Why Casey Alexander can do for Kansas State Basketball what Cignetti did for Indiana Football

It is possible, not inevitable, that newly hired Alexander can do something similar to what Cignetti has done for Indiana football.

Head coach Casey Alexander gives instructions to his team. | Larry McCormack / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The goal is for Alexander to turn Kansas State from a team that has had losing seasons in recent years into a powerhouse in just one season. K-State fans think Alexander's arrival would bring about a quick turnaround.

Like Cignetti, who won at every school (IUP, Elon, and James Madison) he was a head coach at, Alexander has a long history of winning at the lower level. He has had ten straight seasons with 20 wins at two different programs, Lipscomb and Belmont. He, like Cignetti, is an offensive innovator whose teams thrive in scoring.

Gene Taylor, the K-State athletic director, said that Alexander was one of the "best offensive minds in the college game." His Belmont teams were known across the country for their high field-goal percentage and scoring efficiency. He can change the Wildcats' offense in the same way as Cignetti changed the Hoosiers' offense. They are two different sports, but the same principles, philosophies, and motivations apply to both coaches.

Alexander is a proven program rebuilder who has a history of quickly turning around programs that were struggling to win on the court. He guided Stetson from last place in their league to third place in two years and led Lipscomb to its first NCAA Tournament. He then led Belmont to seven straight seasons of 20 wins or more.

Alexander at Belmont	Cignetti at James Madison
Overall Record at Belmont: 166-60	Overall Record at JMU: 52-9
2024-25: 22-11	2022: 8-3
2025-26: 26-6	2023: 11-1

Both coaches are also known as good talent evaluators. Alexander is considered an expert evaluator in the NIL and transfer portal era, especially at the mid-major level, like how Cignetti was at James Madison. Alexander doesn't simply look for high-profile, highly ranked players, he also looks for players that match his specialized, high-efficiency system.

The comparison and connection to Cignetti is particularly relevant, as both coaches transitioned from mid-major colleges to high-major schools (Big Ten/Big 12), both of which are known for their "no-nonsense" reputation and a career winning rate that demonstrates their success is not a coincidence. The huge difference is that Alexander has just begun his transition and Cignetti has proven that not only is he a program builder but also a coach who has led his team to a national championship.

Kansas State just had a rough season, finishing 12-20, and they relieved Jerome Tang of his coaching duties, which caused some controversy because they did so before the conclusion of the season. The school is wagering that hiring Alexander, a "pure basketball coach" with decades of steady winning, will stabilize the culture and get results right away, just like Indiana did on the football field.

Remember, Cignetti coached at IUP, which is a Division Two school, for six seasons, and Elon, an FCS school, for two seasons before he became the head coach at James Madison, which was an FCS school for his first three seasons before JMU only became an FBS school in his final two seasons there. For those saying that Alexander doesn't have enough "experience" being a head coach at a high-level program, they said the same thing about Cignetti.

Is it likely that Alexander can replicate at K-State what Cignetti did at Indiana? No, it is not, but it is still possible. Time will tell but Wildcat fans can dream and hope that Alexander turns K-State into a basketball powerhouse starting next season.

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