Hoosiers Now

Curt Cignetti Shoots Down Involvement In Men's Basketball Coach Search

Curt Cignetti was mentioned as an influencer in a report on Indiana's men's basketball search. He quickly shot that notion down.
Todd Golden|
Overjoyed Indiana coach Curt Cignetti speaks to the media after the No. 8 Hoosiers defeated Michigan 20-15 on Nov. 9, 2024.
Overjoyed Indiana coach Curt Cignetti speaks to the media after the No. 8 Hoosiers defeated Michigan 20-15 on Nov. 9, 2024. | Hoosiers On SI | Todd Golden

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Indiana HoosiersVanderbilt Commodores

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana football coach Curt Cignetti has his eyes on everything - including when his name is mentioned in conjunction with the Hoosiers' men's basketball search.

On Saturday, Adam Zagoria - a reporter who covers college athletics for several publications on the East Coast - mentioned in a post on X that Cignetti was advocating for Vanderbilt coach Mark Byington behind the scenes. Cignetti and Byington were both at James Madison at the same time from 2020-23.

"I'm told Curt Cignetti is pushing for him at Indiana & he presumably has juice now after the football season," Zagoria reported.

Cignetti answered the post and cleared the air as far as his involvement in Indiana's basketball search.

"Not true. Scott Dolson knows alot more about basketball than I do. I have my own team to focus on," Cignetti responded.

Cignetti doesn't post very often on social media, but when he does, it's occasionally in response to falsehoods he finds on the forum.

In September, Cignetti responded to a post that suggested he was using Indiana's basketball recruiting loss to Maryland in gaining the services of Derik Queen as motivation for the Hoosiers' football game against the Terrapins.

Cignetti's post simply said, "not true".

It's worth mentioning that Cignetti's denial of his involvement doesn't mean the Hoosiers might not be interested in Byington. Vanderbilt is 17-7 in Byington's first season with the Commodores. He has a career record of 230-140 at Georgia Southern, James Madison and Vanderbilt.

Related stories on Indiana basketball

  • POSSIBLE COACHING CANDIDATES: Hoosiers On SI examines some possible choices for the Hoosiers. CLICK HERE.
  • THE CASE FOR BRUCE PEARL: The veteran coach has Auburn on top of the college basketball world and he is a popular choice among Indiana fans. CLICK HERE.
  • BRAD STEVENS TO IU?: Many fans want Brad Stevens to become Indiana’s next basketball coach, but he wasn’t interested before. What would make him interested now? CLICK HERE
  • DUSTY MAY NEW CONTRACT? Michigan is reportedly working on keeping basketball coach Dusty May in Ann Arbor to counter interest from Indiana, his alma mater. CLICK HERE
  • TODD'S TAKE: If Todd Golden were running Indiana's coaching search, the first call would go to Matt Painter. CLICK HERE.
  • WOODSON EXIT: Indiana and Mike Woodson are working towards ending his four-year tenure as Indiana coach. CLICK HERE.
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Todd Golden
TODD GOLDEN

Long-time Indiana journalist Todd Golden has been a writer with “Indiana Hoosiers on SI” since 2024, and has worked at several state newspapers for more than two decades. Follow Todd on Twitter @ToddAaronGolden.

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