Oregon Safety Dillon Thieneman Makes His Feelings Clear About Indiana

For the second time this season, the Oregon Ducks and the Indiana Hoosiers will face off. The stakes are higher this time around, with a trip to the National Championship on the line.

With a long family history in West Lafayette, safety Dillon Thieneman had previous experience with an Indiana rivalry before Oregon. The transfer from Purdue didn’t mince his words about the Hoosiers ahead of the Peach Bowl. Without giving any bulletin board material, the veteran was able to make his feelings clear about Indiana.

oregon ducks dillon thieneman transfer portal dan lanning safety college football playoff peach bowl indiana hoosiers — Oregon defensive back Dillon Thieneman speaks with reporters during Oregon football’s Media Day on July 28, 2025, at Autzen Stadium in Eugene. | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

What Dillon Thieneman Said Before the Peach Bowl

If He Has Any Connections on the Indiana Side and What It’s Been Like to See the Hoosiers’ Rise to Prominence:

“Yeah, I definitely know a few guys on that team, but just coming from Purdue, I think you know how I feel about them. Don't need to say it.”

If It’s Hard for Him to See Indiana Have the Success They’ve Had After Coming From Purdue:

“I mean, props to them for what they've done, but I definitely have my own kind of feelings about the game and that team and stuff, so excited to get out there and play.”

The Importance of Having a Defensive Game Like the One They Just Had Heading Into The Semifinal:

“I do think we are where we want to be. I know Lanning, coming into the playoffs, he did a lot of research into like March Madness, how they have that big playoff, and how you want to peak at the right time. And I think as a defense, we're starting to hit that peak.”

What It Means to Him to Be in the Semifinal:

“I’d just say it’s very special. It is a moment I hoped for when I first came here, and then just to see it come true is very special. And I'm just extremely grateful to be in this position.”

What the First Meeting Did for Them to Reset:

“Kind of just do what you say. It was a reset. Just showed us, like, we got to bring it all four quarters. We can't let up. We can't let the foot off the gas. And then I think it was just a reminder to play to our standard and how we need to finish these.”

Where the Team has Improved Since the First Matchup:

“I think just our communication and working on the same page. Like, there's some other plays in that first game that we played against them where we were kind of hurting ourselves, either get out of gap or not having proper fits. But I think we've cleaned a lot of that stuff up. So excited to get better.”

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What Factors Make It Hard to Beat a Team Twice:

“I'd say, yeah, a lot of the habits and patterns. Teams really try to break that, but you kind of get a feel for how an offensive coordinator might call a game, or how players might run their routes or do certain things, and it really just comes to who can adapt and who can just play off of it.”

His Confidence in Defensive Backs Peyton Woodyard and Zach Grisham:

“I'm very confident in them. They've been preparing all season, like they've been out there. I trust both their abilities. They've shown it in practice. They’ve shown what they can do. They prepare the right way. So, they get out there, and like, I trust them to do their job.”

Safety Aaron Flowers’ Production:

“Me and him, we’re roommates. Like the night before, like games when we go travel, we always room together. And then just meeting him, just talking, communicating, like we're always talking off the field, we're talking on the field, just being able to play off him and trusting him on the other side of the field has just been a huge factor. And we play off each other, we communicate, and I trust him to have my back, and he trusts me to have his.”

What’s the Hardest Thing as a Transfer:

“I think just the speed of when it happens. Like the transfer portal is just like recruiting out of high school, but it just happens within a one to two week process, so the speed and the flow, and then you’re just changing environments really quickly. So being able to, I guess, adapt.”

What Changing Coverages Do to Confuse a Quarterback:

“I think it's a special part of our defense is that we can switch up, like what we're playing each game that we come to, so teams don't really know what to expect. So, we play different cover fours, different this, different that. But I think it just keeps teams on their toes and makes them react instead of like be prepared.”

On Indiana’s Receiving Core:

“I think they're very good all around. They got the slot and then starting to come on later in the season. So, they got some size, they got some length, so they push it down the field, and then they're good at kind of just hitting all areas of the zone. I think Mendoza is a very efficient passer, and he can scramble when he needs to.”

If there’s Anything from the First Matchup That Stuck with Him:

“Nothing too specific, just the loss overall. Just kind of, I think it's stuck with everyone. Just a reminder of how we need to play, like if we don't bring it, then any team can beat us in season, and just now going in postseason, it's win or go home.”