Curt Cignetti Briefly Shows Emotion During Key Fourth Down in CFP National Championship

Indiana played Miami in the 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday night. While the Hurricanes had previously won a few college football titles, these are uncharted waters for the Hoosiers.

Luckily, there was a familiar face on Indiana’s sideline in coach Curt Cignetti. The man with the most famous scowl in the sport insists he knows how to have a good time, but he tries not to show it on the sideline.

During the CFP championship game his eyebrows betrayed him as he made a face when his defense tried to get a stop on fourth down. First he leaned over to see where the ball was spotted.

me when i hear a weird noise outside pic.twitter.com/VShYxBm6rQ
— The Sporting News (@sportingnews) January 20, 2026

Then he briefly raised both eyebrows for what can only be described as a hopeful look. ESPN showed it multiple times with Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit finding great joy in the moment.

This is the most emotion I've ever seen Curt Cignetti show🤣 pic.twitter.com/E0CNBpLFFq
— Aggregate Sports (@AggregateSports) January 20, 2026

Indiana took a 10–0 lead to the half, but Cignetti did not appreciate the way the game was being officiated so he almost showed emotion again as the game went into intermission. But he didn't. He composed himself and effectively relayed a number of facts to Holly Rowe during a brief interview.

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