Schiano Points to 'Tough Decisions' After Rutgers' 47-15 Loss to Indiana

Greg Schiano said Rutgers faces 'tough decisions' after a 47-15 homecoming loss to Indiana, while Curt Cignetti pointed to institutional commitment as the path to winning.

Indiana defeated Rutgers 47-15 at SHI Stadium in Piscataway, New Jersey, on Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026, dealing the Scarlet Knights a homecoming loss in Big Ten play. Head coaches Greg Schiano and Curt Cignetti shook hands when it ended, then met reporters separately to discuss both the game and the larger picture around the Rutgers program.

Schiano began his press conference without waiting for a question, saying that he and the coaching staff need to make some "tough decisions" about the current team's capabilities. The subject was one he raised himself. Asked to elaborate on what those decisions might involve, he declined to rule anything out. "Anything's on the table," Schiano said.

He then ruled out upheaval involving the people in the building. "I love the coaching staff, I love the players. It's not going to be any of that. It's going to be, what can we do better? We have to improve," Schiano said.

In Schiano's telling, Rutgers had improved in each of the previous two weeks, and that progress stopped against Indiana — a stall he said the opponent had a hand in. He called the Hoosiers "a quality football team" and said Cignetti "definitely had them ready to play tonight." Indiana, he added, carried an edge that was plain to see.

The game tilted early. Schiano said Rutgers had opportunities in the opening stages and "didn't cash in," and that once a team falls behind an opponent like Indiana, climbing back is very hard. Neither side turned the ball over, so the margin came from elsewhere: "Explosive plays — it's hard when you give them up the way we did," he said of his defense.

Cignetti fielded a broader question about whether the success he has compiled over the last three years can offer hope to a program in Rutgers' position. His answer located the starting point for winning well above the football offices.

"I think success starts at the top with a commitment and alignment. From the president to the athletic director, it takes a certain amount of financial commitment to be successful," Cignetti said. "It doesn't mean you have to be number one or in the top 10 in certain things, but you've got to be competitive, and that's what we've tried to do."

Asked about Schiano directly, Cignetti said his fellow coach has had two great runs at Rutgers while acknowledging that this is a tougher era in the Big Ten. "Can it get done? Yeah, I mean, it can get done," Cignetti said. "Greg is a great football coach."

Rutgers' next game comes in two weeks against Maryland — the first opportunity to see whether the "tough decisions" Schiano flagged produce any visible change. Indiana, meanwhile, leaves Piscataway with a victory its beaten opponent attributed to readiness, quality and an edge that showed from the outset.