Curt Cignetti declared it days after winning Indiana football's first national championship. He was turning the page to "Chapter 3."
The question now is how the Hoosiers follow perfection. Last season became historic at both the individual and program-wide levels. Cignetti's task in 2026 is to repeat it, or at least chase it again. Difficult tests await at home and on the road. So does the opportunity for a third straight College Football Playoff appearance and the chance to defend Indiana's Big Ten and national titles.
Here is a game-by-game breakdown of Indiana's 12-game regular season schedule.
The Method
Each matchup was evaluated on five factors: line of scrimmage play, quarterback play, defensive control, coaching advantage, and homefield advantage. Final scores are informed guesses based on what Indiana has done in Cignetti's first two seasons in Bloomington.
Week 1: vs North Texas
Indiana has started slowly in each of its last two openers. In 2024 and 2025, Week 1 felt like an exercise in shaking off rust. This year should be different.
North Texas arrives with a new coach, a new quarterback, and questions on defense. Indiana enters by far the more settled team. The talent disparity is significant.
Five factors: Indiana 5, North Texas 0.
Final score: Indiana 41, North Texas 3.
Week 2: vs Howard
The last two FCS opponents to visit Memorial Stadium lost by a combined score of 150-3. Don't overthink this one.
Five factors: Indiana 5, Howard 0.
Final score: Indiana 59, Howard 0.
Week 3: vs Western Kentucky
Western Kentucky doesn't hold an advantage in any of the five factors. But the Hilltoppers have become a regular winner under Tyson Helton at the Group of Six level. Helton's only losing season in seven years in Bowling Green remains the COVID-hit 2020 campaign.
Rodney Tisdale Jr., last season's second-leading passer, is back. How that quarterback room shapes up remains to be seen. Cignetti's teams are usually hitting their stride by Week 3, and that will be too much for the Hilltoppers.
Five factors: Indiana 5, Western Kentucky 0.
Final score: Indiana 45, Western Kentucky 13.
Week 4: vs Northwestern
The Wildcats' offense is an unknown with Chip Kelly at the controls and Aidan Chiles behind center. Chiles has given Indiana some trouble in the past. He is 43 of 57 passing against the Hoosiers in the last two seasons, with 436 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.
Most of those yards came on a small number of drives near the start of games that eventually unfolded into easy Indiana wins. This is a Friday night Big Ten opener following a national championship season. Northwestern has some line-of-scrimmage talent on defense, but not enough.
Five factors: Indiana 5, Northwestern 0.
Final score: Indiana 38, Northwestern 13.
Week 5: at Rutgers
October sees Indiana on the road three times in four games. The only home date in that stretch is against Ohio State. This is the Hoosiers' proving ground.
Rutgers has to replace Athan Kaliakmanis behind center. KJ Duff might be one of the best receivers in the Big Ten. Who is trying to get him the ball remains an open question. Whoever it is, this matchup might be defined by the dominance of Indiana's defense. Away from home, stifling defense wins games. Indiana proved that repeatedly last year and will again in Piscataway.
Five factors: Indiana 4, Rutgers 1.
Final score: Indiana 42, Rutgers 13.
Week 6: at Nebraska
An interesting test just before Ohio State comes to town. The kind of game that can sneak up on a team. Nebraska is probably a step behind Indiana in most key areas, but only a step. The gameday atmosphere in Memorial Stadium can be a game changer. Unlike in Indiana's 2019 trip to Lincoln, Nebraska won't take the Hoosiers lightly.
Cignetti's teams aren't prone to trap games. Indiana will win with defense here, but will have to effort for a while to do it. The Cornhuskers' offense is a little bit more settled and dangerous than the last time these two teams met.
Five factors: Indiana 4, Nebraska 1.
Final score: Indiana 34, Nebraska 14.
Week 7: vs Ohio State
The big one. No game is circled so brightly on the Big Ten calendar to start the season. Ohio State enters the year as the conference favorite and the No. 1 team in the country. Indiana has designs on upsetting the Buckeyes again, a win that would go a long way toward the Hoosiers' road back to the conference title game.
Splitting the matchups here is difficult. Julian Sayin might be the best quarterback in the country. This is probably the best defensive line he'll face all season.
According to Yahoo Sports.