In the world of NIL and major realignment in college football, the Indiana Football Team is 10-0 and currently sits in contention of the college football playoffs. This isn’t supposed to happen when many other programs are able to vastly outspend them in NIL deals and when they have a coach who has never been a head man at the power five level. However, on their run this season the team and Coach Cignetti are teaching the world some valuable lessons that translate off the football field.
Look for Value that others don’t see
Curt Cignetti wasn’t the hottest coaching hire in the world, but he’s been successful everywhere he’s been. He turned around every program he’d been at since becoming a head coach in 2011. He was also part of the University of Alabama coaching staff under Nick Saban where he learned from the greatest coach in college football history. However, he is a bit older than many prized coaching hires and in his last stop he was only at James Madison which isn’t a major program even though they had a great four year run with Cignetti at the helm. Due partly to not looking the part of the next big hire, Cignetti didn’t get poached by a larger program, but Indiana saw a winner and took a chance.
Having Money to Spend isn’t as important as the Program Being Built
Indiana will never be able to touch Michigan in terms of NIL money or recruiting prowess. The Wolverines will always have higher levels of recruits because of the way the world of college football is structured. However, with Jim Harbaugh and his program out, the advantage of coaching and system were with the Hoosiers which beat the Wolverines this season, but also hold a 10-0 record to Michigan’s 5-5. The infrastructure that Harbaugh is famous for building has quickly deteriorated in his first season away, while Cignetti continues to show that he is able to translate his program to whatever level he moves to.
There is still hope for the Little Guy – Even in the World of NIL Money
The coolest thing about the run that India and Cignetti are having is that it proves that even with the massive shift from the NIL, there is still hope for programs that typically haven’t had the greatest recruits and will never have the most money to spend. Hopefully Cignetti keeps his program rolling for years to come and continues to show that the core things that make college football great still matter. There is still space to build a program and develop players who don’t come in with 5 star recruiting ratings.
This article is part of an effort by personalfinanceblogs.com to celebrate the principles that make for success in life and money. The ability to find value where others don’t and building a program for a college football team share many of the core elements that make a financially successful person out in the stands. Hope you enjoyed this article and please check out our featured articles from the best minds in the world of personal finance.