Indiana Athletics just pulled off a big financial 180 for the 2024–2025 fiscal year (June 2024–2025). After drowning in a deficit last year, they’ve finally cleared the air and found themselves sitting on a pretty sweet pile of cash. Here’s the lowdown on how they turned things around so fast. However, it wouldn’t have been possible without Curt Cignetti.

The Hoosiers were down bad with a $3.1 million deficit last year. According to the reports shared by On3, the Hoosiers netted $10.4 million surplus for the 2025 fiscal year. Mostly thanks to some record-breaking revenue numbers that hit $183.4 million. Since the Cignetti ball started winning big, fans have been flooding the stadium. That drove football ticket sales up from $2.7 to $12.7 million. Plus, their media pay jumped from $38.1m to $47.1 million.

Even things like parking and snacks at the games saw an enormous boost, doubling in revenue from $1.3 million in 2024 to $3 million in 2025 as Memorial Stadium started seeing record-breaking sellouts. The school also got a major assist from the Big Ten Conference. Because the conference had a great year with teams making the playoffs, IU got a nice slice of that postseason TV money.

Between those media rights and the success of the basketball program, which brought in over $51 million on its own, the athletic department had plenty of cash flowing in from all directions.

What’s more impressive is how they got smart with their money. Last year’s budget was a bit of a headache because they had to pay a $15.5 million buyout to former coach Tom Allen. To fix the leaks, the department cut its budget by 10% and eliminated 25 staff positions. These calculated moves were necessary to keep the department stable while also investing in Cignetti’s new $11.6 million-a-year contract.

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So, why does this surplus matter right now? Schools are now allowed to pay athletes directly through revenue-sharing. IU is using this profit as a safety net to fund the $20.5 million they’ve committed to paying their players, ensuring that they stay competitive in this brand-new era of college sports. You can bet they’re going to double down on the surplus in next year’s fiscal report.

Nonetheless, Curt Cignetti is already on his way to tripling down by recruiting one of the best DL prospects in the Midwest.

Curt Cignetti is in pursuit of one of the nation’s finest DL prospects

The 6’4” David Folorunsho out of Chicago is one of the most sought-after prospects from the Midwest that everyone in the country wants. But after a recent junior day visit to Bloomington, it sounds like Indiana is sitting right at the front of the pack for the Class of 2027 star.

“The experience was great,” Folorunsho said of his most recent experience. I was really able to understand how they intended to use me in their defense. Also got to understand the development piece. It’s definitely exciting to see what they are building and something I definitely want to be a part of.”

David is already scheduled to visit Bloomington on April 19th and couldn’t wait to see what’s happening there. However, there are some roadblocks along the way. The Mizzou Tigers will have their first shot on June 5th. Then he has programs like Notre Dame, Tennessee, and Michigan in the mix. There’s still a long way to go.