Indiana Prepares Silent Count For Nebraska Crowd In Lincoln

Indiana football is preparing for Nebraska's loud Memorial Stadium environment as the unbeaten Hoosiers face the Cornhuskers in Lincoln. According to IndyStar, Indiana is practicing silent count procedures to handle a crowd expected to exceed 85,000 fans.

The preparation follows Indiana's previous difficulty using a silent cadence during a 38-15 loss at Ohio State in 2024. According to IndyStar, Ohio State disrupted Indiana's communication system and affected the offense's execution.

Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said his team increased its crowd noise preparation during practices at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington before the Nebraska matchup.

"It was pretty loud," said Curt Cignetti, Indiana coach.

According to IndyStar, Indiana has spent a second straight week working on silent count methods because crowd noise could prevent offensive players from hearing calls at the line of scrimmage.

"The first time we ever had to do it, we had a bad experience our first year here at Ohio State. In the offseason we did a little bit more study on it then used it quite a bit on the road in 2025. This spring we practiced it, practiced it in fall camp and the last two weeks we practiced it," said Curt Cignetti, Indiana coach.

According to IndyStar, Indiana could begin the game with a silent count or switch to it if noise becomes a problem. The offensive coordinator can communicate with quarterback Josh Hoover through the helmet system.

"If it gets to the point you can't hear, now the offensive coordinator has the helmet, he can communicate with the quarterback out on the field. If we sense there's a problem, he can just tell Josh Hoover we are going on silent now. We have a couple silent cadences we can use," said Curt Cignetti, Indiana coach.

According to IndyStar, Nebraska's home game will mark the Cornhuskers' 415th consecutive sellout, while the next closest streak belongs to Oklahoma with 169 games.