Curt Cignetti sets terms under which he’d play Notre Dame If Notre Dame wants to play a true home-and-home with Indiana, they need to join a conference. Those are the terms outlined by IU football coach Curt Cignetti Friday in an interview with the Big Ten Network. “I’d like to play Notre Dame,” Cignetti said on the Big Ten Network. “They ought to come to our place twice, and we’ll go there once, since they’re not in a conference.” Cignetti’s comments come after a previously scheduled Indiana and Notre Dame home-and-home in 2030 and 2031 was canceled. Multiple national outlets reported Indiana canceled the planned games, but the particulars aren’t clear. Around the same time the news broke, Notre Dame announced a renewal of their USC series on at last one of the same dates the IU games were scheduled.
Is there any logic to Cignetti necessitating two games in Bloomington for every game in South Bend? He seems to want the Irish to have to play a more challenging schedule. Because Notre Dame is an independent, it sets a large part of its own schedule. They play six games against ACC teams but control the remainder of their slate. And the ACC hasn’t been a murderer’s row of late. The Irish are annual competitor for precious College Football Playoff spots, and recently they have opted to play a relatively soft schedule that enhances their odds to reach the CFP. Their preseason strength of schedule ranked No. 62 in ESPN’s SP+, the second-lowest of any team in the SP+ top-25.
Meanwhile Big Ten teams play nine conference games, and every team in the league has a more difficult overall strength of schedule than Notre Dame according to SP+. Whether you agree with it or not, Cignetti’s premise appears to be — step up to the plate and operate on the same terms as everyone else, Notre Dame. Ultimately, Cignetti believes the scheduling banter that has dominated the preseason conversation is much ado about nothing. He sees schedule standardization coming sooner than later. “I’m confident the schedule will change in the next few years across college football,” he told BTN.
“Kill the old you”: Indiana University Football Quarterback Josh Hoover says he’s never been held to a higher standard Indiana quarterback Josh Hoover says he came to Bloomington to be the best version of himself. Arriving at IU with 9,629 career passing yards and 71 touchdown passes, the version who came to the Hoosiers from TCU was already pretty good. But Hoover has seen the progression of Fernando Mendoza, Kurtis Rourke, and the other recent quarterbacks who have thrived under head coach Curt Cignetti and his offensive staff. The first order of business to follow in their footsteps? Figurative self-harm.
“My quarterback coach, Tino Sunseri, when I got here, he said if you want to become the new you, you have to kill the old you,” Hoover said on the Big Ten Network’s fall camp stop in Bloomington. “Going back to the foundation and breaking old habits and reestablish how we play football and how the quarterback plays here and committing to that and hold myself accountable to our standards of quarterbacks.” A Heath, Texas product, Hoover committed to Indiana out of high school before realizing the old him might have literally been killed with the way the old IU was protecting quarterbacks. With a fresh perspective on Indiana and a final year of eligibility remaining, he saw a completely different opportunity four years later.
“This place and Coach Cignetti and this offense was really appealing just because of the discipline that they have here, the culture that’s been set in stone, the way Coach Cignetti coaches quarterbacks, the way his quarterback coaches coach and just emphasize the details,” Hoover said. “That’s one of the cool things for me, just watching how the details are coached here and how much the players really, truly care about making sure those small things are right. I think that goes a long way in offenses.” Hoover told BTN he was overwhelmed when he first walked into the facilities at IU. The respect for Cignetti permeates the program, he says, and that fosters a complete commitment to the process and culture the head coach has installed.
Part of the process for Hoover involves cutting back on mistakes. He has thrown 33 interceptions and fumbled 17 times over his first four seasons. All of Cignetti’s last six quarterbacks have improved significantly in touchdown to interception ratio in their first year with the head coach. This is the 6-foot-2 and 200-pound Hoover’s fifth year in college football, and he says he’s never been pushed to improve quite like this. “This place is just full of great coaches who hold guys to the highest standard,” Hoover said on BTN.
“This place is just full of great coaches who hold guys to the highest standard,” Hoover said on BTN. “I have never been held to a standard as high as I am here, and it has been — it was uncomfortable at first, growth is always uncomfortable, but that’s the only way to grow, is to be uncomfortable. It has been a great experience and I’m just looking forward to continuing to work every single day with these guys.”
