Curt Cignetti believes Indiana defeated 'national perception' of Nebraska's defense

Curt Cignetti thought Indiana defeated a national perception on Saturday when the Hoosiers dominated Nebraska 56-7.

Going into the game, Cignetti said he was warned about the Huskers’ top tier defense. Well, they erased that notion rather quickly.

But Cignetti didn’t want to limit the praise of the blowout to one side of the ball.

“I think this says a lot about our team,” Cignetti said. “Now, I know there was a national perception that Nebraska had a pretty legit defense on a national scale, so that opened their eyes. But I think this is a great team win.”

The defense picked off Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola three times and the Huskers’ leading rusher was backup quarterback Heinrich Haarberg, who had 32 yards.

On the flip side, Justice Ellison had 105 yards on the ground and two touchdowns. Kurtis Rourke, who was injured in the game, went 17-of-21 passing for 189 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

Curt Cignetti elevating Indiana into stratosphere

“Great win,” Cignetti said. “Proud of the way we approached this week in our effort today, big game, because it was this game and a dominant win … Let me say this: Shawn Asbury’s play was probably a big play in that game. There were a lot of big plays in that game, but that was a real momentum (swinger).

“Though our offense line did a great job. We dropped our first ball of the year at receiver at the end of the game, and the defense got to a point there where, you know, (they) made it real hard on Nebraska. Good win against a team that’s got good tradition and history that people thought was a good football team.”

There’s more buzz surrounding Indiana at this point. The team is 7-0 and ranked No. 13 in the AP Poll under Cignetti.

On3’s Jesse Simonton couldn’t believe this team is still underrated at this point of the season. 

“If Indiana, with its statistical profile, were named Nebraska, Michigan or even Penn State, it would be ranked in the Top 5 and talked about not as a College Football Playoff Cinderella but a potential lock to make the 12-team field. Instead, the Hoosiers (13th) still can’t even crack the Top 10 of the latest AP Poll Top 25 — and that’s ridiculous,” Simonton wrote in his column.

Indiana is back in action, with College GameDay in town, Saturday against Washington at 12:00 p.m. ET.