The College Football Playoff national championship trophy sits on a table in Memorial Stadium, still smudged with fingerprints from the Indiana Hoosiers perfect 16-0 season. Coach Curt Cignetti, who collected 14 of 17 possible national coach of the year honors in his first two years, reminded everyone that the title is just a stepping stone.

Players still feel a chip on their shoulder, linebacker Isaiah Jones said, insisting last year’s run was no fluke. With 17 transfers and 19 mid‑year enrollees, practice feels like a new squad, especially after quarterback Fernando Mendoza declared for the NFL draft. Transfer quarterback Josh Hoover will take snaps, while Cignetti stresses standards over scheme.

Defensive lineman Tyrique Tucker, the last James Madison transfer from Cignetti’s original group, said doubts about size or reputation only fuel the team. Receiver Charlie Becker added that critics still label Indiana a basketball school. Above the practice doors hangs Cignetti’s motto “EARNED NOT GIVEN,” a reminder that every season requires rebuilding, regardless of past glory.

The coaching staff plans to treat the championship as a benchmark rather than a guarantee. By demanding that no player earns “bonus points” from past achievements, Cignetti aims to lock the squad into daily grind. Their collective resolve will test whether Indiana can translate a historic year into sustained elite performance.