The crowd inside the "Upstairs Pub" started to grow as the clock turned toward Friday night on the campus of Indiana, with students getting out of class and heading towards to local drinking establishments for what was going to be a wild 24 hours.
asserted
what → start → establishments
Obviously, the mood has shifted around this college town thanks to the Hoosiers winning last year's CFP title, along with having a head coach in Curt Cignetti who has turned this program into a football juggernaut in just two years.
asserted
who → shift → years
Whether it was the apparel stores that had fans waiting in lines for their chance to purchase Indiana gear, or the restaurants that were already filling up early Friday afternoon, it's obvious that the attitude has changed around this college town that once glossed over the football season in anticipation for basketball.
asserted
that → have → basketball
This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners.
uncertain
page → contain → partners
If you sign up or place a wager, FOX News may be compensated.
uncertain
News → sign → wager
This content was created by a team that works independently from the FOX newsroom.
asserted
that → create → newsroom
Later today, it will be No. 4 Ohio State visiting No. 5 Indiana in what will be the most electric atmosphere Bloomington has seen in decades.
asserted
Bloomington → visit → decades
You can call it a "revival," or the Cignetti effect, but it's not hard to notice the culture change in Bloomington.
asserted
it → call → Bloomington
"We're a football school now, and I hate to say that about the basketball program," Edward, from just outside Indianapolis noted.
asserted
Edward → hate → Indianapolis
"We spent years praying for some type of revival of college football within this fan base, and we finally have it during one of the craziest times in sports.
asserted
we → spend → sports
A lot of schools are trying to pull off the Indiana magic of rebuilding a program in such a short time period.
asserted
lot → try → period
And those expectations are truly centered around what transpired here in Bloomington.
asserted
what → center → Bloomington
We expect to win football games now, which is a wonderful feeling to have.
asserted
which → expect → games
So, about Indiana beating Ohio State at home
The last time a Hoosiers' football team defeated the Buckeyes in Bloomington was in 1988.
asserted
team → beat → 1988
It took thirty years for Indiana to snap a losing streak to Ohio State, which finally came to an end last season inside Lucas Oil Stadium in the Big Ten championship game.
asserted
which → take → game
Also, this will be the first time a top-five college football matchup has taken place inside Memorial Stadium since 1960, as Indiana rises a 22-game winning streak into their showdown with the Buckeyes on Saturday.
asserted
Indiana → take → Saturday
Essentially, there are a lot of firsts that could end up coming to fruition for an Indiana team that has defied the odds over the past two seasons, against plenty of odds and fans who might still be under the impression this was all just a fluke.
uncertain
this → be → impression
I'm here to tell you that nothing Curt Cignetti is doing on this campus, and opposing ones, is centered around some magical voodoo that the Hoosiers head coach has placed on the Big Ten.
asserted
coach → tell → Ten
Whether or not folks outside Bloomington believe Indiana can do it again this season is not the point.
asserted
Indiana → believe → it
The supporters who are lining Kirkwood avenue, or the thousands who made their way into town on Friday evening, are the true barometer of where this program has been taken in such a short time period that has other college athletic directors trying to replicate the Cignetti magic.
asserted
directors → line → magic
"I don't think folks truly understood what we were going through as a fan base," Thomas, longtime season ticket holder told OutKick.
asserted
Thomas → think → OutKick
"I've been coming to games for thirty years, and I've never seen this type of excitement, and it's hard to correlate it with basketball.
asserted
it → come → basketball
Sure, we're not oblivious to the narrative that followed our football program like a black cloud.
asserted
that → follow → cloud
"But, why do you think we're not taking these moments for granted?
asserted
we → think → moments
We've earned this sh-t, and I promise you this fan base isn’t cocky.
asserted
base → earn → you
We just expect to win now, which clearly wasn’t the case just a few years ago.
asserted
which → expect → ?
So yea, I expect us to beat Ohio State.
asserted
us → expect → State
"
If Indiana can do it, so can others around college football
I've been around plenty of college campuses during my career, and the resurgent joy that you see in Bloomington is contagious.
asserted
you → do → Bloomington
This is no longer a loyal group of fans waiting for November to roll around so they can walk into Assembly Hall to watch the basketball program, which has also had its problems over the years.
asserted
which → wait → years
But what Indiana football did for the school is provide hope that everything that has transpired over the last two years in one sport, can be done again across multiple venues across campus.
asserted
that → provide → campus
Curt Cignetti has not just provided a championship mindset for the passionate fans that were sitting through days of blowouts and small glimmers of hope in past years.
asserted
that → provide → years
The man who told you all to 'google' him has reignited an athletic department and fan base that will make Saturday's atmosphere on Indiana's campus feel more like a cinematic backdrop that will host college football's premier matchup of the day.
asserted
that → tell → day
At the same time, since it's happening here in Bloomington, there are programs across the country that now believe they can pull-off the same type magical story that we're witnessing take place with Indiana.
asserted
we → happen → Indiana
The Aporia
