ESPN’s attempt to find “the next Indiana” completely misses the mark

The argument can be made that what Curt Cignetti has done at Indiana is the greatest turnaround in all of sports. The Hoosier football program had some bright spots over the years, but for the most part, has not been relevant on the national stage. In fact, Indiana had the most losses in college football history when Cignetti came to Bloomington a few years ago.

But with Cignetti leading the way, the Hoosiers have taken the college football world by storm in a major way. Indiana is 27-2 over the last two seasons and is coming off a perfect 16-0 season that culminated in a historic National Championship. It's a run that few saw coming, and the momentum doesn't appear to be slowing down anytime soon.

The next Indiana: A question that won't go away

With the Hoosiers finding overwhelming success on the gridiron, we've seen this question pop up a lot over the offseason: Who can be the next Indiana? It's a question that has generated plenty of debate as the landscape around college football continues to evolve.

But what does it mean, exactly? What defines "the next Indiana?” Is it the next program to come out of nowhere and be a CFP contender? Is it the program that goes from historic futility to a national title? There are a lot of variables in play when answering this question, as a program could do all of those things without following Indiana's path. With that in mind, trying to pinpoint "the next Indiana" is hard to do. Mostly because it can't be done.

Week 0 made Josh Hoover’s importance to Indiana crystal clear

What Indiana has done over the last two years is unparalleled. The Hoosiers have gone from an afterthought to a national powerhouse in record time. That kind of transformation is extremely rare, and one that we may never see again. Therefore, trying to find “the next Indiana” may be a futile exercise, because there may never be another rise quite like the one we've seen in Bloomington.

But that hasn't stopped ESPN making their picks trying to pinpoint who could be following in Indiana's footsteps this season.

ESPN's picks for "the next Indiana" are a complete joke

During its Week 0 pregame coverage over the weekend, ESPN took a swing at predicting "the next Indiana." The answers given don't make a ton of sense.

Greg McIlroy pointd to Michigan, while Booger McFarland went with Penn State. Really? No matter what the question of "the next Indiana" entails, pulling Michigan and Penn State is certainly a choice.

With 1,022 total wins, Michigan is the winningest program in college football history. Penn State is 8th on that list with 950 wins. Entering this season, the Wolverines are ranked No. 16 in the AP Poll while Penn State is 18th. How exactly does that even put them in the conversation with what Indiana has accomplished?

The fact of the matter is that there is no clear formula for replicating what Indiana has accomplished under Curt Cignetti. That makes ESPN's selections especially questionable (to say the least).

Both Michigan and Penn State don't come close to matching the profile of a program capable of making the substantial leap that the Hoosiers have made. They are used to being near the top of the Top-25 rankings on a regular basis. They are historically winning programs. Indiana was not.

So don't be fooled when analysts and media members continue to make their picks for who "the next Indiana" could be. Because there won't be one.

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