Curt Cignetti (born June 2, 1961) is an American football coach and former quarterback who is the current head football coach of the Indiana Hoosiers. He was previously the head coach of the James Madison Dukes, Elon Phoenix, and the IUP Crimson Hawks.

Playing career

Cignetti was a two-year letterman at West Virginia University.^[3]

Assistant coaching career

Early coaching career

After graduating from West Virginia, Cignetti coached at the University of Pittsburgh. He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Pitt in 1983 under Foge Fazio. He has also coached at Davidson College, Rice University, and Temple University.^[3]

NC State

Cignetti joined Chuck Amato's new staff at NC State in 2000. The 2002 team set a school record with 11 wins. In 2003, Cignetti coached Quarterback Philip Rivers, the ACC Player of the Year. In seven seasons, the Wolfpack participated in five bowls, winning four. In 2006, Cignetti recruited future Super Bowl champion quarterback Russell Wilson to the Wolfpack before joining Nick Saban's new staff at Alabama.

Alabama

Cignetti was an original member of Saban's Alabama coaching staff in 2007, serving as wide receiver coach/recruiting coordinator. The 2008 team finished the regular season 12–0 and the 2009 team finished 14–0 and won the national championship. The Tide won 29 regular season games in a row between 2008 and 2010. Cignetti coached wide receiver Julio Jones and recruited Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram II and linebacker Dont'a Hightower, all members of the 2008 recruiting class, which featured six first-round NFL Draft choices.

Head coaching career

IUP

IUP had a 4–10 conference record prior to Cignetti's arrival in 2011. In his first year as head coach, the team won 6 of its last 7 games, by an average of 28 points per game, to finish 7–3. In 2012, The Crimson Hawks won the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference and advanced to the NCAA Regional Finals, finishing 12–2. Cignetti's 2013 team finished 9–2 and he led IUP to the NCAA playoffs in both 2015 and 2016. His 2016 team finished 10–2. Cignetti finished 53–17 at IUP with three NCAA playoff appearances and two conference championships. On December 31, 2016, he accepted the head coaching position at Elon University.

Elon

The Elon team had a 4–20 conference record and suffered through six straight losing seasons prior to Cignetti's arrival, but in his first season the squad won eight games in a row after an opening season loss to MAC Champion Toledo. The Phoenix were ranked as high as 6th nationally, played James Madison for the conference championship and were selected for the NCAA Playoffs for the first time since 2009. Cignetti was named CAA coach of the year and was a finalist for the Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year. In 2018, Cignetti led the Phoenix to a 27–24 win over James Madison, ending JMU's 22-game CAA Football winning streak and then FCS-best 19-game home winning streak. The win marked Elon's first over a top-five FCS opponent.^[4] The Phoenix earned back to back NCAA playoff appearances for the first time in program history.

James Madison

Cignetti was named Head Football Coach at James Madison on December 14, 2018. In his first season, Cignetti led the Dukes to a seven-game improvement over the prior season, finishing 14–2 and advancing the team through the playoffs to an appearance in the National Championship game. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 college football season was delayed with make-up dates scheduled in the early 2021 calendar year. JMU completed the revised 2020 football season with a 7–1 record and advanced to the Semifinals of the playoffs. JMU went 12–2 in the 2021 football season and announced a move from the Colonial Athletic Association to the Sun Belt Conference starting the following season.

Indiana

Cignetti was named Head Football Coach at Indiana University on November 30, 2023.^[5]

Personal life

Cignetti and his wife, Manette, have three children, Curt Jr., Carly Ann, and Natalie Elise. Cignetti's father, Frank Cignetti Sr., won 199 games as a head coach at West Virginia University and IUP and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.^[6] His brother Frank Jr. also coaches and was most recently the offensive coordinator at Pittsburgh.

Head coaching record

SBC Division Title Note

James Madison was not eligible for their conference title or post-season play in their first two years of FBS transition while members of the Sun Belt Conference. They tied or had the best record in their division but are technically not division champions due to their transitional restrictions.