@yothn In an answer to both you and Tammany... agree, we'll sell out most of our games for the foreseeable future. But an ND game versus a weaker opponent, and/or lesser name... brings in the possibility of Game Day, Big Noon type atmospheres, more people coming just to be around the stadium, more everything.
And while the Natty, Mendozas Heisman, Cig's continued incredible sound takes, all of it... 100% are establishing IU as a national power. And really all that matters is they keep winning games, and keep making CFPs... I get that. But playing these HUGE pre conf games is what most of the Big, Big dogs are doing nowadays. To me, scheduling 3 easy non conference games was a great early strategy. But winning the Natty, landing guys like Sales... where the program is trending in many ways... to me, I fear that IU ducking major pre conf games will become a huge talking point. And that will stick with them. And if/when they do end up dropping a B10 game or two... it'll have a magnified effect on their perception, CFP chances, all of it.
I think it was a HUGE mistake.
I just don’t see it. A huge mistake is something that materially impairs the program. And one game in each of 2030 and 2031 doesn’t do that.
If IU has SOS issues, we can still course correct and add P4 OOC opponents.
I don’t think this can become a huge talking point… once games start being played that is going to dominate the discourse.
I do think it’s a mistake, just not a serious one.
Also Cig might be right. I don’t know. We were not good early on last season and maybe he really wants the warm up games and that might be worth the SOS hit. I’m just trying to be open minded.
@middawg I would and I think others would feel differently if IU came out and said we canceled so we could start a series with a Kentucky or Missouri or something.
Right now it seems like IU is ducking ND. It’s a PR nightmare.
Yeah, it is. But I'm not sure Cig cares. It just hurts our egos as fans.
It hurts the entire program as that perception becomes reality for media, talking heads, other fanbases, and anyone politicking for their CFP interest across CFB.
Gives meat for negative recruiting by IUFB competitors as well .
Hoping that sour national perception doesn't seep into the CFP committee room is a very risky strategy imo.
Holding out hope that IUFB PR ghosting out setting the narrative on this topic is an indication that positive news to balance the scales is forthcoming.
Coming off the super huge Conference media day positive momentum, the timing on this leak or scheduled announcement, is pretty awful.
The SEC already forces one of the non-conference games to be a P4 opponent. It isn't a stretch to think the big ten might do the same in the near future (and likely before 2030 comes around). I also wouldn't be shocked if they set up a Big Ten vs SEC week to accommodate that requirement for most teams (a few big ten teams would have to play someone else (like ND) since Big Ten has more teams.
Are we sure ND didn't try to move the game to later in the season (causing IU to back out?) Seems like news broke of USC vs ND almost right away which makes me think there is some connection.
Notre Dame just announced a renewed series with USC starting in 2030 (week 1) and 2031 (week 2). Indiana was scheduled to play Notre Dame 8/31 in 2030 and 9/27 in 2031.
Sports Illustrated and On3 both reporting that IU cancelled the series.
@tammany I think until a high caliber replacement is announced, this could materially impact the program in a negative way. Say they lose at home to OSU this year, and... maybe at Washington or Michigan... 100% their pre con schedule will be both a huge talking point in the media, but also a pretty large hindrance in the CFP room. And cancelling the Virginia, Louisville, and now ND series will become a baked in part of that talking point. And it will have an impact on the scheduling portion of their resume, in the CFP selection room. Human psychology won't allow otherwise. I guess the CFP talk is where it gets tricky, to be fair... because its hard to evaluate whether the 3 wins trumps 1 loss against an elite opponent...when you also lose a game or two in the B10.
But I suspect a 9-3 Indiana team in 2030, with an ND loss in South Bend and 2 B10 losses, coming off a 5 year span, with 3-4 CFP appearances... would look as good or better to the CFP committee than 10-2, with 3 cupcakes non conf.
And none of this touches on how ducking these types of games is a barrier to IU fully ascending up in to Top 5-10 overall program capacity levels. I think building the NIL, interest capacity, etc... with Northern Indiana, Chicago, Indianapolis, etc... fans that might currently be reversible jacket oriented fans... was one of the bigger opportunities this home and home provided.
Huge mistake. Not gonna end up budging on this one. If anything, when they put a Virginia type team back on the schedule, it'll make the mistake even bigger, in my opinion.
Eff ND. I hate those condescending, insufferable, holier-than-thou jerks. We never should have scheduled them. I didn't like this from the start.
Schedule 3 home OOC games each year (no FCS teams). There is no reason for us to play less than 7 home games every year.
MAYBE. in the years we have 5 B1G home games, we could schedule an away or neutral site game. Personally, I would prefer an 8th home game.
The national narrative on IU is already set: we have a roster full of 30 year olds who get paid more than an NFL team, we have 12 weak games every year (even though we play 9 B1G games a year), and we only have one season mercenaries playing.
Screw 'em all. We went 16-0 and flat out pimp-slapped damn near every team we played. We have no reason to apologize to anyone!
@iunorth I'm not following how a 2030/2031 series has hardly anything to do with the 2026 season. For the 2026 season the committee will be looking at our actual SOS metrics for this year. It's TBD what our actual SOS ends up being, but it looks like midpack of the conference is reasonably likely. The focus will be on teams with actual weak SOS's this year (likely teams like PSU, ND, certain B12/ACC teams, etc), not us. 10-2 we're likely in, 9-3 we're out. Keep in mind our 16-0 natty gives us some benefit of the doubt too... we're a proven program.
