I’m sitting in a Chipotle, staring down at a burrito bowl, which is a pretty familiar place for me to be in. The first thought that crosses my mind, however, is something I don’t often think as a proud Chipotle Rewards member.
“This looks gross.”
I traded in my usual order for the “Coach Cignetti’s ‘I Win’ Bowl,” a special bowl patterned after Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti’s go-to Chipotle order. In the days leading up to Indiana’s clash with Miami in the College Football Playoff championship on Monday, a Wall Street Journal story revealed that Cignetti, like me, is a Chipotle connoisseur.
But that’s where the similarities end. After all, I’m not a Pittsburgh-born 64-year-old who just completed one of the greatest turnarounds in sports history.
The name of the Cignetti-themed Chipotle bowl comes from Cignetti’s now-famous called shot at his introductory news conference at Indiana two years ago, when he told fans of what was then college football’s losingest program that they should believe in him because, “I win. Google me.”
On Monday, Cignetti validated that talk by leading the Hoosiers to a dramatic 27-21 win over Miami to cap off one of the most improbable national championship runs college football has ever seen. Which takes us back to the bowl — no, not the Rose Bowl and Peach Bowl that Cignetti’s Indiana team also won in blowout fashion, but the special bowl that Chipotle commissioned based on Cignetti’s order outlined in the Journal.
Much like his 16-0 Hoosiers, Cignetti’s bowl is simple and workmanlike in its execution — brown rice, black beans and chicken, with a side of guacamole (which Cignetti reportedly does not always include in his order). That’s it.
A look at the “I Win” bowl named in honor of Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti. (Austin Green / The Athletic)
As I stared down at the bowl, I couldn’t help but think of a different view I had three weeks earlier, when I watched from the Rose Bowl press box as Charlie Becker caught a big downfield throw from Fernando Mendoza right in front of Cignetti in the first quarter of Indiana’s eventual win over Alabama. The coach calmly pointed forward as Indiana’s sideline and the throngs of fans behind it erupted in celebration. It may have been the most emotion he showed all game.
Back to this bowl. It’s priced at $12.50, loaded with 750 calories and 35 grams of protein, and, as I can now attest, is very, very bland. My main takeaway is that I didn’t realize how spicy Chipotle chicken was without the array of lettuce, corn and fajita-style vegetables that often accompany my go-to order. I cheated a little, using a promotion from my own Chipotle Rewards account to add a free bag of chips, which came in handy to blunt the spiciness from the chicken.
Of all the unbelievable things Cignetti has accomplished in his two years at Indiana, the fact that he claims to have this bowl nearly every day he’s on campus in Bloomington is somehow even more mind-boggling. There’s no way he’s had this roughly 500 times in his two years there, as he claimed to the Journal, right?
As it turns out, Cignetti may have actually undersold his connection to the food chain giant. Chipotle not only offered his namesake bowl nationwide, but also a buy-one-get-one-free deal at participating locations on Thursday. Fans rocking Hoosiers gear scored a free entrée with the purchase of any regularly priced one. In announcing the promotion, Chipotle revealed that Cignetti’s order is usually placed through the Indiana assistant director of football operations’ Chipotle Rewards account — an account that ranks in the top 1% in the state of Indiana for most rewards points earned.
Chipotle is not the only brand to capitalize on its connection to the Hoosiers’ head coach.
As of Thursday, users who Google “Curt Cignetti” will see a small note appear at the top of the search results that reads simply: “Yup, he won.”
