No more 'fraud' talk as Curt Cignetti and Indiana take down Oregon

Earlier this week, Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti was asked how his mindset changes when he’s preparing his team for a monumental game. Cignetti, known to produce an interesting sound bite or two every time he opens his mouth, went the vanilla route.

“I say it all the time — you prepare for them all the same,” he said. “Otherwise, you’d be doing a disservice to your team if you’re all in one game and not all in on another. From that standpoint, it’s pretty much the same.”

It’s hard to doubt Cignetti wasn’t being truthful as he prepped his Hoosiers for a road test at Oregon. In fact, every coach in college football will hit you with quotes about the importance of keeping both feet grounded, taking the one game at a time approach and never looking ahead.

But if you know anything about Cignetti, you knew this one was personal. He wanted to shut people up. He wanted people to see — and finally accept — this Hoosiers team as legit.

So after going out West and beating Oregon 30-20 in Autzen Stadium on Saturday afternoon, let me humbly ask: Has Indiana finally done enough to silence people’s automatic “fraud” reflex? Can people finally start to accept that what happened last year — or at any point in the past — isn’t the only indication of how things will transpire in the future?

Ever since it became apparent Indiana was good, the Hoosiers have been the never-ending target of criticism, particularly from fans of traditional powerhouses. It has felt like being really good is a club, and those fans just didn’t want the Hoosiers part of it.

Could you look back at the video On3’s X account posted earlier in the week when both Andy Staples and I projected Indiana to cover the spread? It was a sea of people not only doubting Indiana, but also insulting. Want some examples? Here:

• “Being certain that Indiana will stay within 1 possession is kinda insane. If it was 10 then maybe.”

• “I got Oregon by whatever they want.”

• “Ducks by 25 plus. Everyone will see IU are frauds.”

On3's @Andy_Staples & @AriWasserman are picking Indiana to cover against Oregon on @BetMGM👀

"I think it's too many points… Indiana is going to make it really interesting." pic.twitter.com/S8EMY9OjJB

— On3 (@On3sports) October 9, 2025

You get it.

What about now? Is Indiana still a fraud?

Listen, the Hoosiers weren’t all the way there yet last year. There is no question that Indiana was the beneficiary of an advantageous schedule. When Indiana faced the two teams that played for the national title — Ohio State and Notre Dame — it wasn’t competitive. And as a result, Indiana created a year-long, bad-faith discussion about scheduling practices because the entire country deemed it unworthy of even participating in last year’s College Football Playoff.

At no point in time did the national audience take a step back and respect what Cignetti did. It was an unfathomably difficult undertaking to turn Indiana — traditionally a Big Ten cellar-dweller — into a College Football Playoff team. Since Indiana wasn’t as strong as Ohio State, the entire event wasn’t taken seriously. It was a joke.

That nonsense carried over to this year. It didn’t matter that Indiana beat a very good Illinois team 63-10 a few weeks ago. It didn’t matter that its quarterback, Fernando Mendoza, is projected as the No. 1 overall pick in most of the NFL Draft mocks you’ll find online right now. It didn’t matter that this team has really good players all over the field on both sides of the ball.

Perception is reality. The problem? In college football, perception is often stereotype. It’s a facade.

So, again, what about now?

What about after the Hoosiers went on the road, faced one of the five most talented teams in the country and went blow for blow with the Ducks for four quarters? What about after Mendoza threw a pick-six late in the game to relinquish the lead, only to lead the Hoosiers down on the ensuing drive to retake the lead? Indiana was better than Oregon from start to finish — no bones about it.

Do the Hoosiers have your respect yet?

Do they?

This year was always going to be different. Yes, Indiana didn’t face any legit opponent in the nonconference, but it wasn’t going to be able to skirt through the Big Ten without proving itself. This game at Oregon loomed large. The game against Penn State — who lost to UCLA and Northwestern in back-to-back weeks — is less of a hurdle now. But the Hoosiers absolutely had to go to Autzen and at least be competitive to prove themselves.

Indiana wasn’t competitive with the Ducks. It was better than the Ducks.

Time to accept it.