The Indiana Hoosiers won the most unlikely national championship in recent memory. Winning the title and going 16-0 capped the greatest two-year turnaround in college football history. Curt Cignetti helped engineer that.
Cignetti turned the Hoosiers into a College Football Playoff team in each of the two years he’s been in Bloomington. Indiana is the program with the most losses in the FBS. They ended up winning the title in 2025 under the leadership of Fernando Mendoza.
In order to keep other programs from trying to poach Cignetti, the Hoosiers have given him multiple contract extensions over the last two years. Now, they have given him another one.
GettyIndiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti walks on the sidelines. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
The Indiana Hoosiers Give Curt Cignetti Massive Raise
According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, the Hoosiers have given Cignetti another huge raise. They will now pay him around $13.2 million annually. The new deal goes through 2033. He is still one of the highest-paid coaches in all of college football.
With Cignetti still with the Hoosiers, the Big Ten continues to be the best conference in the country. Keeping him in tow was the highest priority for Indiana’s athletic department this offseason. The team has a ton of wealthy donors to help them with NIL efforts, as well.
NIL and the Transfer Portal have been two of the biggest keys to Indiana winning a national championship. Cignetti does an excellent job of identifying talent in the portal, and the donors offer a lot of money to help those NIL efforts of bringing in that talent.
Cignetti has proven that he is not only an excellent recruiter in the portal, but he is a dynamite gameday coach, as well. With him leading the program for the next seven years, Indiana looks to be in the thick of the College Football Playoff race every single year.
GettyIndiana Hoosiers coach Curt Cignetti talks to the media. (Photo by Leonardo Fernandez/Getty Images)
The Indiana Hoosiers Have a Favorable 2026 Schedule
As the defending national champions, the Hoosiers have a very favorable schedule next season. As they try to defend their title, they won’t have any issues in the non-conference. They don’t play any P4 teams in the non-conference portion of their schedule.
The two best teams on their schedule will have to travel to Bloomington to play them. Both Ohio State and USC play in Bloomington. IU will have to play at Michigan the weekend after taking on the Buckeyes, but Michigan is a program in turmoil after what happened last season.
Cignetti showed that he can beat the Buckeyes, as he did so in the Big Ten Championship a year ago. The Trojans had their best season in the Big Ten in 2025, but they are still a level below the Hoosiers. However, Josh Hoover will have his work cut out for him as the new starting quarterback.
Replacing the defensive talent is going to be the biggest hurdle for the Hoosiers. How well Cignetti is able to do that could determine their ability to defend their national title.
Indiana Hoosiers Give Surprise Gift to Curt Cignetti