Indiana’s Curt Cignetti transfers Nick Marsh for gold cleats

Indiana’s first national championship hasn’t glamorized the way coach Curt Cignetti runs his program, as decorated incoming transfer Nick Marsh found out Thursday as the team began spring practice.

Cignetti, who guided Indiana to a 16-0 record last fall, was asked about Marsh, who was at wide receiver at Michigan State the past two seasons and among the notable transfers Indiana added in January. The coach cited Marsh’s production at MSU before choosing the junior’s footwear.

“I didn’t like the gold shoes he brought out today,” Cignetti told reporters. “He learned what it’s like to bust your ass. I don’t know if that happened to him that often at Michigan State. It was before practice started.”

Marsh, a native of Detroit, had 100 receptions for 1,311 yards and nine touchdowns at Michigan State. He joins TCU quarterback Josh Hoover and others in Indiana’s transfer class, which was ranked No. 3 nationally by ESPN.

Cignetti noted that the coaches “have to work with this group more than the first two teams” because the staff hasn’t been known to be key contributors for a long time.

Indiana is 27-2 in two seasons under Cignetti.

“It was a wake-up call,” Cignetti said of Marsh’s pre-practice shoe test. “But he worked really hard, did a great job for us.”