Indiana writer sends Curt Cignetti clear challenge after Hoosiers’ 55-10 win over Maryland as Penn State, OSU loom originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Indiana Hoosiers football coach Curt Cignetti and offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan’s top-three offense has created a certified superpower in the Big Ten during the 2025 season. But even their mighty attack isn’t perfect.
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Following a second-straight 50-burger in Week 10, a 55-10 win over the Maryland Terrapins, one that followed a 56-6 win over the UCLA Bruins, IU is likely to be the No. 2 team in the country in the College Football Playoff Selection Committee’s first rankings release this Tuesday.
But The Indianapolis Star’s Zach Osterman called out one of the only flaws in Cignetti’s offense during the one-sided Maryland beatdown, as the Penn State Nittany Lions, and a potential Big Ten Championship Game showdown with the Ohio State Buckeyes, loom: tipped passes by the opposing pass-rushers.
“We’re nitpicking here, admittedly. But Fernando Mendoza had a handful of passes batted at the line Saturday, particularly in the first half, as Maryland’s pass rush gained more ground than most do. With Penn State next week (and Ohio State potentially on the horizon), Cignetti might want to see some of that cleaned up next week,” Osterman wrote.
Penn State’s defense stood up to Ohio State’s offensive line and limited big plays from Julian Sayin, Carnell Tate, and Jeremiah Smith for long enough in the Buckeyes’ 38-14 win to earn that kind of respect from an Indiana-based reporter.
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Of course, the Hoosiers are still a two-score favorite in most sportsbooks, so Cignetti, Fernando, Shanahan, Fernando Mendoza, and the rest of the offense will be expected to figure the Nittany Lions out.
Either way, college football is too fickle not to prepare for anything getting in the way of a perfect season or a perfect plan to get back to the postseason. Especially a program that spends like Penn State does.
Cignetti has been on the other side of those upsets with the James Madison Dukes, after all.
