Indiana Football Begins First Fall Camp Under Curt Cignetti

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – A new era of Indiana football kicks off on Aug. 31, which means it’s time for fall camp.

The Hoosiers had their first non-padded practice on Wednesday at the outdoor practice fields beside Memorial Stadium and Mellencamp Pavilion. Instead of the megaphone-carrying Tom Allen coaching Indiana, a less boisterous Curt Cignetti oversaw Wednesday’s practice ahead of his first season with the Hoosiers.

It was a hot and humid day in the mid-80s, different from the mild conditions of Cignetti’s first practices last spring.

“It forced us to think and play football on day one, so that was good,” Cignetti said.

“We want to develop players, develop more consistency in performance day in, day out, play in, play out. It’s the second time through the offense, defense and special teams now. Guys ought to be playing faster, thinking less. And we want to promote competition.”

Much of the summer was spent working with Derek Owings, Indiana’s new director of athletic performance. Cignetti said he has a lot of trust in Owings, who held the same role at James Madison from 2020-23, because of his knowledge, work ethic, commitment and the respect he gains from players. 

With the season opening in about a month against Florida International at Memorial Stadium, the Hoosiers have heightened their focus on getting in game shape and preparing for their first game. 

“The big takeaway today is you can’t replicate football. No matter what you do in the summer, football is just a set of different movements,” Cignetti said. “A lot of start, stop, and then you throw the heat in there and it was a real test and a challenge. So we’ve got to get into football shape now. We took off weight. We put on good weight. We got stronger, quicker, faster, cut down on body fat, all that good stuff. Now we’ve got to get into football shape.”

Cignetti said he introduced a lot of new concepts during spring practice sessions. But now that it’s the team’s second time through, he’s coaching with an eye on the fine details and finishing. He wants to see all 11 players doing their job at a high level on every play.

Indiana has a new-look roster with 30 incoming transfers and 17 freshmen. Cignetti coached 13 of those new Hoosiers at James Madison, but he has to get the rest of the team to embrace the style of football he demands. 

He often describes that as fast, physical, relentless, smart, disciplined and poised, seen through his James Madison teams that went 52-9 in his five seasons and led the nation in run defense last year. The Dukes had the fewest penalties in the Sun Belt in 2022, and they ranked 12th out of 14 teams in that category last season. Cignetti also mentioned turnover ratio, a stat in which James Madison ranked 24th nationally in 2023.

In addition to those key stats, Cignetti strives to develop a resilient mindset with the Hoosiers that was reflected in his James Madison teams. He referenced the Dukes’ first Sun Belt game in 2022 after moving from the FCS to FBS as an example.

James Madison traveled to Appalachian State, a team which two weeks before won 17-14 at No. 6 Texas A&M. The Dukes trailed 28-3 in the second quarter but came back to win 32-28. Cignetti wants his Indiana team to play with that mentality, where they are not affected by the positive or negative circumstances of a game.

“It’s kind of a mindset and an identity,” Cingetti said. “Those intangibles that we want to develop in camp as well.”