Curt Cignetti has worked miracles in Indiana. Naturally, that’s led to his name circulating on multiple candidate lists during a busy NFL head-coach hiring cycle.
But with his Hoosiers one win from claiming the program’s first national title in the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday night, Cignetti quickly shut down any NFL speculation while speaking to reporters Saturday.
“I’m not an NFL guy. I made that decision a long time ago,” Cignetti said during a media availability ahead of the game against the Miami Hurricanes at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla.
Cignetti insisted coaching at the college level is where his purpose lies, an inclination he said was cemented when he had the chance to make the college-to-NFL jump in 2000 and decided to join head coach Chuck Amato at North Carolina State.
“I had a chance to go with the Packers, Tom Rossley, Mike Sherman, (Brett) Favre was in his heyday,” Cignetti said. “I think Darrell Bevell got the job, ended up taking the job. I declined the opportunity. I almost took it. That’s when I made the final decision, and I’ve always been more of a college football guy.”
Bevell took the job as the Packers’ assistant quarterbacks coach. Favre ended up AP second-team All-Pro in 2001 and 2002 under Bevell, who has twice been an interim head coach but never rose higher than that in the NFL.
Meanwhile, Cignetti stayed in college football, eventually leaving NC State to be a wide receivers coach with Alabama in 2007.
Once he finally got his chance as a head coach with Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2011, he began a torrid streak of success, posting a 145-37 overall head coaching record over the last decade and a half.
Over the last two years, he’s orchestrated a one-of-a-kind turnaround at Indiana, taking the losingest programs in college football history to a combined 26-2 record and back-to-back trips to the CFP. Now he has the Hoosiers on the doorstep of their first national title.
