College Football HQ

Penn State dealt blow in search by $92 million College Football Playoff coach

Penn State had been linked to a College Football Playoff coach, but it appears this candidate is not heading to Happy Valley.
Jonathan Adams|
Sep 13, 2025; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin watches the replay of the final play of the game following the end of the game against the Villanova Wildcats at Beaver Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images
Sep 13, 2025; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin watches the replay of the final play of the game following the end of the game against the Villanova Wildcats at Beaver Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images | Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

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Penn State Nittany LionsIndiana Hoosiers

Since surprisingly firing James Franklin, Penn State has largely been linked to two Big Ten coaches in ongoing college football rumors: Indiana's Curt Cignetti and Nebraska's Matt Rhule. The challenge is it has been hard to gauge whether there is mutual interest between Cignetti or Rhule and the Nittany Lions.

Penn State may have just received their answer from one of the perceived top candidates to be the next Nittany Lions head coach. In not-so-coincidental timing, Indiana announced that Cignetti has agreed to a massive eight-year, $92.8 million contract extension worth $11.6 million annually.

The news comes just days after Penn State fired Franklin, and Cignetti had been floated as a top candidate. Let's explore how Cignetti's move impacts Penn State.

Indiana HC Curt Cignetti appears to no longer be a candidate at Penn State after signing a $92.8 million contract extension

All signs point to this being Cignetti's way of saying he has no plans to bolt Bloomington for Happy Valley. This marks the second time Cignetti has agreed to a contract extension in less than one year.

Back in Nov. 2024, Cignetti signed an eight-year, $64 million contract extension. All Cignetti did since then is lead Indiana to the College Football Playoff and has the Hoosiers once again in contention to make the postseason in 2025.

All eyes are now on Penn State's potential interest in Nebraska HC Matt Rhule

This puts even more attention on Rhule's potential interest in bolting Nebraska for Penn State. Rhule has attempted to downplay the rumors linking himself to the new vacancy.

Yet, Rhule stopped short of ruling out a move to Happy Valley. Penn State may have have gotten a head start in the program's coaching search by firing Franklin, but the Nittany Lions still have some work to do to land one of their top candidates.

Thanks to the sport' s changing landscape with NIL and the expanded College Football Playoff, it appears Cignetti feels comfortable remaining at Indiana over a high-profile job like Penn State.

Published
Jonathan Adams
JONATHAN ADAMS

Jonathan Adams is a veteran sports writer who has written for notable outlets and interviewed some of the top athletes for more than 10 years. Since 2015, his sports coverage has been read by tens of millions and has been prominently featured on Heavy, NFL.com, Yahoo Sports, Pro Football Talk, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report and more. Jonathan is a member of the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) and a voter for the Maxwell Award and Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year. He has interviewed many of the biggest stars in sports — Bryce Harper, Jayden Daniels, Justin Jefferson, Bijan Robinson and Micah Parsons to name a few — and has traveled the country to cover the College Football Playoff, NFL draft, Masters, March Madness, Senior Bowl, McDonald’s All-American Game and beyond. Jonathan Adams studied at the University of Central Florida and The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology. He holds master degrees in sport business management, business administration and theology & culture.

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