COLUMBUS, Ohio — Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said Purdue (1-10) sucks, and if he stopped there, I couldn’t argue. Michigan (5-5) sucks too? No push back from Buckeye fans (or anyone who enjoys the forward pass). But No. 2 Ohio State (10-1), winners of 39 Big Ten championships and eight national titles?
Slow your roll, Coach Cig. Because the Buckeyes smoked Indiana 38-15 at Ohio Stadium on Saturday, and no slick quotes can spin the result otherwise. In fact, before you mention this conference’s gold standard again, remember this:
Talent beats talk at the top of college football, no matter how much room you have to speak.
Cignetti earned every right to tout his Hoosiers (10-1) during their 10-game winning streak that ended Saturday. He likely earned several coach of the year awards along the way. And let’s be clear: A win over the sucky Boilermakers (Cignetti’s words) next week should earn Indiana a College Football Playoff Berth. No debate.
But when you punch as far up as Indiana has this season, you leave your chin exposed. When you box with the big boys, you’re bound to eat a haymaker. And when you bring a bunch of ex-Group of 5 players to a brawl with five-star recruits, it’s harder to punch back. That’s reality, not a narrative, and it hit the Hoosiers like a Cody Simon blitz against Kurtis Rourke (read: repeatedly) on Saturday.
Google this: Ohio State held Indiana to 148 yards on Saturday, the Hoosiers’ lowest total since the 2021 Tom Allen Hoosiers gained 128 against OSU. The Buckeyes recorded more sacks (five) than Indiana converted third downs (four) through three quarters. And IU produced one play longer than 20 yards all game.
The Hoosiers also allowed a season-high 31 points against coach Ryan Day’s offense. Quarterback Will Howard scored almost as many touchdowns (three) as he threw incompletions (four). Buckeye wide receivers caught 14 of their 16 targets, because five-star receivers beat undersized corners. Common sense.
Hoosier fans might counter by saying IU picked the wrong day to play its worst game. If Indiana punter James Evans doesn’t fumble a first-half snap in front of his own end zone, maybe this game stays competitive. And if Indiana tries harder to score in the second half — Cignetti spent much of the second half draining clock to lessen the dent in IU’s playoff resume — maybe its numbers look better.
But if you say Purdue sucks (yep), Michigan sucks (happy rivalry week) and Ohio State sucks, you should beat (or at least look competitive against) all three. You shouldn’t shift your offense into turtle mode in fear of the Buckeyes. And if you do, then maybe you shouldn’t have mentioned them in the first place.
Cignetti proved a lot of doubters wrong this season. He deserves every accolade and postseason opportunity for Indiana’s splendid, surprising ascent into Big Ten contention. But the top step is the hardest to climb, and you need more than culture and experience to climb it. To hang with the sucky Buckeyes (again, Cignetti’s words), you need a lot more talent than Indiana fielded this season.
Ohio State rosters 14 five-star players, Indiana rosters 10 four-stars (3-7 Charlotte rosters 12), and in some ways, those number underscore Cignetti’s accomplishments this season. But they also illustrate the stark difference between two programs that entered this week 10-0.
Ohio State sucks? Watch your mouth, new guy. Because the Big Ten’s old guard has lasted this long for a reason. You need culture, experience and star players to win this conference, no matter how much you (deservedly) tout your team’s other talents.