Before getting his first head coaching job, Curt Cignetti was an Alabama assistant from 2007-11.
Cignetti’s former colleagues said at Alabama, they saw the qualities that would make him a successful head coach.
Now leading No. 1 Indiana, Cignetti said his time at Alabama provided the blueprint to his success today.
“This guy is very intelligent.”
That was the thought Major Applewhite had after meeting a fellow Alabama staff member. It was 2007, Nick Saban’s inaugural year in Tuscaloosa, and Applewhite was his first offensive coordinator.
Applewhite was 28 – the youngest coordinator in the Bowl Subdivision. Yet, it took five seconds for this staff member to capture Applewhite’s attention. Not only was he intelligent, he was extremely passionate, loved football and had a clear vision of what good football looks like.
That guy? That would be Curt Cignetti – receivers coach and recruiting coordinator.
Not many knew who Cignetti was when Saban hired him in February 2007, but the college football world knows him now. He changed Indiana football forever, turning it from the perennial loser to the top seed in the College Football Playoff.
In what has become a dream season for the Hoosiers, they are the closest they’ve ever been for a national championship. The first step in the playoff is the quarterfinal in the Rose Bowl.
The opponent? None other than Alabama.
It wasn’t his first coaching gig after starting in the business in 1983. It wasn’t his longest, spending just four years with the Crimson Tide.
But it was perhaps his most important stop, as the team he will face on New Year’s Day built Cignetti into who he is.
“It was a real important part of my journey,” Cignetti said. “I wouldn’t be where I am today without my time under Nick (Saban).”
How Curt Cignetti succeeded at Alabama
Cignetti arrived in Tuscaloosa after stops like Pittsburgh and North Carolina State and made an immediate impact.
After a 7-6 record in Alabama’s first year with Saban, Cignetti helped bring in the guys that laid the foundation for the Crimson Tide dynasty. He was key in the recruitment of Mark Ingram, Dont’a Hightower and Julio Jones. All guys that helped Alabama win the 2009 national championship in Saban’s third season.
Cignetti wouldn’t take much credit for helping bring players that won a Heisman Trophy and had standout NFL careers, but those that worked with him let it be known how instrumental he was.
“When he would bring something up, you knew it was well thought out,” Jim McElwain, Alabama offensive coordinator from 2008-11, told USA TODAY Sports. “He did a great job of the background of each player. You knew when he brought one to the table, it was one that had been vetted and one that was going to fit within the organization.”
Being able to land premier recruits was one thing, but he was also able them turn into stars that could play In the NFL. Jones was SEC freshman of the year and sixth overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft. Marquis Maze and Kevin Norwood were key pieces in multiple national championship teams.
Connecting with players with unique approach
It was just one season working with him, but Applewhite saw how Cignetti connected with players. He said there was a unique approach to how he handled his position group which helping both player and coach grow, building characteristics and attributes that he hadn’t thought of.
“If it’s genuine and you’re really trying to make that player better, then a connection is usually created,” Applewhite said. “He had a lot of knowledge that he could disseminate to those players and in a very effective way that they knew what to do. I think players saw that as very valuable. Here’s a guy who’s upbeat, wants to coach me hard, wants to get me better. He’s consistent. What else can I ask for?
“Players thrived underneath him there,” he added.
As a result, Cignetti made lives for his coordinators easy. As McElwain put it, if you ever have to get involved in a position group that isn’t yours, something’s wrong. That was never needed with Cignetti in the three seasons working together.
“Cig’s guys were always prepared,” McElwain said. “They knew the plan, and they played their tails off.”
What Curt Cignetti learned from Nick Saban
Not only was Cignetti becoming a better coach, he was learning how to run an organization, “trained by one of the best” in Saban. He saw how Saban structured things and found the right pieces to build the foundation for a program that would win six national championships during his tenure.
There was plenty of knowledge to gain from Saban, who welcomed taking ideas from his assistants. But McElwain noted the Hall of Fame coach preached was you have to be you, not somebody else. Cignetti got to truly find himself and see what works and what doesn’t.
While figuring out the best methods, Cignetti stayed true to himself, and it often came across as bold. He was always trying to win the battles in practice, and if there was something he thought could be done better, he was going to say it.
It may have caused some debates, but it also opened the eyes of some fellow staffers, and it wasn’t just Saban helping others grow. Applewhite said it could be frustrating working with someone as young as he was, but Cignetti’s explanations and work ethic helped him grow. He later became a head coach at Houston and currently the head coach at South Alabama.
Becoming a head coach
Saban didn’t really get what Cignetti was trying to do in January 2011 when Cignetti was in the process of getting his first head coaching job at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Saban had some questions if going to a Division II school was a good move, but Cignetti felt he was “just ready to kind of run my own show” after 28 years of being an assistant.
It was familiar ground for Cignetti. His father, Frank Sr., was the head coach there from 1980-2005. But when the younger Cignetti showed interest in the job, it even surprised then-athletic director Frank Condino, who had worked with his dad. He thought it was “really bold” for Cignetti to want it.
“I just didn’t realize how ready he was to be a head coach that time, and then I wasn’t sure why an FCS program wouldn’t have taken a chance on Curt as a head coach,” Condino said.
Applewhite was at Texas at the time and knew just from one year of working together, Cignetti wasn’t just going to wait for an opportunity at a high-profile job. Besides, those that worked with him knew he had the perfect qualities to be head coach.
“There was no doubt in my mind he had all the things that it takes,” McElwain said. “You can see that some guys have it. He had it.”
At first, Cignetti did wonder if Saban was right because it was such a drastic change. Condino said his mindset was to let Cignetti control the program his way. He anticipated the coach would succeed, and it would go that way if he allowed the experienced assistant to run the show.
He did well, winning 53 games in six seasons and reaching the Division II playoffs three times. That success led to more winning at Elon and James Madison before landing in Bloomington.
Indiana success using Alabama blueprint
What Cignetti’s former co-workers love about seeing the turnaround at Indiana is he “has not changed in any way,” McElwain said. Applewhite added he still sees the same passion, confidence and “steadfast conviction” from 2007. Cignetti admitted the blueprint of Indiana draws plenty from that time in Tuscaloosa.
“Philosophically, the program that we run here is probably a lot more the same than different than Alabama,” Cignetti said. “There’s probably not a day that goes by where I don’t draw from those experiences.”
His former colleagues will be tuned in on New Year’s Day. McElwain noted it will be the same venue they won a national championship together in the 2010 Rose Bowl against Texas, and now Cignetti gets to do it on his own. Condido said he expects the town of Indiana, Pennsylvania, to watch and root on their former coach.
There aren’t many people that could have envisioned Cignetti leading Indiana to heights its never reached before. But if you were around the mind who was ready for his shot nearly 15 years ago, it does make some sense.
“Did I see it coming? No, nobody did,” Applewhite said. “Does it totally surprise you? Knowing Curt, the kind of coach he is and knowing where college football is, it doesn’t totally surprise you.
“But it’s still a phenomenal story.”