Eight weeks of football, eight wins for Indiana Hoosiers. Even the most optimistic of their fans would not have envisioned such a start to the season under Curt Cignetti. With their recent 31-17 dismantling of Washington, all eyes are on Indiana, and while this makes them an exciting proposition for new recruits such as Julian Lewis, the program isn’t safe from having its best talents poached including Cignetti.

Before coming to Bloomington, Cignetti had worked wonders with previous programs, but his task at Indiana was a sizeable one. However, his offseason confidence has translated into success on the field as the Hoosiers are ranked 13th in the country heading into Saturday’s game at Michigan State. The program is 8-0 for just the second time in its history.

But this success comes with the chance of other bigger programs eyeing his services. Not only that, there is always an NFL franchise lurking to get hold of the best of the best in college football. This possibility was discussed by former NFL scout John Middlekauff on his podcast.

Middlekauff mentioned, “I saw a clip where Cignetti says ‘listen right now I got everything I want here. My wife likes it, they have supported the program. We’ve had money for NIL and obviously, we’ve had success in this’ You know, the second-best conference in the country in the Big 10.”

But on his namesake podcast, Middlekauff questioned, “What if people call them this off-season? What if other bigger jobs, let’s say Florida open up and they call Curt Cignetti. And most people go well, it’s like you just got to take the job cuz, historically, 100%.”

Cignetti is in the first year of a six-year, $27 million deal. His $4.25 million per year salary is the third-lowest salary in the Big Ten So any big program that wants to lure him away, may not have much of a challenge. Moreover, if Cignetti decides to bring an end to his contract between December 1, 2024, and November 30, 2025, he would have to pay $6 million to the school.

As Middlekauff brought up Florida, it is worth noting that the Seminoles are 1-7 this season and on a four-game losing streak. HC Mike Norvell is feeling the heat and the program may decide to make a season in the off-season. Whether they would turn their attention to Bloomington remains to be seen.

Middlekauf also pointed out that despite the NIL situation allowing teams to bridge the gap to bigger programs, some colleges still hold more sway than others.

He added, “With NIL and the transfer portal it is clearly I would say leveled the playing field. Still have a huge advantage at 4 or 5 of the big boys. You’re coaching Ohio State, you’re coaching at Georgia, you’re coaching at LSU, you’re coaching at Texas or Texas A&M, you’re going to get better players. You’re going to have more money behind you. Your recruiting bases are better, not even debatable.”

There is no doubt that a bigger program can offer Cignetti a bigger payday and a team capable of regularly challenging for the championship. At Indiana, Cignetti has been able to utilize NIL and the transfer portal to build a team from scratch. He welcomed 31 transfers since taking over and has got them winning. But the question arises, is this sustainable? Losing their miraculous HC wouldn’t be the only concern for Indiana according to Middlekauff.

He added, “I look today both of his coordinators, Mike Shanahan is his offensive coordinator…who graduated college in 2012 and played football at Pitt, so he’s a younger guy. Their defensive coordinator Bryant Haynes is probably my age. We graduated college same year 2008. So he’s 39, 40 years old. Are they going to be able to keep their two coordinators? Cuz historically no chance. And what do most college coaches do when they need an OC or a DC they look around to the best teams in the country that aren’t Texas or Ohio State or Alabama, that can afford to keep their guys and they poach.”

This is something we saw happen at UCLA. USC and their HC Lincoln Riley were able to convince defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn to join them from UCLA. An agreement was reached on December 1 last year and a little over two months later, UCLA HC Chip Kelly stepped down after six seasons in Westwood.

Curt Cignetti’s use of NIL for succeeding at the Hoosiers

8-0 doesn’t happen that often in college football, especially not when you are in your first season. Ask Kalen DeBoer, heck, ask Nick Saban. It didn’t happen for them at Bama. Similarly for other coaches. It takes a while before you find your feet in a program. But these are new times. You may get handed a poor roster; smart recruiting can change everything, and that’s what Curt Cignetti did at the Hoosiers.

Since the time he has been at the Hoosiers, Cignetti has overseen 31 transfers. All the key names that have been vital to the 8-0 start. Let’s take you one by one. The most important position? QB? Well, Kurtis Rourke transferred from Ohio. Defensive tackle CJ West arrived in Indians from Kent State. We have D’Angelo Ponds from James Madison. That’s what a good program does. You have your mainstays (such as Carter Smith and Donaven McCulley), and then you add some weapons. What do you get? 8-0 baby!!

Cignetti has been open about how the program leveraged NIL, saying that he got “a lot more than what I was promised.” But it’s not just NIL. What also matters in modern recruiting is the person at the top of the job- the head coach, and that’s where Cignetti has helped the program bridge the gap with other Big 10 teams, and Indiana fans will hope long may it continue.