Curt Cignetti has spent over 40 years climbing the college football ladder, and on Monday night in Miami, he is just 60 minutes away from his first-ever national championship.
The Indiana head coach built his reputation at prestigious stops like Alabama, where he served as an original member of Nick Saban’s staff, and NC State, where he developed future NFL stars. But Cignetti’s journey is defined by a bold 'bet on himself' in 2011, when he left the SEC to take a Division II head coaching job, sparking a decade-long rise through Elon and James Madison that finally led him to Bloomington.
Now 64 years old, Cignetti has reached the pinnacle of the sport. Having transformed the Hoosiers from a Big Ten underdog into a 15-0 juggernaut in just two seasons, he has proven that experience is his greatest weapon. If Indiana lifts the trophy on Monday, Cignetti will cement his legacy as one of the oldest — and most effective — architects in the history of the game.
If he wins on Monday, Cignetti would join an exclusive club also found its ultimate breakthrough in their early 60s.
Here is how the veteran ranks among the elder statesmen of previous title winners.
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How old is Curt Cignetti?
Cignetti is 64 years old. He has been a college football coach for over 40 years, and he is now one win away from his first-ever national championship.
The Hoosiers head coach has made multiple stops at prestigious programs, including a defining four-year stint as an original member of Nick Saban’s staff at Alabama. Before his time in Tuscaloosa, he spent seven seasons at NC State, where he served as the quarterbacks coach for future NFL Hall of Famer Philip Rivers and helped recruit Super Bowl champion Russell Wilson.
Despite his success at the highest level of the SEC and ACC, Cignetti left Alabama to take his first head coaching job at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) at the Division II level. He spent six seasons resurrecting his father's former program before moving to Elon and eventually James Madison, where he navigated the Dukes' historic transition from the FCS to a top-25 FBS powerhouse.
Now 64, Cignetti has reached the pinnacle of the sport by taking one of the most difficult jobs in the Big Ten and transforming it into a national title favorite in just two seasons. After decades of toiling in relative obscurity and working in the shadows of giants, the man who famously told recruits to "Google me" has Indiana on the brink of its first-ever national championship.
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Oldest coaches to win a national championship
If Cignetti's Hoosiers defeat Miami on Monday, he will join a rare group of veteran coaches who reached the mountaintop in the twilight of their careers.
Cignetti would rank among the oldest coaches to win a championship at any point in their career. Here are the 10 oldest coaches to ever hoist the trophy.
| Rank | Coach | School | Year | Age |
| 1 | Bobby Bowden | Florida State | 1999 | 70 |
| 2 | Nick Saban | Alabama | 2020 | 69 |
| 3 | Bear Bryant | Alabama | 1979 | 66 |
| 4 | Jim Harbaugh | Michigan | 2023 | 60 |
| 5 | Joe Paterno | Penn State | 1986 | 60 |
| 6 | Tom Osborne | Nebraska | 1997 | 60 |
| 7 | Don James | Washington | 1991 | 58 |
| 8 | LaVell Edwards | BYU | 1984 | 54 |
| 9 | Mack Brown | Texas | 2005 | 54 |
| 10 | Les Miles | LSU | 2007 | 54 |
*While Nick Saban won seven national titles throughout his career, this list only includes his final championship to ensure a variety of coaches are represented.
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1. Bobby Bowden, 70
Bowden famously turned Florida State from an afterthought into a dominant dynasty. At age 70, he captured his second national title with an undefeated season, defeating Michael Vick and undefeated Virginia Tech.
2. Nick Saban, 69
Saban's final national championship came at the stadium where Cignetti can win his first. At 69, he showed no signs of slowing down, coaching an offense that featured three Heisman finalists in Devonta Smith, Mac Jones and Najee Harris. The 52-24 win over Ohio State, Saban's sixth national championship with Alabama and seventh total, moved him past Bear Bryant for the most national titles in college football history.
3. Bear Bryant, 66
The iconic man in the houndstooth hat won his sixth and final title at age 66, defeating Arkansas in the Sugar Bowl. Bryant’s legacy was built on a brand of toughness, winning six national championships with Alabama in 1961, 1964, 1965, 1973, 1978, and 1979, solidifying his legacy as one of college football's most successful coaches. He also secured 14 SEC titles and was a three-time National Coach of the Year.
4. Jim Harbaugh, 60
Harbaugh returned to his alma mater in 2015 and culminated a nine-year rebuilding process with a perfect 15-0 season in 2023. This championship was Michigan’s first national title since 1997 and their first undisputed title since 1948. Despite facing two separate three-game suspensions during the regular season, Harbaugh led a team defined by an elite rushing attack and the nation's top-ranked scoring defense. The season ended with a dominant 34-13 victory over Washington in the CFP National Championship game, after which Harbaugh transitioned back to the NFL to coach the Los Angeles Chargers.
