The start of the new college football season is slowly creeping up, and expectations are already sky high in Bloomington. Curt Cignetti's tenure at Indiana has already been historic, but he has the Hoosiers well-positioned to continue taking the college football world by storm.
Despite losing major contributors from last year's title team, Cignetti has re-tooled Indiana's roster in a major way. Indiana's transfer portal class is currently ranked No. 8 in the country according to 247Sports, and several key players are back on the defensive side of the ball.
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Indiana is among the preseason National Championship favorites, and IU's win total of 10.5 is tied for the second-highest in the country. No matter how you slice it, the college football world is expecting big thing from Cignetti and company once again.
Generally speaking, the schedule sets up nicely for the Hoosiers. However, there is one key stretch of games that is going to define Indiana's 2026 season.
The month of October presents many challenges for Indiana in 2026
The Hoosiers have an extremely manageable non-conference slate that consists of matchups against North Texas, Howard, and Western Kentucky. Indiana thens open up Big Ten play against Northwestern on September 25. All four of those contests to open the season come at home. But once the calendar flips to October, Indiana faces a tough slate of games.
Indiana will play five games in five weeks in October, and three of them come on the road. The month starts with back-to-back road games against Rutgers on October 3 and Nebraska on October 10. The Scarlet Knights and Cornhuskers aren't expected to compete for the Big Ten title, but after what Indiana has done over the past two seasons, fans in Piscataway and Lincoln have these games circled. When the reigning national champs come to town, it will be a Super Bowl-like atmosphere in those two contests to open the month of October.
Following the two-game road trip, Indiana is set to host the Ohio State Buckeyes on October 17. This matchup has the potential to be the Game of the Year in college football, as it's very possible that both teams are ranked in the top-5 of the AP Poll. In addition to being a rematch of last December's heavyweight Big Ten Championship Game, this clash in Bloomington could be a preview of a potential CFP matchup. No matter how you slice it, this is Indiana's toughest game of the season and will be must-watch television for all IU fans.
The Hoosiers won't have much time to rest following what is sure to be an emotional game against Ohio State. That's because IU hits the road to face the Michigan Wolverines the following weekend on October 24. Kyle Whittingham brings much more stability to Ann Arbor, and with Bryce Underwood entering his sophomore season, the Wolverines are a team to keep an eye on in the Big Ten this season. Going into The Big House for the first time under Cignetti figures to provide plenty of fireworks.
Finally, the Hoosiers end the month of October with a home matchup against Minnesota on October 31. It will be the first meeting between the Hoosiers and Golden Gophers during Cignetti's tenure. After such a rough stretch throughout October, Indiana cannot take this game lightly.
So to recap, here's Indiana's month of October:
- October 3: @ Rutgers
- October 10: @ Nebraska
- October 17: vs. Ohio State
- October 24: @ Michigan
- October 31: vs. Minnesota
It won't be an easy stretch, but with Cignetti at the helm, Indiana football fans should have plenty of confidence in the Hoosiers to put forth a great October.
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