Updated Jan. 19, 2026, 4:59 p.m. ET
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In just two years, Indiana football has gone from college football’s losingest program to being one of the top teams in the country, making an appearance in the national championship of the College Football Playoff under Curt Cignetti.
Those aren’t the only drastic changes to have happened out of Bloomington in that span: Cignetti, the 64-year-old college football journeyman, has also seen a drastic change in his compensation and financial portfolio.
Here’s what to know about Cignetti’s salary at Indiana ahead of the 2026 CFP Championship between No. 1 Indiana and No. 10 Miami on Monday, Jan. 19 at 7:30 p.m. ET at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida:
Curt Cignetti salary
Following a contract extension in October — which came amid speculation Cignetti was being targeted for Penn State’s open coaching position — will be paid $11.15 million in the first year of his eight-year deal.
To put into perspective the drastic change in Cignetti’s salary at Indiana, he was making less than $1 million a year ($677,311) during his final season at James Madison in 2023. His original deal with Indiana was for six years, $27 million with an annual salary starting at $4 million.
Cignetti has seen a salary increase of 1,612% in just three seasons.
“I just want you to know, 10 years ago, I was making $130,000,” Cignetti jokingly said during the Thursday, Oct. 16 edition of his weekly coaches show after Hoosiers play-by-play voice Don Fischer announced the news of his contract extension.
He also came into the 2025 season making $8.3 million, good for the 18th-highest salary among college football coaches at public universities, according to USA TODAY’s coaching salary database. He is now ranked in the top four, not including Lane Kiffin’s contract at LSU.
Curt Cignetti contract at Indiana
In an attempt to lock up the conductor behind their historic rebuild, Indiana announced on Oct. 16 that it had come to terms with Cignetti on a new eight-year contract.
It was the second time that Cignetti had been given a new contract since his hiring in November 2024. Cignetti’s new contract comes with an average annual compensation of approximately $11.6 million and keeps him in Bloomington through November 30, 2033.
As noted by The Herald-Times and the Indianapolis Star — part of the USA TODAY Network — Cignetti’s $93 million deal is fully guaranteed and his buyout, should he resign from his position at Indiana, begins at $15 million.
“I couldn’t be more proud to be a Hoosier and I plan on retiring as a Hoosier,” Cignetti said in a video that Indiana posted shortly after his extension was announced. “The way that this state has embraced us and our success in football has meant more to me than anything else. So, I just wanted to get on camera and let you know that Curt Cignetti is going to work daily to make Indiana the best they can be.”
Can Curt Cignetti get another extension at Indiana?
Yes, with Indiana’s appearance in the CFP semifinals, Cignetti is in line for another contract extension at Indiana, less than six months after the Hoosiers locked him up in October.
As noted by The Athletic, this is possible because of a clause that was included in his contract extension from October that states, “if the Hoosiers make a CFP semifinal during the contract, Indiana is required to make a good-faith review and negotiation of Cignetti’s salary into the top three in college football, within 120 days of the game.”
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