pathetic” after the Jacksonville State announcement. Urban Meyer, the former Ohio State coach, discounted the wins over North Texas, Howard, and Western Kentucky, saying he views Indiana as “2-0” rather than 5-0.
Indiana’s Big Ten slate still offers real tests. Nebraska is next in an undefeated matchup, with Ohio State, Michigan, and USC later. Those games are included in the conference schedule. The non-conference slate is the part Indiana picks, and that is where Walker wants to see a Power Four opponent.
However, Indiana is not the only program following this model. Penn State also had weaker non-conference opponents. Even many SEC teams do not schedule as Texas did. The reasoning is simple. In the current 12-team CFP, you can’t afford a non-conference loss.
Texas lost to Ohio State last year and finished 9-3. That extra loss ultimately cost them a postseason spot. On the other hand, while non-conference wins do not add anything in terms of strength of schedule for Indiana, they are still good practice games for the new roster before the Hoosiers get to the Big Ten schedule.