For 63 years, as an assistant and then lower level college head coach, Curt Cignetti could leave the house while enjoying relative autonomy.
His public life started changing during Indiana’s 2024 season, when the Hoosiers stunned the college football world with an 11-1 regular season and an invite to the College Football Playoff. By then he’d be recognized while stopping at the local gas station, and on other occasions here and there.
But after IU’s magical 16-0 run to the national title, the 65-year-old’s profile went global.
“I’m a little surprised by that, honestly,” Cignetti said of his newfound fame, noting he is recognized everywhere he goes, even on a spring family vacation to the tiny island of St. Barts in the Caribbean.
Coming off one of the most improbable seasons in the history of sports, Cignetti is often asked whether he has taken a step back to soak in the magnitude of what he has accomplished at IU.
It’s that aspect — being recognized literally everywhere he goes — when it really hits home.
In part to help further propel the program, Cignetti has capitalized on his sudden fame by agreeing to endorsement opportunities and public appearances that will only serve to further expand his already burgeoning image.
He drove the pace car at the Indy 500, has a prominent role in the popular College Football 27 video game, and will be appearing soon in a State Farm commercial. In many ways, he’s the face of college football.
While Cignetti is the iconic head of the program, his players have also become celebrities.
Fernando Mendoza would generate mobs in Bloomington everywhere he went. Wide receiver Charlie Becker, Mendoza’s roommate in 2025, says he learned to handle his own skyrocketing fame by watching his quarterback. Their teammates have all seen a dramatic change on and around campus.
“It’s been a complete 180, complete turnaround. The people love us,” defensive tackle Tyrique Tucker said. “We get recognized out sometimes. If you’re in town and Fernando’s there, good luck.”
The experience of being a national champion and the fame that accompanies it extends beyond Bloomington for the IU players. Returning to their hometowns has brought them another shade of pride, celebrity, and joy.
“To be able to see that you made some people happy, you made your dad happy, you made your mom happy, you made your family proud, you made your community proud, your school, your friends, to be able to see that after the support they were able to give me throughout the whole process, it made me feel grateful and blessed to have such a strong support system,” linebacker and Ohio native Isaiah Jones said.
Multiyear veterans under Cignetti like Tucker, Jones and All-American left tackle Carter Smith all know their newfound fame cannot influence their preparation for the 2026 season.
“I get called out on the street every once in a while and people give me my props,” Smith said. “But as far as how I carry myself or anything like that, nothing really had to change. The standard is the standard and if I change the way that I work when I go into the facility, then what am I doing? We need to make sure we keep the same blueprint as last year going into this year, and that includes maintaining the same work ethic.”
“As great as that was, as as fun as that was, all the memories we made, all the games we won, you know, I’ll remember those for the rest my life,” Jones said. “But that’s not going to win us any games this year.”
Cignetti agrees with those sentiments, of course. He has fostered them in his players. And Cignetti grew up watching his father Frank bear the brunt of fan frustration at West Virginia, even as he battled cancer. When it comes to fans, fame and fortune, he knows things can change in a hurry.
On vacation, Cignetti said he enjoys interacting with fans. But he also sees the danger when the constant disruption begins to interfere with his preparation for a new season.
Cignetti’s blunt no nonsense approach is central to his now global image, and he delivered the same wary message as his players — in his own unique way.
“It’s nice, but I also know if we don’t hold up our end of the bargain, I’ll be hung in effigy next fall,” he said.
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