The national championship picture is already getting crowded. Ohio State and Notre Dame sit near the top of the early betting odds. While Miami is coming off a title game appearance, several other teams, including Texas, have enough returning talent to be contenders. But veteran broadcaster Kirk Herbstreit sees one Big 10 program differently from the usual preseason surprise story.
“I think it’s so many good players returning. I think Miami. I know both [Ohio State and Notre Dame] those teams had great years last year,” Herbstreit said about his preseason natty favorites on August 11 in a conversation with Dan Patrick on NBC Sports. “By the way, Indiana’s not going away. People that think Indiana was a fun story. Mendoza was great. That was a quick one or two years there.
“As long as Cignetti is in charge of that team, get used to Indiana being a perennial power. When I say perennial power, I’m talking top 10, top five every year. So, they’re not going anywhere.”
Indiana is no longer the Cinderella story. The question now is whether Cignetti has built something that can survive the loss of the players who made the breakthrough possible. And the biggest loss is obvious. Fernando Mendoza is gone after one of the best seasons in school history. The QB won the 2025 Heisman Trophy, led Indiana to its undefeated championship season, and became the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. So, QB play becomes important for IU.
“It’s really going to come down to both of those teams, Miami and Indiana, the quarterback play with a couple new faces there,” Herbstreit said.
Now, the Hoosiers will turn to a new QB, with Josh Hoover joining the team after transferring from TCU. Cignetti has already spoken about the importance of developing new players and establishing roles during fall camp. Given Hoover’s production at TCU and his arm talent, Cignetti already had an exciting prospect to develop. Just like he did with Mendoza after he arrived from Cal. There is at least some evidence behind the belief.
Cignetti has gone 27-2 in his first two seasons at Indiana. The program has also made the playoffs in both seasons under him. Indiana has now made a significant investment in keeping its head coach. Cignetti signed a new eight-year contract worth $105.6 million in February. The deal averages $13.2 million per year and runs through 2033. It made him one of the highest-paid coaches in college football.
Now, Cignetti is building his rosters the conventional way and will replace key talent through the portal. He has already reduced his portal haul from 23 in 2025 to 17 this year. Not just that, he also plans to reduce it further and make the whole operation sustainable through high school recruiting.
Moreover, Cignetti has also managed to keep most of his core staff in Bloomington, which continues his ‘underrated’ development at IU. Overall, Cignetti has shown that his 2025 season was not a fluke, despite many doubting him.
