Curt Cignetti has become the talk of college football, so much so that one Indiana fan has shown up to recent games dressed like the Hoosiers’ coach.
The impersonator has Cignetti’s look down pat, from his red windbreaker to his headset, glasses, hairstyle, play sheet and serious demeanor. During Monday’s press conference, the Cignetti lookalike received approval.
“Yeah, he’s pretty good,” Cignetti said, laughing.
Curt Cignetti rolling through lot 12 #iufb pic.twitter.com/WG9Gz27F0m
— Hoosier Review (@Hoosier_Review) October 25, 2025
We’ve got ‘Not Curt Cignetti’ in the house in Bloomington 🤣 pic.twitter.com/uJReWAhxaw
— Big Noon Kickoff (@BNKonFOX) October 25, 2025
“Hey! Curt Cignetti is in the stands!” 🤣 pic.twitter.com/d1qH7lagfX
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) October 25, 2025
Cignetti has led one of the greatest turnarounds in the sport’s history, taking a team that went 9-27 from 2021-23 and guiding them to a 19-2 record in the midst of his second season. The Hoosiers reached the College Football Playoff last season, and now they’re ranked No. 2 in the country at 8-0.
Cignetti’s winning ways and personality have been embraced by the university and its fans, leading to sold out crowds and a contract extension that makes him the nation’s third-highest paid coach at approximately $11.6 million per year.
The Hoosiers are coming off yet another dominant win, crushing UCLA 56-6 on Saturday in Bloomington. Quarterback Fernando Mendoza scored four total touchdowns, while running backs Roman Hemby and Kaelon Black combined for 27 carries, 151 yards and two scores. Indiana’s defense played tough yet again, as linebacker Aiden Fisher returned an interception for a touchdown on the first drive and helped limit the Bruins to just 201 total yards.
Next up, the Hoosiers travel to Maryland for a homecoming game against the 4-3 Terrapins at 3:30 p.m. ET at SECU Stadium in College Park, Md. In coach Mike Locksley’s seventh season, Maryland started off 4-0 with wins over Florida Atlantic, Northern Illinois, Towson and Wisconsin.
But their season has gone downhill since, losing three straight to Washington, Nebraska and UCLA by a combined 10 points. Despite the recent losses, Cignetti knows Indiana must be prepared for Maryland’s best effort.
“Good football team. Coach Locksley and his staff have done a great job recruiting the DMV. Excellent young talent. A lot of it is showing up on the field, especially on defense, as true freshmen,” Cignetti said.
“They got off to a 4-0 start, and they had Washington 20-0 with three minutes to go in the third quarter for win five and went into the fourth 20-3, and it kind of came apart on them and lost by four, and then lost to Nebraska by three who is a 6-2 football team, as is Washington. And UCLA is a tie game with 33 seconds to go and UCLA hits a couple of big plays, kicks a field goal with 2 seconds to go in the game to win. So three tough losses. They’re open this week, but really impressed with them as a football team.”
