How a Curt Cignetti title at Indiana creates 'collateral damage' for the rest of college football

Josh Pate warns that a Curt Cignetti national championship at Indiana would create all sorts of issues among programs and their fanbases across college football.

Head coach Curt Cignetti has delivered a historic turnaround for the Indiana football program, but one analyst believes a title would be a net negative for college football. | Robert Goddin-Imagn Images

The Indiana Hoosiers have completely defied the odds in 2025, shattering the traditional timeline for rebuilding a roster. Under head coach Curt Cignetti, the team transformed from a perennial afterthought to Big Ten champions at Lucas Oil Stadium, securing a top seed in the College Football Playoff.

This rapid ascent has energized a dormant fan base that now holds higher championship expectations than supporters of the Georgia Bulldogs or Ohio State Buckeyes.

Fans in Bloomington who once hoped for merely six wins now believe lifting the national championship trophy is the only acceptable outcome for this magical season. Yet, this unprecedented turnaround creates a complicated dynamic for the rest of the sport.

While the underdog story is compelling for the general public, the sheer speed of this rebuild could create unexpected consequences for coaching job security nationwide.

Josh Pate warns that an Indiana title could ruin other programs

During Thursday night's episode of his College Football Show podcast, host Josh Pate explained his belief that a title run by the Hoosiers would create a crisis for Cignetti's peers. While the 64-year-old has little left to prove, Pate argues that a national championship for Indiana would cause "collateral damage" for the rest of the coaching industry and be a "net negative" for the sport.

"If he does get to the national title and especially if he wins it, I think the collateral damage that does on the impact it has on other coaches would be a disaster for other coaches," Pate said.

The analyst explains that if Cignetti achieves perfection in year two at a historically struggling school, it removes every excuse for leaders at powerhouse programs.

Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti led the Hoosiers to their first outright Big Ten title since 1945. | Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"The attention span and the patience windows would evaporate," Pate said. "And if that guy just won a national championship in his second year at Indiana, there will never be an excuse for Jon Sumrall not to immediately do it at Florida, for Lane Kiffin not to immediately do it."

Pate specifically noted that even established winners at blue-blood programs would feel the heat if Cignetti pulls off what was once thought to be impossible.

"Kalen DeBoer, you should have already done it at Alabama," Pate said, mimicking the potential fan reaction. "Kirby (Smart), it's been two or three years. What's wrong with you? That would be a persistent attitude across the country."

Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Fernando Mendoza is enjoying a tremendous season, passing for 2,980 yards and accounting for 39 total touchdowns, and won this year's Heisman Trophy. | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The pressure is already mounting, as a recent poll shows 99 percent of Hoosiers fans believe they can win the title, compared to less than half of the Crimson Tide fan base. While Cignetti ignores the noise, the rest of the sport watches with trepidation. A Hoosiers' title means the clock speeds up for everyone else.

Indiana football will play the winner of the first-round matchup between Alabama and Oklahoma in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1, at 4 p.m. ET on ESPN.