INDIANOLIS — When Curt Cignetti took the Indiana job final fall, he promised rapid success.
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It wasn’t boastful bluster.
After daring the doubters to Google his successful pedigree, the son of a Corridor of Fame soccer coach delivered on his phrase by main the Hoosiers to a school-record 11 wins, a prime 10 rating and an unbelievable first playoff berth that arrange a Friday night time sport at No. 3 Notre Dame.
Cignetti was named The Related Press Coach of the Yr on Tuesday, accumulating 30 of 45 votes from High 25 voters. Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham completed second with eight votes, Oregon coach Dan Lanning obtained 5 and SMU coach Rhett Lashlee bought two.
“Thank you to The Associated Press for this tremendous team honor,” Cignetti stated. “Our program has had a great season and we look forward to opening the College Football Playoff against Notre Dame on Friday.”
Few thought such a season was potential at Indiana, a lot much less in his first season. Cignetti authored an eight-win turnaround that captivated the nation at a college with probably the most losses in Soccer Bowl Subdivision historical past.
Then once more, all of the 60-year-old Cignetti does is win.
He is by no means had a dropping document in 14 seasons as a head coach and has a popularity for making fast turnarounds in all places he goes — Alabama, the place he served as Nick Saban’s first recruiting coordinator and received a nationwide title, following his father to Indiana College of Pennsylvania or at FCS college Elon and James Madison, the place he presided over probably the most profitable transition from the FCS to FBS in NCAA historical past.
Cignetti received convention coach of the yr awards at IUP, Elon, James Madison and now within the Huge Ten with Indiana. Cignetti introduced most of his teaching workers and 13 gamers from the Dukes to Indiana and the outcomes have been as shocking as they have been at any of his earlier stops.
Even Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman took notice.
“I didn’t know much about him, so I took a minute and Googled him and looked at some of the things he’s done in the past at his other places,” Freeman stated Sunday, per week after the playoff pairings have been introduced. “He’s won everywhere he’s been. He’s done a great job.”
The winner of seventh-seeded Notre Dame and Tenth-seeded Indiana advances to the quarterfinal spherical towards second-seeded Georgia .
Cignetti is the primary Indiana coach to win the award since its inception in 1998. His predecessor, Tom Allen, completed second in 2020 after main the Hoosiers to a 6-2 mark, a second straight January bowl sport and a last rating of No. 12.
However this has been a historic season for the Hoosiers and Cignetti. who turned the primary Indiana coach to start out 10-0 — and even submit double-digit wins in season.
Indiana produced its largest margin of victory at school historical past, 77-3 over Western Illinois, in September and two of its three largest victory margins in Huge Ten play, 56-7 over Nebraska in October and 66-0 over rival Purdue in its regular-season finale.
Ten of the 11 wins have been by margins of 14 or extra factors they usually solely trailed within the second half of 1 sport, a loss at then-No. 2 Ohio State. And Indiana is not simply the best scoring group within the playoffs at 43.3 factors per sport, it additionally has the No. 6 scoring protection and the No. 1 run protection within the FBS.
It isn’t a shock to anybody in this system, least of all Cignetti.
“This team’s accomplished a lot, I’m proud of what they’ve accomplished,” Cignetti stated. “I think the coaches have done a great job, players have done a great job. But in saying that, no one’s satisfied. The players are hungry for more, the coaches are hungry for more.”
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