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Comparison of Cignetti and Pope

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NoDef

All-American
Sep 1, 2001
5,112
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fisherscatfan said:
Yea the WORST PROGRAM in major college football history is in the title game 2 short years after hiring the right coach in a sport that is much more difficult to turn around than basketball is a perfect example for how bad Barnhart screwed this up.
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Barney paid a guy top 10 head coach pay to win 6 games a year.
 
fisherscatfan

fisherscatfan

All-Conference
Jan 17, 2010
530
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Another key I’ve heard about Cignetti is he values the P word when he looks at transfers. Not potential. Production. They needed to have produced. Think about Popes first team. He got guys that produced for their teams. That’s what Cig did too. This year Pope fell in love with Potential. The 6th man on higher level teams that had potential without necessarily the production. They were 6th man on their team for a reason.
 
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BlueBlood96Cat

BlueBlood96Cat

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Jan 5, 2022
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fisherscatfan said:
Another key I’ve heard about Cignetti is he values the P word when he looks at transfers. Not potential. Production. They needed to have produced. Think about Popes first team. He got guys that produced for their teams. That’s what Cig did too. This year Pope fell in love with Potential. The 6th man on higher level teams that had potential without necessarily the production. They were 6th man on their team for a reason.
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Pope signed the best recruiting class of his life by far this year. That’s what’s overlooked. He just keeps forgetting this is Kentucky and not Utah Valley. We aren’t supposed to fall in love with sixth men. We need starters being our sixth man. You go steal starters from people man. Popes got this little man complex to be so big.
 
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P

PhilipVU94

Heisman
Jul 24, 2001
29,040
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megablue said:
What is really AMAZING is that Mark Byington (currently undefeated at Vanderbilt) and Curt Cignetti (currently undefeated at Indiana) were both coaching at the same time at James Madison University ... !!!.
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And seems to have landed another big win in football with Chesney, who's now off to UCLA. However Preston Spradlin seems to be struggling in his 2nd year there. I don't know if there are any nuances to explain why JMU mbb is bad this year.
 
2

20MRoster

Senior
Nov 16, 2018
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megablue said:
What is TRULY amazing is that all four (4) of the final teams in the CFP had coaches with experience under Nick Saban, not to mention Kane Kiffin who was the architect at Ole Miss ... WOW !!!

for the 2026 College Football Playoff semifinals, all four head coaches—Curt Cignetti (Indiana), Dan Lanning (Oregon), Mario Cristobal (Miami), and Pete Golding (Ole Miss)—coached under Nick Saban at Alabama, showcasing his significant coaching tree.
Here's a breakdown of their roles under Saban:

View attachment 1131996
Curt Cignetti: Wide Receivers Coach (2007-2011).
View attachment 1131997
Dan Lanning: Graduate Assistant (2015).
View attachment 1131998
Mario Cristobal: Offensive Line Coach (2013-2016).
View attachment 1131999
Pete Golding: Defensive Coordinator (2018-2022).

This dominance by Saban's former assistants highlights his profound legacy and influence on college football leadership, with many current Power 4 coaches emerging from his program.
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Cignetti was also recruiting lead at Alabama. Guy knows talent and can evaluate it. So another difference with Pope.
 
S

sk73

All-Conference
Feb 16, 2013
3,087
3,122
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We should Hire the James Madison AD. Both Cignetti and Mark Byington coached under him. They are both in their second year at new jobs, Indiana and Vanderbilt. They are both still undefeated for the season. An AD that does a great job of vetting and identifying talent really helps. jmo
 
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KyKevin

All-Conference
Dec 28, 2021
590
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Argonaut said:
Apparently Indiana has around a $13 million NIL budget for this year. Kentucky is estimated at around $22 million. In spite of a much larger roster of players, Cignetti is leading the losingness program in college football to the championship. Meanwhile, with nearly $10 million more, Pope is leading us toward a historically bad season.

Fascinating, isn’t it? Both have 2 seasons on the books at their respective programs.
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Maybe Cignetti could be talked into coaching basketball, and be the first coach to ever have a football and a basketball championship.
 
D

DWDwildcat47

Junior
May 4, 2020
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Doc4UK! said:
Pretty simple. Both are experienced coaches who took over "higher level" programs JUST two years ago. Each had a plan for recruiting and style of play that they felt would bring success.

However here is where the comparisons diverge. One brought coaches with him that could implement the style of play . One brought in players who could easily adapt to the style of play. And one brought discipline and grit and football savvy.

The other brought in athletes who could not adapt to the style of play and were potentially playing for the largest pay check they would ever receive. Bench players were making more than starters. Payroll influenced playing time. There were no leaders. There were no set rotations. Bench discipline was an issue.

One is leading one of the worse football programs in the history of the game to the national championship with an outstanding pipeline in place for the future and the other is taking one of the best basketball programs in the history of the game to an uncertain future with player issues, discipline issues, and soon money issues. One talks very little but always in the same determined voice with minimal player interaction while the other uses flowery terms, philosophic approach, and wants to be a players coach and best friend.

These two coaches represent what CAN happen if the right staff and players are in place. But it all starts at the top and it is a much easier path to the bottom than it is to the top. Can Kentucky's once dominant and proud program which has not been in the elite 8 in a number of years make it back to the top of college basketball under Mark Pope? Or will he guide us into obscurity with a half empty stadium like IU had just two years ago?

Only time will tell but I certainly see a much brighter and certain future for IU football than I do Kentucky basketball, and I think that is something most of us can agree on. I hope that most of us are wrong.
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I'm not happy with Pope either but to compare him to Cignetti at this time is ridiculous no one in the country in any sport can compare to what he has done what Cignetti is accomplishing is historic
 
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UKBB4Ever

All-Conference
Jul 3, 2025
991
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The big difference.

You watch IU play football and it just jumps out that they are a well coached team.

You watch UK play basketball and it just jumps out that they are a poorly coached team.
 
L

L.O.D.

All-Conference
Feb 4, 2024
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UKBB4Ever said:
The big difference.

You watch IU play football and it just jumps out that they are a well coached team.

You watch UK play basketball and it just jumps out that they are a poorly coached team.
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IU football team ia maybe the most precise disciplined team I seen in a long time.
 
BBNinSCar

BBNinSCar

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Apr 23, 2013
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W1LDCAT22 said:
Off topic, but it really pains me to see Indiana on the cusp of winning a National Championship in football. We havent been close to one in football or basketball in a while.
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It goes to show that anything is possible. We could be in the National Championship game in Will Stein’s second season.
 
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