Indiana’s canceled series with Notre Dame is back in the conversation after Curt Cignetti said the Hoosiers would still play if the Irish agreed to a 2-1 site split. Speaking Friday, Aug. 14 on the Big Ten Network, Cignetti said he would like to play Notre Dame, but only if the Irish came to Bloomington twice and Indiana went to South Bend once.
The timing matters because the two-game series, set for 2030 and 2031, was called off at Indiana’s request and had already been replaced on Notre Dame’s calendar by a restored USC series. For a program that will not have a Power Four opponent outside the Big Ten scheduled over the next six seasons, the missing games leave a gap in the Notre Dame football schedule and in Indiana’s nonconference profile.
Cignetti’s proposal was plain: Notre Dame is not in a conference, so Indiana should not be asked to carry the heavier side of the arrangement. His point was not that the rivalry should disappear, but that the format should change before the teams try again. That makes the public criticism harder to pin on a coach who has now said, in so many words, that he wants the game.
The history between the schools explains why the cancellation drew attention. Indiana and Notre Dame had met just once since 1958 before their 2024 matchup in the College Football Playoff, and Notre Dame beat Indiana 27-17 in South Bend. The Hoosiers still have open dates in 2030, 2031 and 2032, so a future series could still be built if both sides want one.
But the practical obstacle is still the same one that ended the last plan: Indiana asked out, Notre Dame moved on, and the Irish used the openings to restore USC. Notre Dame also has Michigan in 2033 and 2034, which leaves its own future board crowded even before any talk of bringing Indiana back into the mix. For now, Cignetti has put the terms on the table, and the next move would have to come from Notre Dame.
