Curt Cignetti came to Indiana to win championships. The old-school, blunt-spoken coach who began his Hoosiers tenure with a promise to bring swift success to the losingest program in college football completed his masterpiece on Monday night, guiding Indiana to a 27-21 win over Miami in the College Football Playoff final and the first national championship in school history.
Cignetti accomplished what few imagined could be done — at least not this quickly. But after taking advantage of the transfer portal and name, image and likeness money to build a championship roster, Cignetti coached the Hoosiers to their first No. 1 ranking, and they finished off an undefeated campaign in front of 67,227 fans at Hard Rock Stadium, concluding one of the most surprising turnarounds in college football history.