22 Former Indiana University Football Players Played in Week 1 of the NFL Preseason 22 Former Indiana University Football Players appeared in Week 1 of the National Football League Preseason with 4 others injured and 2 waived as 28 former Hoosiers were on an NFL Roster to start training camp. Here is how each of them did. Fernando Mendoza, QB (Las Vegas Raiders) — 10 of 16 passing, 97 yards (team high), 1 TD pass; 2 carries for 6 yards. E.J. Williams, WR (Las Vegas Raiders) — 1 reception, 41 yards (team high). Roman Hemby, RB (Las Vegas Raiders) — 3 carries, 7 yards. Ian Thomas, TE (Las Vegas Raiders) — 1 reception, 6 yards. Zach Horton, TE (Detroit Lions) — 2 receptions, 5 yards. Ke’Shawn Williams, WR, KR, PR (Cincinnati Bengals) — 1 reception, 8 yards; 2 kickoff returns, 73 yards; 1 punt return, 7 yards. Riley Nowakowski, TE, FB (Pittsburgh Steelers) — 1 reception, 4 yards, 1 TD reception. Devan Boykin, S (Pittsburgh Steelers) — 4 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 1 pass defensed. Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, WR (Indianapolis Colts) — 1 reception, 19 yards. Aiden Fisher, LB (Houston Texans) — 7 tackles (team high), 5 solo, 1 tackle for loss. Omar Cooper, Jr., WR (New York Jets) — 2 receptions, 31 yards. D’Angelo Ponds, CB (New York Jets) — Did not play, injured. Marcelino McCrary-Ball, LB (New York Jets) — 4 tackles, all solo, 1 tackle for loss. Micah McFadden, LB (New York Giants) — 2 tackles, 1 solo. Raheem Layne, S (New York Giants) — 2 tackles, 1 solo. Elijah Sarratt, WR (Baltimore Ravens) — 6 receptions (team high), 66 yards (team high). Kahlil Benson, OL (Kansas City) — Starting right tackle, 6 snaps. Louis Moore, S (Miami) — 4 tackles, 3 solo. Myles Price, WR (Minnesota) — 4 receptions (team high), 51 yards (team high), 1 TD reception. Pat Coogan, C (Tennessee) — 29 snaps at center. Dan Feeney, C (Tampa Bay) — Starting center, 28 snaps. Luke Haggard, G (Tampa Bay) — Starting right guard, 41 snaps. Kurtis Rourke, QB (San Francisco) — 12 of 14 passing for 101 yards; 3 carries for 14 yards. Kaelon Black, RB (San Francisco) — Did not play, injured. C.J. West, DT (San Francisco) — Did not play, injured. Mikail Kamara, DE (San Francisco) — Did not play, injured reserve. — Waived: Jonathan Brady, Cam Jones. Players listed finished their college careers with IU.
Indiana Pacers Sign Former Purdue University and Westfield HS Standout Braden Smith to a two-way contract The Indiana Pacers have signed Braden Smith to a two-way contract, the team announced on Monday. Smith was selected with the No. 38 overall pick in the second round of the NBA Draft. Smith, who starred at Purdue, is the NCAA’s all-time assist leader. Smith was a two-time All-American and was the Big Ten Player of the Year in the 2024-25 season. Smith helped lead Purdue to two Big Ten regular season championships and two Big Ten Tournament Championships. He also helped lead Purdue to the Final Four in the 2024 NCAA Tournament. Smith averaged 13.0 points and 7.4 assists per game in his career in West Lafayette. Smith, a Westfield native, was also Indiana Mr. Basketball in 2022.
Indianapolis Colts Special Teams Coach Brian Mason returns to practice after knee tear suffered in preseason opener Indianapolis Colts special team’s coordinator Brian Mason has had quite an unlucky week. On the final play of the Colts’ preseason opener against the New England Patriots on Thursday, Mason suffered multiple torn knee ligaments when players collided into him on the sideline. Just two days later, Mason returned to the practice field without crutches or needing a cart, wearing a large leg brace. On Saturday, Colts seventh-year defensive tackle DeForest Buckner joked that Mason’s injury lets him throw a little slack and feel like one of the players when it comes to aches and pains. Buckner also added that he is glad to see that Mason is in good spirits.