5. Joe Paterno, 60
Paterno was 60 years old when he won his second title in the famous 1987 Fiesta Bowl upset over Miami. While he coached until he was 84, this win marked his final championship and solidified Penn State as a premier national power of the 1980s.
6. Tom Osborne, 60
After two decades of coming close, Osborne ended his career with a historic run of three titles in four years. He retired immediately after winning the 1997 championship over Tennessee at age 60, walking away at the absolute pinnacle of his coaching powers.
7. Don James, 58
Known as the "Dawgfather," Don James led Washington to its first-ever national championship in 1991 with a perfect 12-0 record. The Huskies featured a legendary defense led by Steve Emtman, which famously outscored its opponents 495 to 115 over the season. Washington shared the national title with Miami that year, with the Huskies taking the #1 spot in the Coaches Poll while Miami took the AP Poll. James capped the season with a 34-14 rout of Michigan in the Rose Bowl.
8. LaVell Edwards, 54
At 64, Edwards led BYU to an undefeated season and a title, a massive achievement for a program outside the traditional powerhouse conferences. The Cougars defeated Michigan, 24-17, in the 1984 Holiday Bowl. It remains BYU's only national championship in football.
9. Mack Brown, 54
Brown was the architect of the Longhorns' 2005 resurgence. He overcame the "can't win the big one" narrative by coaching Texas to a Rose Bowl victory over a legendary USC team, widely considered one of the greatest games ever played. Brown's quarterback Vince Young led Texas to a 41-38 victory with a record-setting 467 total yards and a game-winning touchdown run with 19 seconds left.
10. Les Miles, 54
Miles led LSU to a title in 2007, which was the third national championship in school history. He became the first coach to win a national championship with a two-loss team; in the regular season, he had victories over six different coaches with national championships.
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Oldest coaches to win their first national championship
While many legendary coaches took decades to win their final titles, very few reached the summit for the first time late in life. If Cignetti wins, he will become the oldest coach to ever win his first-ever national championship.
| Rank | Coach | Age | School | Year |
| 1 | Bobby Bowden | 63 | Florida State | 1993 |
| 2 | Tom Osborne | 57 | Nebraska | 1994 |
| 3 | Joe Paterno | 55 | Penn State | 1982 |
| 4 | LaVell Edwards | 54 | BYU | 1984 |
| 5 | Nick Saban | 52 | LSU | 2003 |
1. Bobby Bowden, 63
After decades of "Wide Right" missed field goals and heart-wrenching losses to rival Miami, Bowden finally shed the title of "the best coach to never win one." At 64, he led the Seminoles to a victory over Nebraska in the Orange Bowl, securing the first of his two national titles.
2. Tom Osborne, 57
Osborne spent 21 seasons as Nebraska's head coach before finally winning his first title. Once the seal was broken at age 57, the floodgates opened; he went on to win three championships in a four-year span before retiring as one of the most respected figures in the game.
3. Joe Paterno, 55
Paterno had several undefeated seasons in the late 1960s and 1970s that were passed over by the polls. It wasn't until his 17th season as head coach that he finally reached the mountaintop, defeating a Todd Blackledge-led Georgia team in the Sugar Bowl to claim the 1982 crown at age 55.
4. LaVell Edwards, 54
At 54, Edwards led BYU to an undefeated season and a championship victory over Michigan in the Holiday Bowl. To this day, it remains the only time a team from a non-power conference has won the consensus title in the modern era.
5. Nick Saban, 52
It is easy to forget that the greatest coach in history didn't win his first title until he was 52. After stints at Toledo and Michigan State, Saban brought LSU its first championship in 45 years. Now, he is considered by many to be the best college football coach ever.
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Curt Cignetti's age at first head coaching job
Cignetti was 49 years old when he landed his first head coaching job.
He accepted the position at Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2011, just months before his 50th birthday. While many coaches get their start in their 30s, Cignetti spent 28 years as an assistant coach at seven different schools before finally getting the chance to lead his own program.
At the time, IUP was a Division II program where his father, Frank Cignetti Sr., had coached for 20 years.
"He was my biggest critic early on... I did not tell him I was going to take the IUP job because I knew what he was going to say. I called him the night before and said, 'I’m going to be announced tomorrow," Cignetti said at his first Big Ten Media Day as Indiana head coach. "I was 50. I bet on myself."
He then climbed up the ranks, and 15 years later has Indiana on the brink of its first ever title.
- Age 49–55: Indiana University of Pennsylvania
- Age 56–57: Elon
- Age 58–62: James Madison
- Age 63–Present: Indiana
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