When you feel good about yourself, others are bound to praise you. And guess who proved that yet again? Of course, the Indiana Hoosiers HC Curt Cignetti. Surprisingly, he talks big but at the same time lives up to his catchphrases. This time it’s the Indiana Hall of Famer and the “Voice of the Hoosiers,” who seem to have been fully flattered by Cignetti. While the CFB fans are going head over heels for the new HC, there is someone special to whom Cignetti gives credit for his learning curve.  

When the Hoosiers hired Cignetti, hardly did they know that the new HC would usher in a wave of reformation. The change has been indeed a wild one! For this season, the program has maintained an undefeated streak, going 7-0. Well, by now the Hoosiers fans might have forgotten what victory tasted like. After all, they had a combined record of 9-27 for the past three seasons. Still, the Indiana legend, Don Fischer, refused to give a benefit of the doubt to the stats and wanted to find it himself. On the Big Ten Football podcast, the radio man shared,  “I went to 10 of their 13 spring practices I just wanted to see what Curt Cignetti and his bravado and talking about “Google me, I win” those kinds of things.”

And what insights he has come up with? “I have been convinced from the time that he got here that he was going to win football games in Indiana,” stated Fischer. He even pointed out how Cignetti comes off as the complete package of confidence, discipline, and toughness all in one. And what about the context of his catchphrases? Last year in December, right after his HC seat got confirmed in Indiana, Cignetti sold his vision flexing, “It’s pretty simple. I win. Google me.” Pretty much Nick Saban vibes, right? Well if you feel that way, there has to be something.

The mystery mentor behind Curt Cignetti’s coaching philosophy

The way the Hoosiers staked themselves to a 28-7 halftime lead against Matt Rhule’s Nebraska Cornhuskers is going to live with the Indiana fans for the longest time. But maybe Cignetti is still not satisfied with the performance standards. Or at least he is not letting his players know that. On The Pat McAfee Show, the Indiana HC stated, “The only thing that counts is where you are at the end, and that’s why I keep the pedal to the metal when we’re up.”

He further continued, “If you’re going to preach high standards…You get what you demand. Then in the fourth quarter, when you’re up three or four scores, you can’t lower your standards. That’s when I’m like a maniac. … I learned that from somebody.” When the podcast host Pat McAfee jokingly asked, “What was his name?” The HC slyly quipped back, “I can’t remember.”

By now, didn’t you all already have guessed the name? It’s none other than the 7x National championship winner and the GOAT, Nick Saban. Not many know that Curt Cignetti was on Saban’s staff and served as Bama’s wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator between 2007 and 2010. Now you know where the Indiana HC got that no-nonsense attitude from!