On November 30, 2023, Indiana hired Curt Cignetti, and the rest is history. So far, his journey with Hoosiers is marked with significant achievements and personal milestones. A defeat in week 13 might have raised many questions, but did that really affect him? Next week, he bounced back. How? 66-0! A dominating victory against Purdue. But was it that easy for him to join Indiana?

No! It was not. Probably the most difficult job of his life. Because before he joined, he could feel the pressure of improving a program with a bad history. It has been 1 year since Curt’s big announcement, and today the Hoosiers are standing with a solid 11-1 record, very close to the playoffs. On the podcast “CFB ON FOX,” he revealed how his wife, Manette Lawer, helped him make the big decision and navigate this dilemma.

“It’s not totally shocking to me. I said early that we were capable of doing this. We have. My wife will tell you that the night I accepted the job, right, that we were. Laying in bed and saying, Look at this schedule. There are ten wins on this schedule. And of course, at that point I was sort of hedging whether to stay or come. And then Scott called ten minutes later and told me I was a new head coach in Indiana. And I said, okay. He said, We’re going to shock the world. And I said, Right, we are.”

Despite the pressure of joining Indiana and the challenges that came along with it, Cignetti’s journey so far is so inspiring. He handled everything with lots of grace and dignity. A few weeks ago, Hoosiers fans got a shocker, and it was Cignetti’s extension. We can say that Indiana football is in safe hands till 2032. Now that Cignetti has decided to stay for longer, it has helped him earn an additional $45 million. When it was signed, the contract was initially for $27 million, and the renewed contract is for $72 million. Manette plays a much bigger role than securing him a big contract deal. How? Let’s find out.

Manette Lawer’s influence on Curt Cignetti’s coaching career

Of course, Indiana football is fortunate to have Cignetti as a head coach, but being a head coach has significantly improved and enhanced his resume as well. Getting here wasn’t an overnight achievement. His journey as a coach started in 1984 with Pittsburgh; then, he joined various other programs as a quarterback coach, including Rice, Temple, and NC State. It took him 41 years to be a head coach.

Indiana is forever going to be special for him because his wife hails from Indiana, and the success he has seen in the past 12 months is unbelievable. On November 20, on The Triple Option podcast, he shared that Manette played a big role in him joining Indiana and said, “We played the what-if game. My wife and I, about three or four weeks ago, and my agent and I. Everything always led back to Indiana, and you know, so I’m appreciative that the administration was proactive like they were. You know, we’re still in season, and it was for me; it was a no-brainer.”

Before this, during another interview, he said, “I want to thank my wife, Manette, for allowing me to do what I love to do. Without her, this wouldn’t be possible. We’re a team.” Now, his comments reflect how much he appreciates Manett. Cignetti would not have reached here without her support. Now that he is excelling at his role, Manett must be so proud of him. He is still on duty, and the question is, will he guide Indiana to the national championship?
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