Indiana football 'cheating' theories, explained: Why Curt Cignetti's dominance is raising eyebrows

Key Highlights

• Google me,” before he ever coached a game in Bloomington.
• For a small minority, however, Indiana’s rapid success has sparked conspiracy theories. Here’s what you need to know about the unfounded “cheating” claims some fans are spreading about Indiana football. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMORE CFP CHAMPIONSHIP GAME NEWS:Expert prediction of Indiana-Miami finalCurt Cignetti's past meets his future in semisRoster breakdown: Who has more blue-chippers?Is Indiana better than Joe Burrow-led LSU?Miami's run has a March Madness feelIndiana football 'cheating' theories, explainedAfter dominant wins over Alabama and Oregon in the College Football Playoff, some started speculating that Indiana's success wasn't organic. The rumors might have accidentally started with Fox Sports' Chris Fallica, who later said he was not insinuating anything malicious and just wanted to give credit to Indiana's game-planning when he tweeted this:A tweet from another X user made more direct claims, without evidence.
• "Not only has Indiana been hacking into the VEO/ Pixellott software to watch practice film of other teams, but they have infiltrated most cloud based system which teams keep their game plans on," an account named @GoatKiffin tweeted in response to Fallica, claiming the Hoosiers "know every sign and every variation the coaches on opposing teams plan for."AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe tweet was viewed 3.9 million times in the first five days after it was posted, but there is no evidence any of those are claims are accurate. What fed into the theory, as @GoatKiffin noted, was Indiana's read of Oregon's opening play in the Rose Bowl.
• Indiana CB D'Angelo Ponds jumped the route immediately and intercepted Dante Moore for a pick-six on the first play of the game.
• Most saw the play as the result of excellent preparation as instincts.