The tension soars even more in Indiana’s showdown against Oregon as billionaire Mark Cuban takes the spotlight. The “Shark Tank” star appears on GameDay after fueling Hoosiers with a massive NIL contribution. However, when asked what he expects in return, Cuban didn’t hesitate to set a clear expectation for the Hoosiers.

“I just say win m————,” Indiana’s alum and booster Mark Cuban said to reporter Dominic Miranda before the Peach Bowl. “I’m the luckiest dude in the world, right? Like to be in this situation, and I know they’ll be good to me, right? And all that kind of stuff. Now I get the nice suite. I have to pay for it, but at least I get first crack at it. 

The reward is when we win, just like every Hoosier fan, everywhere, my buddies, my boys, right? I played rugby at IU, so all my teammates, a bunch of them are here, flew in from all over. All my buddies like that I grew up with, went to IU with, lived with in Dallas, my room, they’re all here, they all flew down.” 

A big sports buff, Mark Cuban is a proud IU alum who graduated from the business school in 1981. Now, he is using his financial resources to strengthen the team’s roster. He is now doubling down on his support by investing heavily in Indiana’s 2026 transfer portal efforts.

Cuban’s financial backing comes on top of his previous contributions, which include $5 million for a sports center and $6 million to fund Indiana’s Rugby club. Although the exact amount of his investment in football is unknown, it is intended to boost their chances of competing at the highest level with top players.

In return, all he wants is for Indiana to win.

To thrive in this new era of college football, teams need to double down on NIL and the transfer portal, and Curt Cignetti cracked it perfectly. With Cuban’s support, the Hoosiers NIL collective teams are already adding key pieces from the portal. They got former TCU starter Josh Hoover, K-State edge rusher Tobi Osunsanmi, and Michigan State wideout Nick Marsh.

Cuban’s urge for Indiana’s success comes from Curt Cignetti’s success with the team. Cignetti’s success has been transformative, leading a program that had long struggled to achieve historic milestones, including its first Rose Bowl win and a No. 1 overall ranking, all of which culminated in the program’s first-ever playoff appearance in 2024.

Riding the same momentum, Indiana is already making Mark Cuban’s wish come true against Oregon. Going into halftime, Indiana held a massive edge of 35-7 against the Ducks.

While the Hoosiers are handling business on the field, the university is preparing for a different kind of battle off of it: securing coach Curt Cignetti with a massive new contract.

Curt Cignetti is on the verge of getting a massive pay raise

Curt Cignetti wasted no time in cashing in on Indiana’s historic rise. Less than three months after signing a new contract with a significant raise, he triggered another pay review, all thanks to his playoff semifinals berth. A clause in his October deal now forces Indiana to negotiate his salary into the top three among national coaches or risk losing him.

Indiana’s Peach Bowl semifinal appearance activates that clause. The contract requires the university to act within 120 days of the CFP semifinal game. If they fail to negotiate in good faith, Cignetti’s buyout drops to zero, which gives him complete freedom to leave and choose another team.

His October raise brought his average annual salary to $11.6 million, which placed him behind Kirby Smart and Ryan Day in 2025 salaries. However, Lane Kiffin’s $13 million move to LSU pushed him out of the top three, which makes the clause unavoidable.

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This clause mirrors a strategy once employed by Nick Saban at Alabama to remain among the highest-paid coaches in the country. Now, his excellent playoff wins against Alabama and Ohio State also support his case.

Let’s wait and see how far Indiana goes to keep its leader close to Bloomington.