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Indiana

Big Ten coaches 'keenly aware' of Curt Cignetti's 'eye for talent'

headshotby:Alec Lasley•07/05/25•

allasley

Syndication: The Herald-Times
Indiana Head Coach Curt Cignetti watches as the Hoosiers get ready before the start of the Indiana football spring game at Memorial Stadium on Thursday, April 17, 2025.

While Indiana has its quarterback in the 2026 class — its priority was with a different name for the majority of the recruiting cycle.

Four-star quarterback Luke Fahey was the priority target for Curt Cignetti and Indiana for this recruiting class and while the staff did just about everything right to put themselves in a spot to land the coveted prospect, a late offer from Ohio State changed things — and became Fahey’s ultimate landing spot.

Indiana pivoted quickly, however, when it seemed as though the involvement from Ohio State was more than just that.

They did so with Cash Herrera — a former Iowa commit who flipped his pledge to Indiana.

Even though landing a prospect like Herrera is a win, especially getting him to flip from a Big Ten foe, losing out on Fahey was a difficult result after the legwork that was done over the course of his recruitment.

But, it could also be considered a positive for Indiana in a different light.

“It’s also important to note that the school recruiting Fahey the hardest prior to Ohio State was Indiana,” On3’s Andy Staples wrote. “Hoosiers coach Curt Cignetti has shown an incredible eye for talent throughout his career. The other Big Ten coaches are keenly aware of this after Cignetti cobbled together a lineup of mostly transfers last year and turned a 4-8 team into an 11-1 team. If you’re going to peek at someone’s paper, Cignetti is an excellent choice.”

As Staples notes, Curt Cignetti has been known for his development — especially at the quarterback position.

While at James Madison, Cignetti coached three separate quarterbacks to conference Offensive Player of the Year in Ron’Dell Carter (2019), Cole Johnson (2021) and Jordan McCloud (2023).

Then, Kurtis Rourke came from Ohio and finished ninth overall in the Heisman Trophy voting and second in the nation in passer rating.

“We really wanted a high-level recruiter,” Indiana AD Scott Dolson said of Curt Cignetti. “We wanted someone who was a proven evaluator and developer of talent. And we really wanted someone also who had worked with quarterbacks. Quarterbacks was really important to us.”

Staples’ comments are just another indication that Curt Cignetti has quickly changed the narrative around the Indiana program.

Indiana holds the No. 27 class nationally in the On3 rankings and No. 9 in the Big Ten.

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