Although Indiana is set to begin a new era when it faces Florida International on Saturday afternoon in Bloomington, Ind., first-year coach Curt Cignetti just wants to take things one game at a time.
Cignetti has the daunting task of rebuilding a Hoosiers program that went 9-27 under Tom Allen over the past three seasons. James Madison saw plenty of success under Cignetti, who coached the Dukes to a 52-9 record from 2019-23.
James Madison also made its first-ever bowl appearance with Cignetti at the helm, falling 31-21 in the 2023 Armed Forces Bowl.
While Cignetti does want to put Indiana in position to generate long-term success, the only thing he cares about right now is taking care of the Panthers.
“I don’t look at it that way,” Cignetti said when asked if Saturday’s game could be a tone-setter for the Hoosiers’ future. “This is the opponent. I’m spending every second of my day with a sense of urgency trying to help put us in the best position to be as good as we can be.”
If Indiana wants to get Cignetti his first victory with the Hoosiers right out of the gate, it will have to find a way to keep dual-threat quarterback Keyone Jenkins in check.
Jenkins is coming off a strong freshman season for FIU, throwing for 2,414 yards and 11 touchdowns to go along with 11 interceptions in 11 games. He also found the end zone six times on the ground.
“The offense, I’d say they’re feeding off my energy right now,” Jenkins said. “The more I go up, the more they go up, so I just try to keep the intensity level high. … We rolling right now, so that’s one thing I can say.”
Meanwhile, Indiana officially has not named a starting quarterback. The Hoosiers likely will turn to Kurtis Rourke, a transfer who had 2,207 yards and 11 TDs through the air at Ohio last season. Rourke was picked off five times in 2023, when he played in 11 games.
Indiana leads the all-time series with the Panthers, 3-0.
