3 Thoughts on Curt Cignetti's Third Presser of Fall Camp

Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti was brief in his comments on Monday, but he did shed light on how his team is progressing through the dog days of fall camp.

Scrimmage Notes From Saturday

The Hoosiers held their first scrimmage of fall camp under the lights of Memorial Stadium. There were not many highlights put out, but there was one of Khobie Martin breaking off a long touchdown run.

Cignetti said " Like most first scrimmages some good, bad and ugly. Not quite as many penalties as there normally are or turnovers, but still lot to clean up in terms of assignments and getting guys to do what they’re supposed to do. "

Cignetti also said that wide receiver Tyler Morris missed the scrimmage due to a "family situation". Morris is penciled in as one of Indiana's starters at wide receiver.

Defense Holds the Edge So Far in Camp

It's clichè but defenses are usually ahead of offenses early on in fall camp and Indiana is no different. The Hoosier defense should be one of the top defenses in the country while their offense is breaking in several new key pieces.

"It's been back and forth, pretty good competition. They both had their moments. The defense, you know one thing about the defense because we're deep on the defensive line when the twos go. We've got young linemen against older guys, but you know that's going to happen in season too if one of those guys has to step in. So, it's been back and forth, but I'd give the defense the edge, and that's been pretty much the case every year I've been a head coach since '19, I'd say the defense has always been a little bit ahead of the offense." Cignetti said.

The Hoosiers have a veteran defensive line that dominated up front in the spring and also return starting linebackers, Rolijah Hardy and Isaiah Jones. It should be no surprise Bryant Haines' unit is ahead this early in camp.

Young Offensive Linemen Coming Through the Pipeline

The Indiana offensive line should be one of the best in the country again in 2026. However, the future of the position has been a curiosity as the underclassmen make their way through the pipeline to playing time.

"Those young guys like (Adedamola) Ajani who has started a game or two and probably played in five to seven games in competitive situations. (Austin) Leibfried, (Matt) Marek, (Baylor) Wilkin, (Sam) Simpson, a true freshman has done a nice job, probably forgetting somebody but those are the guys next in right now." Cignetti said.

The future of the roster and what may or may not be needed in the portal after the season could be determined by who in that group can step up into bigger roles in 2026.

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