A private jet slowed to a halt on the wet tarmac of the Monroe County Airport Friday morning.
Indiana University’s new football coach Curt Cignetti descended from the cabin as a cheer squad and small marching band welcomed him in the rain.
Read more: Indiana names JMU's Curt Cignetti its new head football coach
IU hired Cignetti Nov. 30, just four days after firing coach Tom Allen, who coached the Hoosiers over seven seasons.
Cignetti comes from James Madison University, where he went 52-9 in five seasons, including 11-1 this year as the Dukes earned their first bowl berth.
“This was a hard decision for me, but you’ve got to be uncomfortable to grow,” Cignetti said.
Cignetti said he came to IU seeking a challenge and expects to turn around a program that won just three Big Ten games the past three seasons.
“We’re going to change the culture, the mindset, the expectation level, and improve the brand of Indiana Hoosier football,” he said. “There will be no self-imposed limitations on what we can accomplish.”
President Pamela Whitten spoke glowingly about the new coach.
“After some time with you and after bringing you to the university, you were born to be a Hoosier,” she said.
Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Scott Dolson said Cignetti’s history spoke for itself.
“You may think, well, what stood out about him?” Dolson asked. “There were several things, but the main thing I would say right away, and this came out in the first conversation I had with him; he's a winner.”
Cignetti will be the Hoosiers’ 30th head coach since football came to IU in 1887.
