After a hectic day of travel that included a flight across the country, the Hoosiers have arrived in sunny Southern California. While it’s been Planes, Trains, and Automobiles for Indiana to get to Pasadena, they couldn’t be happier to be playing in the Rose Bowl.
Now that the Hoosiers are settled in Pasadena, they can turn their full attention towards getting prepared for the task at hand. “It’s part of the profession. It’s part of what we do.” Center Pat Coogan said. “But we’re happy to get out here, enjoy the travel, enjoy the flight. We’re happy to be here and ready to roll.” For a veteran team who knows exactly who they are, travel is just another part of the season. It doesn’t matter if they’re driving up to Indianapolis or flying all the way to Pasadena, the Hoosiers will be ready.
A large part of the Hoosiers’ confidence is thanks to the game plan that Coach Cignetti and the staff have put in place in order to keep the Hoosiers sharp. “I think everyone — staff, Coach Cignetti, our strength coach — has put together a great plan for us. And we’ve got to follow the plan to a T, because they’re the professionals. That’s what they do for a living. Follow them and follow their lead. We followed them all the way here. That’s our plan.” Coogan continued.
For Coogan and the Hoosiers, the message has been simple: to stay grounded. “I think Coach Cignetti has done a great job implementing a plan that’s put us in position to be successful. And it kind of starts, like I said, it’s being where your feet are, being present in the moment.” When playing in “The Grandaddy of Them All” being present in the moment and not getting caught up in the hype will help the Hoosiers.
Linebacker Aiden Fisher echoed Coogan’s statements, saying, “I think it was really good for us to get a practice in this morning, kind of handle the preparation. Do the travel, be ready to go again for practice tomorrow. I think that really helps when you cannot take a whole day just to travel and kind of get situated. Now we’ll hit the ground running tomorrow morning.”
Fisher is no stranger to this trip, having played against UCLA last season. “[It’s] easy travel. I remember coming out here for UCLA obviously with not as much time as we do now. But it’ll be good to get practices in and walk-through (indiscernible) we’re already here.”
With practices and walkthroughs already underway, the Hoosiers have wasted little time getting situated. The time for travel is over; now it’s time for them to get to work.