Indiana continues to make history, while Purdue searches for Cignetti-level success

If you looked on a map, you’d see that just 113 miles separate Indiana University and Purdue University, but on the football field, they couldn’t be further apart.

In Indiana’s two seasons under Curt Cignetti, the Hoosiers have done the unthinkable. After an 11-2 campaign that featured a 66-0 beatdown of the Boilermakers, Indiana took historic success to the next level in 2025.

For the first time ever, Indiana finished the regular season with a perfect 12-0 record, and it did so with another huge win over its rivals to the north. The game went final at 56-3, marking the first time ever that the Hoosiers defeated the Boilers by 50-plus in back-to-back seasons.

And it’s been Cignetti who’s gotten it done and taken the college football world by storm. The success he’s had at Indiana has been something very few coaches have ever been able to replicate, and among the programs who have tried to hire the next Cignetti, Purdue is firmly on that list.

After a brutal 1-11 season in 2024, the Boilers elected to fire former head coach Ryan Walters and hire their own coach from the Group of Five ranks. You could certainly argue that Purdue was trying to do exactly what Indiana did, but its 2-10 record with current head coach Barry Odom is proof that Cignetti is a once-in-a-generation coach.

“The fact that we’ve outscored them like we have, it’s just a fact of where we’re at and where they’re at right now,” Cignetti said after the 56-3 drubbing of the Boilers.

Bucket secured, history made — but for Indiana, the climb has only begun

Indiana simply broke Purdue’s will on Friday night. It didn’t dominate with a flashy offense or glitz and glamour — it controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.

The rushing game combined for 355 yards on the ground, the most in Old Oaken Bucket game history, while Purdue totaled just 44. The Hoosiers were the bigger, stronger and more physical team, as they’ve stuck with the identity Cignetti and his staff pride themselves on.

“I really just think it starts at the top,” running back Roman Hemby explained.

“You see a guy like Coach — he knows what the winning formula is, and he instills that in everybody. From him to the coaches around him to the players to the staff members, everybody has a mindset that we’re going to try to go 1-0 every week.”

Winning like this doesn’t just happen. It takes a complete culture shift, and that’s exactly what Cignetti has been able to do in Bloomington. The transfer portal and Indiana’s NIL budget have certainly helped, but if it was that easy, everyone would be doing what the Hoosiers are doing.

So many programs have big pockets and an ability to land impact players through the portal, yet Indiana has been the only perennial loser to execute this kind of turnaround. It didn’t happen overnight, but from afar, it might seem like it did.

Cignetti put together a winner in his first season at the Power Four level, something that Purdue failed miserably at. But in the Boilermakers’ defense, a poor first season is the norm.

An 11-2 first season isn’t normal, and a 12-0 regular season to follow that up isn’t normal either. And at a place like Indiana? It’s unheard of — literally.

The Hoosiers have never been 12-0 before, they’ve never been ranked No. 2 before, they’ve never beaten Purdue by this much in consecutive years before, and with the victory on Friday, IU clinched its first-ever Big Ten championship game appearance.

“It’s a great night for Indiana, for our fan base, our alums, our loyal supporters, everybody that cares about Indiana. This is something that a lot of people probably thought couldn’t happen. And it just goes to show you, when you have a commitment and a plan and you have the right people in place, anything’s possible,” Cignetti told reporters.

Coach Q&A: Curt Cignetti reacts to Indiana’s win over Purdue

With a belief and a commitment to getting better each day, Cignetti and his staff have created something incredibly special. And it’s something that Purdue is so far away from, making the Hoosiers’ success just a little bit sweeter for everyone involved.

“Yeah. For me, when I get handed the Bucket or even the Spitoon, first I want to find the fans. I know we have a lot of fans, alums, former players. This game means a lot to them,” linebacker Aiden Fisher explained.

“This rivalry means a lot to them. And then obviously Coach Cig — how much he does for this team and how good of a coach he is — he deserves to get his hands on that bucket first.”

As one of the former James Madison players who came to IU with Cignetti, Fisher has meant the world to everything the Hoosiers have built the past two years. He’s the face of the identity that Indiana seeks to have whenever it takes the field, but more importantly, he’s been able to facilitate the transition between JMU and the Big Ten ranks.

But Fisher understands that what Cignetti and company have done is remarkable. He also gets how important the Old Oaken Bucket rivalry is to the state of Indiana, and he’s shared that message with the team.

The Hoosiers’ quest for a perfect regular season is complete, and they couldn’t have done it in a more emphatic fashion. Beating your rival by 50-plus is special, but doing it twice? That’s just icing on the cake.

So many are scratching their heads after Indiana’s 12-0 campaign, and for good reason. How could such a historically awful program be so successful all of a sudden? And why aren’t other power schools doing the same thing in the new era of college athletics?

Well, Indiana has what Purdue and others don’t: a Cignetti and a team that is fully bought into the vision of the program.

Cignetti has taken IU football to places it’s never been before, and next, it’ll compete for a Big Ten championship for the first time ever. While Purdue’s season is over with just three combined wins over the last two seasons, Indiana looks to continue making history.

Driving the 113 miles between Purdue and IU takes roughly an hour and 45 minutes, but for Purdue to reach Cignetti-level success, there’s no timetable for that.

And there shouldn’t be, because there’s only one Curt Cignetti.

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