Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti liked parts of what he saw in the Hoosiers’ season opening win over North Texas, but he made it clear Monday that there is a lot Indiana needs to clean up before facing Howard this weekend.
Indiana won 52–16 Saturday and jumped out to a 14–0 first-quarter lead before ending the game with a 21–0 fourth quarter. The Hoosiers scored touchdowns on six of their eight possessions and went 4/4 in the red zone.
But Cignetti was more focused on the issues he saw defensively.
“Game one in the books. Some good. A lot of improvements to be made,” Cignetti said. “Defense had a hard time getting off the field. And the opponent had the ball 37 minutes, a combination of some critical missed assignments, poor tackling. So gotta get better there.”
North Texas held the ball for 37 minutes, and Cignetti said Indiana had too many missed assignments and did not tackle well enough in space. He said some of the missed assignments came from the sideline and others happened on the field.
Indiana also dealt with injuries in the secondary very early in the game. A.J. Harris went down on the eighth play, while Jamari Sharpe left on the final play of the first quarter. Cignetti said both corners are day to day.
With Harris and Sharpe out, Jaylen Bell saw extended action. Cignetti said he thought Bell did a nice job, while Ryland Gandy also got on the field.
The Hoosiers will also be without running back Khobie Martin for a stretch. Cignetti said Martin is expected to return around the middle of the season.
On offense, quarterback Josh Hoover had a strong debut, throwing four touchdown passes. Cignetti said Hoover made good decisions and quality throws, but he also pointed out a few mistakes that could be more costly later in the season.
“He got away with one that he’s not gonna get away with in Big Ten play,” Cignetti said.
Cignetti said Hoover needed to step into one of his deep throws to Charlie Becker better. He also said Hoover flipped the protection on a play where he was hit and lost his helmet, leaving himself unprotected against the blitz.
Still, Cignetti was pleased with the overall performance from his quarterback.
“He played well. There’s no question about it,” Cignetti said. “It was a good start.”
Cignetti said North Texas stacked the box with five defensive linemen to slow down Indiana’s run game. That gave the Hoosiers chances outside, and Indiana’s receivers won those matchups.
“I think we won our one-on-one match-ups,” Cignetti said. “They had a hard time covering us.”
He also liked what Indiana did on special teams. The Hoosiers had multiple long kickoff returns, a good punt return and a clean kicking day. Indiana won the turnover battle 1–0, and that single takeaway resulted in a touchdown.
Cignetti also mentioned receiver blocking as an area Indiana focused on entering the opener. He said the position group did a better job there than it had in its previous season openers, specifically pointing to Nick Marsh.
On defense, Cignetti said linebacker Isaiah Jones has become Indiana’s top leader. Jones is taking over a leadership role similar to the one Aiden Fisher held on that side of the ball.
“There’s no question he’s a leader on defense,” Cignetti said. “We’ve got good leadership, and there’s no doubt he’s number one over there.”
Indiana will host Howard at noon Saturday at Memorial Stadium. Cignetti said the Howard Bison have speed and a mobile quarterback who also leads the team in rushing.
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