Early projections see Indiana football landing in Bowl Game in 2024

Indiana football is coming off of a three win season in 2023 and just a 9-27 record since 2021, but the expectations around the program are the highest they’ve been in nearly four years. Why? New head coach Curt Cignetti who has been instrumental in the narrative shift around Indiana.

After leaving James Madison to come to Indiana this offseason, Cignetti made it known right away that he’s here to win and do it right away.

His stern manner in which he speaks has instilled confidence inside the facility as well as nationally with the fanbase about what to expect in 2024. While he’s yet to put a product on the field, the excitement and momentum continues to build on the recruiting trail.

“We got to change the way people think about Indiana,” Cignetti said this winter. “We’ve been adamant that, look, we’re going to win and we’re going to win this year and we’re going to change the brand and the expectation level and the way people see Indiana football.”

But, for a program that hasn’t won a Bowl game since 1991 and has appeared in just five since 2000 — can a Bowl appearance by the expectation this year?

The early projections are out and 247Sports believes Cignetti will be leading Indiana football into postseason play for the first time since 2020.

“This one’s a stretch,” National analyst Brad Crawford wrote. “But projecting Cignetti in a bowl game to cap his first season as the Hoosiers’ head coach would be a sizable win for Indiana’s football program. In fact, Indiana’s last bowl victory came in 1991 (Copper Bowl). And the Hoosiers have lost their last four bowl games dating back to 2015 by a combined 12 points. The Hoosiers’ roster is portal-infused and Cignetti was one of this cycle’s top hires.”

That projection is to the Quick Lane Bowl against Northern Illinois.

Curt Cignetti is ‘a winner’ and knows how to rebuild programs

Indiana Head Coach Curt Cignetti during a spring practice at the Mellencamp Pavilion on Thursday.

If a Bowl is to come to fruition, it’ll be because of the success Cignetti had in the transfer portal, bringing in 31 new faces who have either been at winning programs before, or been extremely productive players at previous stops. Despite losing 39 guys to the portal, their incoming class yields a net-positive rating after the two classes were calculated.

Postseason play would be a massive step up from the last decade of play for the Indiana football program. It has won more than two Big Ten games just three times in the last nine seasons.

But, if there is a turnaround that could occur like this, it could be this year. With the new Big Ten and dissolution of divisions, the league is more wide open than ever before. Add in the fact that Indiana football has eight home games, and there is a real path to get to six wins.

Indiana’s first month of the schedule includes Florida International, Western Illinois, at UCLA — under a first-year head coach, Charlotte and then Maryland. So, four of the first five games to begin the season are at home, with three coming against non power four opponents.

Curt Cignetti, albeit at non power four programs, has never had a losing season and has had six wins just twice in his 13 seasons — six being his lowest win total in a year.

He’s looking to bring that same winning culture to Bloomington and do it right away.

“There’s no reason we can’t be successful here. We’re going to be successful here,” Cignetti said. “It’s one day at a time. It’s a process right now. It’s always a process.”

SEE ALSO: ‘Time to put it together’: The early foundation has been set for Indiana football. Now it’s time to sustain and build off of it in critical summer months

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