Curt Cignetti: IU football needs to ‘stay focused, humble and hungry.’
Curt Cignetti is the first Indiana football coach to go 4-0 in his first four games.
IU vs. Maryland, noon, Saturday; TV: BTN
BLOOMINGTON — When IU football coach Curt Cignetti popped in the film of Maryland ahead of this week’s game, it wasn’t the first time he did a deep dive on Terrapins quarterback Billy Edwards Jr.
Cignetti went after Edwards when he was a three-star recruit coming out of Lake Braddock High School in suburban Washington, D.C., less than two hours from James Madison’s campus. Edwards had 30 scholarship offers as part of the 2021 class.
“My first year at JMU, he was the guy we had targeted,” Cignetti said Monday. “I sat with his dad in my office a couple of times.”
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Edwards initially signed with Wake Forest, but transferred to Maryland after redshirting. He spent the past two seasons behind the program’s record-setting quarterback, Taulia Tagovailoa.
He was 2-1 as a starter during that stretch with his most notable start (and win) coming in the 2023 Music City Bowl over Auburn.
The Terps also had success using him in their short-yardage and red zone package last season. He had seven rushing touchdowns in 2023, all of them in the red zone. The team converted for a first down or score on nine of his 12 rushing attempts inside the 20-yard line.
“You know, he can make all the throws,” Cignetti said. “He’s got a lot of snaps under his belt. They’ll also run him, and obviously he’s a threat when he gets out of the pocket as well when he drops back and escapes the pocket.”
“So he’s a very competitive guy with good arm strength, and good leader. And they like him, and I can see why.”
Edwards won the starting job over N.C. State transfer MJ Morris and Cameron Edge. He’s played with confidence through the first four weeks of the season while putting up impressive numbers.
He’s thrown for 1,155 yards with eight touchdowns and two interceptions. His completion percentage of 75.0% ranks fifth in the country, right behind Kurtis Rourke (75.5%).
“He’s doing some special things for us,” Maryland coach Mike Locksley said.
Michael Niziolek is the Indiana beat reporter for The Bloomington Herald-Times. You can follow him on X @michaelniziolek and read all his coverage by clicking here.
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Publish date : 2024-09-23 09:07:00
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