The man Curt Cignetti definitely has some superpowers! Even though the Indiana Hoosiers might try their best to keep the secret of their main man under covers, Cignetti’s magical powers are seen on the scoreboard. On November 30, the Hoosiers blocked all the paths for Purdue Boilermakers as Ryan Walters’ program was made to pack their bags and leave without scoring a single point. Cignetti’s squad grabbed a big win, 66-0, UNIMAGINABLE in every sense! So it’s evident that the Hoosiers HC will not be having any touch of remorse in his post-game speech. While Cignetti now becomes the center of all the attention, Walters too gets the center seat, but not for something positive. 

Cignetti engineered the biggest blowout victory indeed for the Hoosiers. If you still have doubts, go check out the history of the Old Oaken Bucket rivalry between the Hoosiers and Boilermakers. Looks like as the snow dusted the Memorial Stadium on November 30, Saturday night, it also dusted some good luck on Cignetti’s boys. After all, this marked their first Bucket win since 2019 and the first one in Bloomington since 2016. Before the game, Cignetti came up with his message of the week, which was all about refocusing. So when their archrivals got beaten so badly, remorse had left the chat when the Indiana HC shared his take during the post-game interview. He stated, “It was a pretty dominant win. I thought we really played well on defense.”

That does not mean that Cignetti turned a blind eye to Hoosiers’ faults. So he addressed, “You know, offense had some missed opportunities, but it’s a rivalry game.” But not to forget the show stealer, the Indiana QB Kurtis Rourke, who tied a single-game program record with 6 touchdowns. This was enough for Cignetti to aim higher. 

He did not even utter a word to empathize with Ryan Walters who now lands in a sticky spot. Instead, he dished out an open warning for those who take them lightly. “It’s a great season for these guys. We’ve got a lot of great kids on this team, lot of senior leadership. It’s a historic year for Indiana, but we’re not done yet, and we’re not satisfied,” warned Cignetti. Now let’s find out how deep the soup is that Walters landed in. 

Curt Cignetti’s impact opened the eyes of the Boilermakers camp

Cignetti has left the cracks open for Walters as the HC. This might have left the Purdue fans to let out a sigh of relief. Loss and relief must be confusing, right? Well, the loss against Indiana has put an end to their three-month-long misery as the 2024 season is finally over for the program. They can now start planning for 2025, and it already looks like the HC will no longer find a role for himself at Purdue.

Already things are boiled up in the Boilermakers hood since they have lost 11 consecutive games this season and are winless in conference play. The only good part about their journey so far has been their single win against Indiana State. So who else had to bear the blows? Of course, HC Ryan Walters, as hate messages started to drop in. For instance, a frustrated Purdue fan wrote, “Ryan Walters NEEDS to be fired this year.” After all, the stats look concerning. 

Over the two seasons holding the HC role, Ryan Walters is 5-18 overall and 3-18 in the Big Ten. Even though he signed a five-year contract worth $20.5 million in December 2022, the Boilermakers are in no way willing to give him another chance. Looks like they already have started to gather the hefty amount of $9.3 million as Walters’ buyout. Thanks to Curt Cignetti for opening their eyes!