Can someone explain to me how in the hell

[kurt cloverdales]

Cignetti has pulled this off. I didn't realize how many starters we lost from last year's team until it was discussed on gameday. I know we picked up a lot of James Madison players, but would anyone have thought even if we took their whole roster that they could compete in the big 10. I know we picked up a bunch of guys from the portal but would have to assume they weren't 4- and 5-star guys that the big boys were going after.

it's almost miraculous what he has accomplished in such a short time, has recruiting picked up? what is our NIL situation going forward compared to the top programs? why did he never get a power 5 offer before he turned 60?

must admit what I've seen at memorial stadium the past few weeks is beyond anything I ever thought was possible, but damn it has been so much fun following this team.

 

[bwcoach]

Cignetti has pulled this off. I didn't realize how many starters we lost from last year's team until it was discussed on gameday. I know we picked up a lot of James Madison players, but would anyone have thought even if we took their whole roster that they could compete in the big 10. I know we picked up a bunch of guys from the portal but would have to assume they weren't 4- and 5-star guys that the big boys were going after.

it's almost miraculous what he has accomplished in such a short time, has recruiting picked up? what is our NIL situation going forward compared to the top programs? why did he never get a power 5 offer before he turned 60?

must admit what I've seen at memorial stadium the past few weeks is beyond anything I ever thought was possible, but damn it has been so much fun following this team.

Maybe his sense of what a good football player is much different than Allen’s. And of course there’s coaching.

 

[OpenWheels]

You, me, and most of the coaches and programs in college football are asking your same question.

I think Cig was at the forefront of the portal. I believe with what he has shown, bidding is going to go insane in future years. Everybody will be trying to 'flip the roster' . I still think we're good. Cig will use his eye and sense of character and be able to play 'moneyball' against the biggest spenders. It'll get tougher though. And gotta coach em up too. abilki

Edit: I also believe like others are saying it's mostly having a dam good ability to coach. He could take his'n and whip yours and take yours and whip his.

 

[Tammany Hall]

My guess: A good system and a 100% aligned staff that has worked together a long time. It’s been amazing.

 

[td75]

It's a combination of getting the right pieces from the transfer portal which to CCC, meant production over stars. In short, he went after players that had developed and produced elsewhere but weren't 4* players out of high school. Aiden Fisher is exhibit A.

He has assembled a Sun Belt all star team on defense if you ask me. They've proven to be very good players who produced at JMU, Old Dominion, and other small schools who've translated extremely well to the Big Ten.

His coaching acumen is obviously very high, too. He says Washington forced him to basically scrap their game plan on the fly yesterday. I don't recall an Indiana coach ever being able to adjust and dominate their opponent in that situation. I'm sure 90% of college coaches would struggle to do that.

The other answer is Kurtis Rourke and it's why we desperately need him back to chase a championship!

 

[ce36ei]

He let the losers walk, brought in basically a new 2 deep.

 

[Big Red Crimson Buffalo]

kurt……you’ve been watching too much Woody and Calipari ball. Chasing stars with no chemistry, system or discipline.
It’s the same reason that Coach Knight beat teams like UNLV when they said they were completely overmatched.

 

[CC Mac]

It’s been a combination of things I think.
The favorable schedule has been huge with 8 very winnable home.games.
The first two away games were good match ups as well.
We deserved a break with the schedule,we have gotten the other end of it many times.
Cig being able to bring his whole staff with him is also huge.
Cig’s ability to evaluate talent was a factor.
Many were worried he was bringing too many JMU guys with him.
That he didn’t know what type of player it would take to compete in this conference,the man knows what he’s doing.
Many questioned bringing in a MAC QB but he targeted him as a priority and it’s worked out pretty well I would say.
Small school,big school,football is football,if you can play you can play.
No matter how the rest of the season plays out,this has been a lot of fun.
It’s easy sometimes to catch lightning in a bottle,the real test will be to see if he can sustain what he’s started.
We have snuck up on some teams this year, going forward the target will be on our back,I hope we can handle it.

 

[MMM1992]

I heard Don Fischer and Buck Suhr talking about this in the postgame and Buck made the comment of how NIL monies may not be benefiting programs, if any, for improved success. I suppose time will tell.

 

[Sobchak_Security]

Cignetti has pulled this off. I didn't realize how many starters we lost from last year's team until it was discussed on gameday. I know we picked up a lot of James Madison players, but would anyone have thought even if we took their whole roster that they could compete in the big 10. I know we picked up a bunch of guys from the portal but would have to assume they weren't 4- and 5-star guys that the big boys were going after.

it's almost miraculous what he has accomplished in such a short time, has recruiting picked up? what is our NIL situation going forward compared to the top programs? why did he never get a power 5 offer before he turned 60?

must admit what I've seen at memorial stadium the past few weeks is beyond anything I ever thought was possible, but damn it has been so much fun following this team.

Having an entire staff that believes in a system that works, both offensively and defensively, and knows what skill set they want at each position is key. Not to mention knowing the type of personality in a player that creates a winning culture. I share your opinion in that what we are seeing I wasn’t sure was possible for Indiana football. But Cignetti is the closest thing we have had since, and might ever again have, to Bob Knight. We have to move mountains to make sure we keep him at Indiana.

This is so much fun to watch. A few buddies and I were at the game yesterday and the entire environment around town was electric. Gameday, The Walk, you name it. Cignetti has absolutely become the face of an unprecedented energy around Indiana football.

 

[IUgradman]

Cignetti had never been a head coach at the FBS level until JMU transitioned in 2022. I don’t know the last time a Power 5 program hired a coach from the FCS. Plus, he is older which likely made him less attractive as a candidate.

Alabama, Michigan State, Washington, and Texas A&M all hired coaches with P5 head coaching experience last season. UCLA and Michigan hired from within. Duke was interested in Cignetti but he rightly understood that going forward the Big Ten and SEC were the only two conferences that mattered in football.

 

[RegionHoosiers]

I’m starting to think the favorable schedule is overplayed a bit. If they played Oregon and O$U already maybe IU is 6-2. Still incredible.

The portal and the NIL commitment obviously helped. The portal more so - it’s not like they’ve brought in a bunch of 4 and 5 stars they out paid the big teams for. But without the portal - it would take 3/4 years to build a team like this.

I haven’t been this excited about any sport in a long time. Kind of how I used to be about IU bball.

I keep contrasting this with the Woody hire. Pays off to bring in experience and a history of winning at the college level. Guess that’s what they tried with Archie.

 

[TominDallas]

He said this next recruiting cycles will be NIL transfer $$ again, alot like this last winter. But in 2026, he will be going after many more high school players and filling out the roster with NIL transfers.

 

[TominDallas]

JMU is good again this year. That team was stacked.