INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — From the moment Curt Cignetti took over as Indiana's head coach, he made it clear it would be a different program.
He refused to accept any moral victories or dangers and instead expected victory, big victory and immediate victory.
In just 737 days, he turned what was the Football Bowl Subdivision's losing program into a No. 1 seed in the country heading into the playoffs into a legitimate championship contender and Big Ten champion for the first time since 1967.
“I think we're a year late,” he joked as the trophy ceremony began after Saturday night's 13-10 win over No. 1 Ohio State.
To the rest of the college football world, Cignetti's incredible turnaround has happened so quickly that it will likely exceed expectations for every program in America.
He took over a team that had endured three straight losing seasons since qualifying for the bowl game, and boldly suggested that anyone who thought he couldn't win should Google him. The former Nick Saban assistant came through quickly, winning a school-record 11 games and leading the Hoosiers to their first playoff appearance as a freshman.
Doubters didn't think Cignetti or the Hoosiers could come close to repeating that success this season.
But in 2025 they got even better. At 13-0, the Hoosiers are the last undefeated team in major college football. They could even face former Sun Belt Conference high school champion James Madison (12-1) in the quarterfinals.
By beating the Buckeyes (12-1) in Indianapolis, they ended the nation's longest active winning streak at 16. When they beat then-No. 3 Oregon (11-1) in October, they ended the nation's longest active regular-season winning streak and the nation's longest active home winning streak.
Meanwhile, they shed the tag of the FBS's losing program, happily handing the title to Northwestern. And now they have their first win over Ohio State since 1988, snapping a 30-year losing streak to win their first conference crown in more than half a century.
Not enough? This week, Cignetti won his second straight Big Ten Coach of the Year award, Fernando Mendoza became the first Hoosier to be named Big Ten Quarterback of the Year since 2001, and Mendoza also appears poised to become the first Indiana player to win the Heisman Trophy, adding two more signature moments to his resume.
His perfectly executed 17-yard pass to Elijah Surratt on the sideline gave Indiana a 13-10 lead midway through the third quarter, and he sealed the win with an incredible 33-yard pass to Charlie Becker on third down with two minutes left – all after he was injured on the first play of the game.
“Even though I got hit, I never intended to stay down,” Mendoza said. “I would die for my brothers on this field.”
Naturally, the brash Cignetti went for it too, and Mendoza made him look like a genius.
“I wasn’t going to play to not lose,” Cignetti said.
How good was Indiana during his two years in office?
They are now 24-2, with their only losses coming to Ohio State and Notre Dame last season, two teams that played in the national championship game. Cignetti and his players talked about what they learned from the experience and how it helped them prepare for the mission they were on this season, and his contract has already been renewed twice.
Indiana enters the playoffs with an offense and defense that ranks in the top five in scoring and managed to beat Ohio State in its usual way of playing physical games from distance, wearing down opponents and keeping them out of the end zone.
Now begins a new journey for Cignetti and a school much better known for winning national titles in men's basketball, men's soccer, swimming and diving. Football has never come close to this – until now. And these Hoosiers believe they have what it takes to continue what seemed unthinkable just two years ago.
“It means a lot, we played for each other,” linebacker Isaiah Jones said of the championship win. “For any doubters, this was the final nail in the coffin.”
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