Cignetti Recruiting Profile: Everything You Need to Know About the New Recruiter
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Image: Indiana Athletics
Written by Ethan Roberts
Indiana’s new coach is leaving behind a prolific recruiting run at James Madison University. In 2022, James Madison jumped from the FCS to the FBS conference. JMU’s recruiting, which was never ranked in the top-100 according to 247Sports, stormed into 86th for the 2024 signing class. The 2024 class would be ranked 5th in the Sun Belt Conference if all signings stay.
Cignetti spent his earlier career as a recruiting coordinator at two different programs spanning a decade. His first stop was N.C. State from 2000-2006. The highlight of his stint was recruiting future Super Bowl winner Russell Wilson to the Wolfpack.
His next stop as a recruiting coordinator was in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where he worked under the arguable greatest college football coach of all time: Nick Saban.
During his time in Tuscaloosa, Cignetti helped in the recruiting of several first round draft picks, including Julio Jones and Heisman winner Mark Ingram. 6 of the top 10 highest rated recruits in Alabama’s program history were recruited while Cignetti was on the staff.
Philosophy
Curt Cignetti addressed the recruiting philosophy he is bringing to Bloomington during his introductory press conference in three different points.
“ I think from a sales standpoint it's presenting your brand and the opportunities created by your brand, developing relationships. I think the evaluation component is really important.”
“From a physical standpoint there's a lot of good players out there. There's position specific criteria. Some of them are common to all positions. I'm more into production than potential. I'm a little old fashioned. I'll look at the high school transcript and see how many absences a guy has. We want good students who have strong habits because it's all about choices and decisions. Life, you got freedom of choice but not freedom of consequence. First you form your habits, then your habits form you.”
“But you have to engage in the portal because everybody's turning over at least 30 percent of their roster right now. If you don't, you've got no chance, but you build it with high school guys. There's a lot of good players out there, a lot of guys that can be successful. Remember it's recruiting and development. You've got to develop them now.”
Strengths
Cignetti possesses an ability to recruit well in-state. With many of his top recruits coming from in-state, it will give the Hoosiers a boost in recruiting battles with schools like Purdue, Notre Dame and Ball State.
He also has the ability to recruit in the southeastern states, which ultimately contains the bulk of high school talent. He has a blueprint in quality recruiting states such as Georgia, North Carolina, Florida and Alabama.
Weaknesses
Cignetti hasn’t shown the ability to recruit in Texas or California. At the power five level, recruiting in those states can be the difference between good and elite. If the Hoosiers are planning to capitalize on the new Name Image and Likeness landscape, Cignetti needs to recruit two of the three premier states at a high level (Texas, California, Florida).
Although he has a plethora of stints as a successful recruiter, he has never recruited as a head coach at the power five level. The difference between recruiting as a coach is the added responsibility of being the head guy in charge. He will have a chance to instill a winning culture that the Hoosiers haven’t seen in quite some time.
What’s his main goal?
“We’re going to change the expectations.”