The Cignetti effect is real: Indiana football sparks an unbelievable 'revival' in Bloomington

The crowd inside the "Upstairs Pub" started to grow as the clock turned toward Friday night on the campus of Indiana, with students getting out of class and heading towards to local drinking establishments for what was going to be a wild 24 hours.

Obviously, the mood has shifted around this college town thanks to the Hoosiers winning last year's CFP title, along with having a head coach in Curt Cignetti who has turned this program into a football juggernaut in just two years.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF IS SACRIFICING ITS SOULD TO BE BECOME AN ATM FOR CONFERENCES WITH 24-TEAM EXPANSION Whether it was the apparel stores that had fans waiting in lines for their chance to purchase Indiana gear, or the restaurants that were already filling up early Friday afternoon, it's obvious that the attitude has changed around this college town that once glossed over the football season in anticipation for basketball.

Later today, it will be No.

4 Ohio State visiting No.

5 Indiana in what will be the most electric atmosphere Bloomington has seen in decades.

You can call it a "revival," or the Cignetti effect, but it's not hard to notice the culture change in Bloomington.

"We're a football school now, and I hate to say that about the basketball program," Edward, from just outside Indianapolis noted.

"We spent years praying for some type of revival of college football within this fan base, and we finally have it during one of the craziest times in sports.

"A lot of schools are trying to pull off the Indiana magic of rebuilding a program in such a short time period.

And those expectations are truly centered around what transpired here in Bloomington.

That part is wild to me.

We expect to win football games now, which is a wonderful feeling to have.

The last time a Hoosiers' football team defeated the Buckeyes in Bloomington was in 1988.