“Dog,” Buckner said. “They brought the cart out for him; he got up and he was like, ‘No, I’m walking it off.’ He’s a dog. Now he has some stuff that he can talk about to the guys when he’s having his meetings, you know what I mean. He can tell them, ‘Oh, you’ve got a sore neck, a sore leg, whatever it is—I mean, get up. Get up and go out there, look what I did.’ All jokes aside, though, I’m glad he’s doing good.” The injury came during a last-second hail-mary in the Colts’ 13-13 tie with the Patriots in the preseason opener. Mason is entering his fourth season as the Colts’ special teams coordinator.
Indiana wins bid for prestigious Hambletonian horse races through 2029 Anderson will host one of harness racing’s premier events for three years beginning in 2027. The Hambletonian Society chose the Hoosier State to host the Hambletonian. The race, generally in early August, will happen at Harrah’s Hoosier Park Racing & Casino in Anderson, a parimutuel racetrack that includes slot machines. The race features the top 3-year-old trotters in North America. It attracts owners, trainers, and fans from across the globe. The win resulted from a yearslong partnership between the Indiana Standardbred Association, Indiana Sports Corp, the Madison County Visitors & Tourism Bureau, the Indiana Horse Racing Commission, Caesars Entertainment, and Harrah’s Hoosier Park. Circle City Broadcasting reported on Indiana’s bid for the race in February.
Harrah’s Hoosier Park previously hosted multiple Breeders Crowns. Tom Reeg, CEO of Caesars Entertainment, said in a news release that the company is proud to partner with the state to host the iconic race. Reeg said Caesars Entertainment and Hoosier Park have the facilities and experience to deliver a world-class event. A Purdue University study shows Indiana’s horse racing industry generates approximately $2 billion in annual economic impact, the release said, and the industry supports thousands of jobs, particularly in rural communities. John DeLong, president of the Indiana Standardbred Association, called the selection a historic moment for the state’s racing industry. DeLong said in the release that winning the bid required a team effort between the state, the racing industry, and tourism leaders.
Mike Smith, executive director of the Indiana Horse Racing Commission, said in the release that hosting the event is the result of years of investment and partnership. “Indiana has developed a racing and breeding program that is respected throughout North America. Hosting an event of this stature allows us to showcase that success while introducing an entirely new audience to Indiana racing.” Gov. Mike Braun said in the release that the selection boosts Indiana’s economy and its standing as a destination for international sports. The Republican governor also said the win shows Indiana’s ability to compete for major events and highlights the strength of the state’s racing industry.
Officials will announce more details, including the race date, schedule, and purse structure, in the coming months. This year’s winning horse, Apex, took home a $500,000 winner’s share of the $1 million total purse. The Hambletonian Stakes has been run in New Jersey’s Meadowlands Racetrack for more than 40 consecutive years. The race, which began in 1926 in Syracuse, New York, spent its first five decades in Lexington, Kentucky; Goshen, New York; and the Illinois State Fair in Du Quoin, Illinois.
Aspiring Olympians to head to Westfield for major archery championships As Grand Park in Westfield wraps up hosting Indianapolis Colts training camp for the final time, it will also prepare to host aspiring Olympians. Some of archery’s biggest stages will be at the sports complex next year. Westfield officials announced Thursday the 143rd USA Archery Target Nationals, U.S. Open and the opening two stages of the 2028 Olympic Team Trial will all be at Grand Park next year. “We are delighted to be heading to Westfield for an archery first,” USA Archery Interim CEO Mary Simmons said in a press release. “The Stage 1 2028 Olympic Trials Qualification event will allow for open registration, providing recurve and compound archers with aa unique chance to make the USA Archery team for 2028.”
Westfield Mayor Scott Willis said in a statement the city hosting these events helps its newly built reputation. “Westfield has built a national reputation as a premier destination for sports, and hosting USA Archery marks an exciting new chapter for our community,” Willis said. “For the first time, athletes will compete in Westfield for the opportunity to represent Team USA at the LA28 Olympic Games. We are proud to welcome these world-class competitors, their families and archery fans from across the country next August.” Hamilton County has history with hosting competitive archery events on a large stage. Noblesville’s Koteewi Park hosted Indiana’s first USA Archery Field Nationals in 2024. Next years’ archery events are set for Aug. 11-15, 2027.