'We're Prepared Now': Indiana Football Wants to Prove it Belongs in Top 10 Matchups

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — The winding hallways inside Notre Dame Stadium's Corbett Family Hall led Indiana football players and coaches to ponder the sobering reality of their place in college football's hierarchy last winter.

The only thing separating Indiana coach Curt Cignetti, defensive coordinator Bryant Haines and linebacker Aiden Fisher from the final seconds of the Hoosiers' 27-17 College Football Playoff loss to the Fighting Irish was the brief hugs and conversations in an emotionally distraught locker room.

But there they sat in the Martin Media Center, forced to analyze the razor thin but glaringly obvious gap between great and elite, between themselves and teams like Notre Dame and Ohio State. Indiana lost only twice in 2024. The two teams who beat the Hoosiers played for the College Football Playoff National Championship.

Indiana won 10 of its 11 games by two or more possessions last season. It largely steamrolled opponents en route to the most successful season in program history.

But Notre Dame and Ohio State flipped the script on the Hoosiers, who lost by 23 points to the Buckeyes and trailed the Fighting Irish by 24 points with two minutes left in the fourth quarter before a pair of late touchdowns made the final score more competitive.

Cignetti said the difference between Indiana and Notre Dame was depth and a better collection of traits on the front-line. The Fighting Irish, he said, had players who were "just a little bit bigger, stronger, faster than our guys."

Haines said the margin of error is incredibly small. He cited Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love's 98-yard touchdown run, where Haines put in a reasonably conservative play-call but Indiana misfit a gap and allowed the longest rushing score by any FBS team last season.

Fisher echoed Haines' thoughts, noting Indiana made "a lot of critical errors." It was like Indiana had to play against two teams: Itself, and the opponent.

The No. 7 Hoosiers (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) have spent the past nine-and-a-half months gearing up for another shot at the sport's elite. Their opportunity comes at 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday, when they travel to face No. 3 Oregon (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) inside Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon.

Indiana knows Autzen Stadium will be loud, and the game will be highly covered. ESPN's College GameDay will be on-site in Eugene, and the Hoosiers will play on CBS for just the second time in 19 games under Cignetti's leadership.

It's not pressure. It's an opportunity — and Indiana is steadfast on righting its big-game wrongs from 2024.

"I think a lot of these guys in here kind of felt the disrespect from last year (and) carry it into this year with a chip on their shoulder," Fisher said Tuesday. "This is why you come here, to play in games like this. This is what Indiana football is now.

"We're going to play in these big games and expect a great outcome. So, you just got to prepare for it like any other game."

Indiana already has more gemstones on its resume this year than last, stomping then-No. 9 Illinois 63-10 on Sept. 20 and outlasting Iowa 20-15 on Sept. 27 in Iowa City.

The Hoosiers still need to add a crown jewel. They can do so Saturday, and they understand the narrative about the matchup's significance.

But Cignetti and his staff preach the next game on the schedule is the biggest only because it's exactly that: Up next. Fisher said Iowa was the biggest game of his career. Now, it's Oregon. Naturally, Michigan State the week after will take its place.

Still, Fisher acknowledged Saturday is a "really big game," and the Hoosiers have earned the right to be there. Indiana, he said, is a really good team, and so is Oregon. But he's not putting unnecessary presure or emphasis on it.

Neither is senior receiver Elijah Sarratt.

"It's a very big opportunity," Sarratt said Tuesday. "I mean, it's a top 10 matchup. But we're treating it just as we would treat any other game. It's still a regular season game, so we're treating it just like we treated Iowa, Illinois, and every other team. So, we'll go out there and just continue to do our thing."

Now, Indiana knows how to execute on such a stage — it learned the hard way through its losses to Ohio State and Notre Dame last season. Pertaining to crowd noise, Cignetti and senior center Pat Coogan both noted it's easier navigating the second time having been through it before. The same applies to the environment of top 10 games.

Sarratt noted he and several of his teammates last season were new to playing in those matchups. The Hoosiers' 38-15 loss to Ohio State was Sarratt's first top 10 game. The College Football Playoff loss to Notre Dame was his second.

And while neither game went how Sarratt hoped, the preseason All-American wideout now carries lessons from the losses in his back pocket.

"I feel like we're prepared now," Sarratt said. "It's just all about going out there, executing and having fun. Just having that under your belt, it gives you more confidence going into these games, knowing what to expect, knowing how the crowd is and (how) the whole environment's going to be."

Some of the things that separated Indiana from Notre Dame and Ohio State last season haven't changed. Cignetti acknowledged Monday the Hoosiers aren't as big as the Ducks, who can rotate four defensive tackles that weigh 330-plus pounds, but he added Indiana didn't win the battle at any position in last season's losses.

Cignetti said Indiana will find out this week if it's trimmed the margin roster-wise. The Hoosiers will devise a game-plan to try to combat Oregon's size advantage, but Coogan reiterated an age-old adage superseding all schemes: The lower man often wins in the trenches.

"Leverage is key," Coogan said. "And we've got to be prepared. We've got to watch the film. We've got to put in the time, put in the work. They're big bodies, but they're uber athletic as well. There are no slugs in there. Those boys can move. They're really twitchy and athletic and long, so they've got some players for sure.

"So, we've got to put in the work and be ready for them."

The Hoosiers' defense has taken a similar approach to avoiding critical errors.

Fisher spoke to junior safety Amare Ferrell and redshirt senior rover Devan Boykin, among others, at practice Tuesday about winning on the "small things." When the starters are on the sideline, they're telling each other they've got to stay on top of minute details.

Indiana ultimately can't assure it won't fall victim to the thin margin of error once again, but Fisher said he and his teammates are taking the initiative to get ahead of the mistakes.

"Angles to the football (and) communication has to be at an all-time high," Fisher said. "We're making sure we take the initiative, take command now, and those won't play a factor in the game as long as we're keying on them now. Kind of hammer those details out."

Since he was a little kid, Sarratt said he's prided himself on winning championships. Coming to Indiana, he wanted to help turn around college football's all-time losingest program. He's done that. Fisher said games like Saturday are why players come to Indiana: They want to face elite teams and compete at the highest level.

The Hoosiers have, for weeks, said they're a top 10 team. Their resume suggests it. Their ranking reflects it. They have the chance Saturday to leave no doubt.

"We're not trying to prove it to anyone. We're just trying to prove it to ourselves in the locker room," Sarratt said. "We talked about this all summer — working out, we're dog tired, but we got to push through it, because in the big games, that's what you're going to have to do.

"So, we know it's a big moment, but it's just another game. We're going to go out there and do our thing."