Curt Cignetti’s last two seasons have been nothing short of extraordinary. In just 24 months, he’s taken Indiana - a program long considered the basement dweller of Power Five football - and turned it into a national champion and Big Ten title winner.
That’s not just a turnaround; that’s a seismic shift. And it’s one that’s casting a long shadow over some of college football’s most storied programs - including Alabama.
Let’s be clear: what Cignetti has pulled off at Indiana is the kind of coaching job that forces a recalibration of expectations everywhere else. He walked into a situation with minimal tradition, limited resources compared to the sport’s blue bloods, and a roster that wasn’t exactly teeming with five-star talent.
Yet here we are - Indiana, national champs. It’s the kind of story that makes you double-check the headline.
Meanwhile, down in Tuscaloosa, Kalen DeBoer is facing a very different kind of pressure. He inherited a powerhouse.
Alabama was already a perennial contender, with elite facilities, a stacked roster, and a fanbase that expects nothing less than championships. But two years in, the results haven’t matched the expectations - and that contrast is becoming harder to ignore.
The Rose Bowl loss to Cignetti’s Indiana squad was a gut punch for the Crimson Tide faithful. It wasn’t just that Alabama lost - it was how they lost.
Indiana, a team made up of so-called “misfits,” outplayed and out-toughed a roster full of blue-chip recruits. That stings.
It’s not just about talent anymore; it’s about culture, mentality, and identity. And right now, Indiana looks like the team that knows exactly who it is.
Cignetti has built something real in Bloomington - a locker room that’s hungry, resilient, and refuses to back down. That kind of culture doesn’t show up in recruiting rankings, but it shows up on Saturdays.
And that’s where the questions begin for Alabama. Because over the last two years, there have been moments - too many, frankly - where the Tide didn’t just lose, they folded.
That’s not the Alabama standard, and fans know it.
Heading into year three, DeBoer is already under the microscope. Fair or not, Nick Saban won his first national title at Alabama in his third season.
That benchmark looms large. Now add Cignetti’s meteoric rise to the mix, and the pressure ratchets up even more.
Alabama isn’t just expected to win - they’re expected to dominate. And when a program like Indiana starts checking the boxes that Alabama usually owns - toughness, unity, pride - it raises uncomfortable questions in Tuscaloosa.
That said, there are reasons for cautious optimism. Alabama’s approach in the transfer portal this offseason was measured and smart.
Instead of chasing headlines, they targeted needs - plugging holes with players who fit the system and the culture they’re trying to build. In today’s NIL-driven, transfer-heavy landscape, that kind of discipline matters.
Flashy additions are nice, but building a cohesive locker room is still the name of the game.
Still, the margin for error is razor-thin. Another four-loss season - especially one where the team doesn’t look competitive in key moments - could force some tough conversations about DeBoer’s future.
It’s not just about wins and losses anymore. It’s about how this team responds when things get tough.
Can they fight back? Can they play with pride?
That’s the identity Alabama needs to rediscover.
This offseason will be pivotal. From the head coach to the strength staff to the student managers, everyone involved in the program has a role to play in reestablishing the culture that once made Alabama the gold standard. Because as Indiana just reminded the college football world - culture can beat talent when talent doesn’t show up ready to fight.
Year three is coming. The expectations haven’t changed. Now it’s up to Alabama to prove they haven’t either.