If in the future the committee starts insisting on a P4 OOC, we can add one.
As for the concept of a full ascension to top 5/10 program, that is a hard to define thing. I think 95% of that will be assembling a top-10 team consistently for 5-10 years. A home/home with ND is nice, but we just won it all without such a game. Probably our biggest moment will be picking Cig's successor... we'll cross that bridge when we come to it, but finding someone 75% as good would probably be a success.
Again, I think it's a mistake to cancel this ND series. And it hurts. But it will mostly blow over and once the seasons starts teams will be judged on their season. It's not the best look, but we can up our OOC schedule going forward if we have to. And also, Cig is smart guy and he has his reasons, he might be right... he is the 2x coach of the year.
If IU cancelled the series, how could ND already be announcing a renewed series with USC as a replacement? Seems like something that has been in the works for awhile to pull that off. But, if so, why is IU allowing the narrative to be that "IU bailed"? Head scratching.
Edit: Last year exceeded my wildest hopes and dreams (OK, maybe not wildest, which would certainly involve Sofia Vergara in some fashion!) with 1 exception: I had hoped we'd get a rematch with ND in the CFP. Still hoping for that this year!
If IU cancelled the series, how could ND already be announcing a renewed series with USC as a replacement? Seems like something that has been in the works for awhile to pull that off. But, if so, why is IU allowing the narrative to be that "IU bailed"? Head scratching.
It's not as if USC and ND hadn't had ongoing conversations about renewing. This isn't that hard. And until someone from IU says otherwise, I'm going to believe the narrative that we cancelled, because the first person to report such a detail has very good IU sources (Forde).
@gros-louis Maybe not, and maybe they were having discussions, but to announce the same day? That seems unlikely, unless IU's been hedging/hinting and ND had their dominoes already lined up as a contingency. If so, kudos to them, they ran circles around our AD staff.
ND? All to do about nothing. Their relevance is about beating USC. The program that used to regularly thump them. IU outcome is to questionable to their W/L. Their fanbase has memories of yesteryear. Hasbeens!!
@tammany Too many thoughts to put it all in to a full post on it, right now. But in a fairly quick summary... Cignetti is 99% of IU's success right now. We're a top 5-10 program, ON THE FIELD, right now, because of Cignetti. He gets hit by a bus, very, very real possibility IU falls if not all the way back down to bottom of B10, then back to... Illinois or Northwestern levels of play, on the field. And at that point, the other areas we're pretty far away from the big dogs on, mean a heck of a lot more. We are no where near schools like Notre Dame, Texas, OSU, Georgia, PSU, etc... in terms of revenue, NIL capacity, facilities, street cred recruiting the elite of the elite. The head coach is always integral, obviously. But IU's capacity to reload after Cig is done, is much lower than those schools I mentioned.
Obviously you don't plan for an immediate change, like the example I used. But he isn't going to be coaching here forever. And I don't think without taking extra measures, like a Notre Dame home and home, continuing facilities upgrades... using this very special time as a way to build the foundation of our program in every way possible... well, I think its a lost opportunity and a huge mistake. You're not putting enough importance on how impactful those 2 games would be for all the things it takes to run a program off the field...it doesn't seem like.
And yes, I think the narrative that IU is ducking tough competition, outside what the numbers show, will have an impact on how they're viewed in the CFP room. Every CFP Committee Chair mentions, over and over, that in the end its the people making the choices. They use data, but they also end up making the choices. Cancelling a future elite matchup with Notre Dame, 4 years before it happens, 100% impacts how everyone, including the CFP committee views IU. It doesn't impact their resume, data wise, until 2030...true. And maybe their resume versus the the others they would be competing with will have a clear enough difference that the perception doesn't play a role. Cignetti has played his way above those decision levels, thus far. Actually... I think their IU skepticism in the 25 CFP had IU ranked lower than they should have been. And our schedule, and just the overall perception on the program probably led to some of that. Hopefully he does that again. But a couple B10 losses, and we'll see where it goes. I think the nod will go to an SEC or other B10 program, that plays an elite level preconf game.
Ok that wasn't so quick...
This post was modified 4 weeks ago 2 times by IUNorth
@iunorth I agree. IU needs to solidify the foundation of the program and strike while the iron is hot. While their player facilities are fine right now, there are other aspects that IU needs to upgrade to elevate the program. IU has a history of not taking advantage of this is the past when they have had a couple good years.
IU will be a leader in NIL just based on the alumni base, but they need to build better infrastructure (luxury suites, better game day amenities, toilets that don't spout). They absolutely need the stadium ready to host winter playoff games. The incoming handrails are a good start, but the stadium needs to be ready to function if it's below zero.
Cig has hinted a stadium expansion is coming, but we have not seen any plans and he seemed a little frustrated in Chicago when he mentioned it. We all have to remember IU should still be trying to grow the IUFB fan base as well.
Marketing and branding have always been a struggle for IU, which is absurd since Kelley is one of the best business schools in the country. They need to do better at it. IU can't just milk fans through increased ticket prices, parking and donations. Having great and timely gear is a huge piece too.
Cig has done a masterful job of getting the tanible results that whomever the guy that follows him (God help him) can point to real results instead of just imagining things.
A lot can change over the next few days, weeks and months from a landscape stand point and IU has done well up to this point, but they need to continue to evolve and build. Like Cig says, you're either getting better or you're getting worse.
