The 2025 Indiana football season has been magical so far. Head coach Curt Cignetti has been the architect of reviving Indiana football and turning it into a powerhouse. Indiana is not known as a football powerhouse at all, and because of that, he has been speculated to move on to a better job. However, Indiana put their money where their mouth is and extended Cignetti for eight years.
Indiana has reached a new eight-year contract with Curt Cignetti, making him one of the highest-paid football coaches in the FBS. His annual average salary will be about $11.6 million, and his total salary will be about $93 million. According to Pete Thamel, the ESPN story by Mark Schlabach and Adam Rittenberg also specified that Cignetti's buyout increased, going from $10 million to $15 million.
The story elaborated more: “Under his previous deal, Cignetti's buyout was set to drop to $10 million on Dec. 1, a number that now climbs to $15 million under the new contract, sources tell ESPN's Pete Thamel.”
In a video posted on social media, Cignetti said, “I couldn't be more proud to be a Hoosier, and I plan on retiring as a Hoosier. The way this state has embraced us and our success in football has meant more to me than anything else.”
Hoosiers athletic director Scott Dolson says Cignetti's new deal shows the school is “all-in.”
“We didn't come this far only to come this far,” Dolson said to ESPN. “We're all-in and going to continue to invest and ensure that we've got our priorities in line. He's Priority 1, and then it's retaining our staff, and it's having the resources to build a roster.”
Curt Cignetti was named the Big Ten and National Coach of the Year last season after he led the Hoosiers to a 10-2 record and a berth in the College Football Playoff.
Another added wrinkle to the new contract is that if Indiana fires Cignetti without cause during his new deal, his $93.25 million becomes fully guaranteed.
The Indiana football program is finally relevant for the first time, so this extension makes sense. It also makes sense for Indiana to do this to try to lock up their coach after Penn State decided to let go of James Franklin. Cignetti would be a candidate at Penn State, so giving him this massive raise should ensure he's happy and won't go anywhere else.
