Curt Cigneeti experienced an unreal hype this season. Turning a lackluster past season record to a seismic 11-1 wasn’t a cakewalk after all. The ‘Google Me’ quote sent a shockwave to the internet and made the veteran coach an instant sensation. They set the bar high for real. The Hoosiers headed to the first-round playoff with a lot of hope and confidence this Saturday. But a storied Notre Dame labeled them down with a humbling 27-17 loss. With this, Indiana and coach Cignetti painfully packed in their historic season. They couldn’t proceed further from the playoff. But what they have done so far went down to the record book as a classic. But the next year can be an uphill ride for Cignetti,

As the ‘Go Indiana’ cry was put to silence for this year, the question begs, what’s next? Well, Cignetti did his best in leading the Hoosiers to their greatest height. His prudent advice, efficient management, and extremely motivating mindset helped the team to chisel out their best. But if you scale the biggest X factor in Cignetti’s success, the top one would be his active recruitment streak in the past year. Also, arguably, they faced an easier schedule. Digging deep into the next year’s potential reality, Zack Guggenheim put out a doubt: “I think the issue is, can he have the same type of success in the transfer portal that he did this past year? Because I mean, that was a big part of it, you know, over 30 players came. He had a lot of personal relationships, plus he was able to identify guys like Curtis Rourke, and so can he do that again where he gets some of the best and brightest from their group of five, cherry picks a few top Stars, maybe in the Power four?”

The Hoosiers get no time to whine. After they step back to Bloomington, the Hoosiers will host official visits for seven key targets of the class of 2025 transfer portal. The list includes a lot of big names like former Maryland running back Roman Hemby, former Penn State quarterback Beau Pribula, and more. It is really a critical transition for Indiana football. They need to divert their attention from the national title to a bigger, better 2025 real quick. A good season entrusted with the charge to carry it forward over the years. At least over another year, so that critics won’t have any room to say 2024 was nothing but a fluke. Coming to the playoff effect in Portal, it can work both ways.

Breaking it down through, Guggenheim added, ”I think that is one of the benefits of being in the playoffs this year. Is it because, hey we got to the playoff this year now? We just need a few pieces to kind of get over the hump, the problem though is going to be the attrition of a lot of people. They’re losing a lot of people, and the schedule’s a lot tougher next year.”

In a hypothesis suggesting NIL is going to restrict Indiana. Zack noted, 

Some silver lining for Indiana. But The AP coach of the year has a lot on his shoulders heading to 2025. His no-participation medal theory didn’t work out this year. But Cignetti should stick to it with all the other necessary efforts to mount a stronger season forward.

Curt Cignetti needs to be high on confidence to keep the flow going in 2025

The Hoosiers have showcased what they can do. They are not just a Cinderella story. They are a team that can be reborn from the ashes and restore their legacy in college football. But for this, Cignetti and his team need to keep their chins up. Before Indiana Hoosiers moved to the Notre Dame Stadium for the second time this season in a rigorous playoff match-up, coach Cignetti checked a not-to-do list as per their first visit mess up.

In their first loss of the season against Ohio State in the same Irish home ground, Cignetti spotted some massive issues. Such as communication gaps, not handling the crowd noise well, and a few more. He pledged not to repeat those errors. But still, the game slipped out of his hand, and so did the season.

But as the IU head coach said in the pre-game interview, they wouldn’t be on the field for the participation medal. They are rather aiming to win and only win. It should stay engraved in his head, timeless.

This Chad approach coupled with the right preparation and a bigger roster strength, can only make Indiana a bride from the bridesmaid in the season approaching.