Curt Cignetti on signing contract extension with Indiana: 'We're the emerging superpower'

Curt Cignetti was never shy about his goals at Indiana and after signing a lucrative contract extension Saturday, the Indiana coach did one better.

He just wins, Google him, right? Well, he wants more than just Indiana’s 10-0 record this season. Cignetti wants championships and he’s not going to do it anywhere else.

He made quite the statement during Saturday’s Big Noon Kickoff during Indiana’s bye week.

“Well, you know, honestly, they came to me, they were very proactive,” Cignetti said of Indiana coming with a contract. “And, you know, some people say, ‘Well, you know, why would you do that when this one may open, that one may open, you know, and you’re going to be a hot commodity, blah, blah, blah.’ And the fact that matter is, we’re the emerging superpower in college football. Why would I leave?”

Indiana is ranked No. 5 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, thanks to Cignetti and crew. They’ll head to Ohio State next week for a massive game for Big Ten and CFP implications.

FOX’s Brady Quinn called it arguably the biggest game in program history.

“I love when you guys say stuff like that. Makes me laugh,” Cignetti said. “We’re open this week, and we treated it like every other open week, you know, we got recharged, re-energized, and we slow cooked on the next opponent a little bit … But in terms of installation, you know, we’ll approach this like any other game, because that’s how, it’s a big game, because it’s the next game. 

“And if there was a better way to prepare for a quote big game, we would prepare that way every week. So, I mean, we’re process driven, process oriented. We got to stack moments and days, put ourselves in the best position to have success on Saturday. Play our game. Play it well.”

Zach Osterman of The Indianapolis Star later revealed details of the deal, sharing that Cignetti will make an average of $8 million per year for eight years.

The Hoosiers were 3-9 last season but have already reached the 10-year mark in Year 1 under Curt Cignetti. This is the first 10-win season in school history for the Indiana football program.

Cignetti came to Indiana after spending five seasons as the head coach at James Madison. The Dukes finished 11-1 last year in his final season there.