Indiana, under Curt Cignetti, has opened 2026 with three blowouts. However, despite that unbeaten start, the atmosphere in the home stadium has lacked a punch. The Indiana head coach even talked about it after the Week 3 win. But according to a former CFB QB, the lack of enthusiasm among fans is of Cignetti’s own doing.
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Former FSU quarterback and CBS Sports/Cover 3 analyst Danny Kanell responded to a clip of Cignetti’s comments, writing, “I’m sorry you, but simply cannot b— about the fans when you are purposely scheduling those 40-point blowout games.”
The problem was not a close game or a loss. Large groups of fans left Memorial Stadium once another home contest turned into a blowout. Indiana had sold out its first three home games on paper. Announced crowds averaged about 54,500. However, seats emptied after halftime. That is what led Cignetti to speak up as Indiana prepared for its first real Big Ten test.
“Well, it was hot, you know. It was hot, and I was hot on the sideline. And you know the stadium’s made of limestone, so when you get those hot games, it’s even hotter. And I mean, what are we, 20-2, 29-2?” Cignetti said on September 24 on Indiana’s weekly coaches radio show. “When we came, I saw the pictures, 10,000 people in the stands. You know, don’t bi–h about a 38-0 win,” he continued.
Indiana’s first three 2026 home games were buy games against North Texas, Howard (FCS), and Western Kentucky. Western Kentucky finished 38-0 after Indiana led only 14-0 at halftime.
Kanell’s logic is based on these results. If the games are set up with little suspense after the break, fans leaving is a predictable response to the product, not an insult to the program’s record.
The heat made the picture even more messed up. Cignetti had already called the first three “sauna games.” Turf temperatures reached around 152 degrees. On September 21, he said he understood why people left when games were already decided.
Cignetti’s request was aimed at their next game. Northwestern comes in 2-0 after a 41-7 win over Colorado. It is Indiana’s first Big Ten game of 2026. The weather is expected to be in the 60s to low 70s, so heat is no longer an excuse. The head coach wants fans in their seats from the first snap to the last.
Cignetti called Northwestern “a really impressive football team” and noted people might have a hard time believing that, the same way they once doubted Indiana. However, this is not the first time that Indiana’s scheduling has come under the scanner.
In 2024, Indiana’s first three games were FIU 31-7, Western Illinois 77-3, and UCLA 42-13. In 2025, they won against Old Dominion 27-14, Kennesaw State 56-9, and Indiana State 73-0. None of these opening games included ranked teams. 2024 was different just because UCLA was already a Big Ten game.
That approach to scheduling led to criticism in 2024, yet Indiana made the playoffs at 11-2. In 2025, the same plan was followed by wins over No. 9 Illinois, Oregon, Penn State, Ohio State in the Big Ten title game, Alabama, and Miami in the national championship.
The Hoosiers have not played a ranked opponent or a conference game yet, and Northwestern is the first one this year. The bigger tests are Ohio State (October 17, No. 7), Michigan (October 24, No. 18), and USC (November 14, No. 12).
Other unbeaten teams through three weeks, including Georgia, Penn State, Miami, and Vanderbilt, also had not faced a ranked foe. What stands out is a defending national champion opening with an FCS team and two Group of Five teams, all at home, by a combined margin of 129 points.
Cignetti plans to use September to develop the roster, restrict non-conference risk, and let the nine-game Big Ten schedule carry the team.
Indiana will enter the Northwestern game with the FBS’s longest active winning streak at 19 games and 18 straight home wins, and Cignetti is unbeaten at Memorial Stadium.