When Indiana hired Curt Cignetti, plenty of people raised eyebrows. And when the Hoosiers handed him a lucrative extension midseason, the noise only got louder.
But after Indiana capped off a perfect 16-0 season and claimed the national championship - the Big Ten’s third straight - even longtime skeptics had to admit they got it wrong. Very wrong.
Paul Finebaum, one of college football’s most prominent voices, was among the loudest critics throughout the 2025 season. But this week, he didn’t just walk back his comments - he called them an “epic failure.”
“There can be debate on whether Indiana had the best season in college football history,” Finebaum said. “But there can be no debate - it is the greatest story in the history of the game.”
That’s not hyperbole. Indiana’s run under Cignetti was nothing short of historic.
A program that had long been an afterthought in the national conversation not only broke through - it dominated. And it did so in a season where the Big Ten proved, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that it’s the top dog in college football right now.
Finebaum acknowledged he completely misread what was happening in Bloomington. “Let me assure you, nobody was more incorrect in understanding that process than me,” he said.
Back in October, Finebaum had criticized Indiana’s decision to extend Cignetti, questioning whether the coach had truly earned such a significant raise. But Cignetti responded by doing what no head coach in the sport’s modern era had done: leading a team to a 16-0 record. That’s not just impressive - it’s unprecedented.
“Almost everything I said throughout the season about him and about Indiana was wrong,” Finebaum admitted. “And it was an epic failure on my part.”
But his mea culpa didn’t stop with Indiana. Finebaum also called himself out for underestimating the entire Big Ten.
While the SEC - long considered the gold standard of college football - stumbled to a 2-8 record against non-conference opponents in the postseason, the Big Ten surged to a 10-4 mark. That includes Indiana’s championship run, which served as the exclamation point on a dominant year for the conference.
“There was no question Indiana was the best team,” Finebaum said. “And yes, the Big Ten is the best conference in the country.”
It’s a rare moment of clarity from a figure who’s made a career out of strong takes and bold predictions. But give credit where it’s due - Finebaum owned up to his misfires, and in doing so, he helped shine an even brighter spotlight on what Indiana accomplished.
Because make no mistake: this wasn’t just a good season. It was a once-in-a-generation story.
A program that had never sniffed the top of the mountain now sits alone at the summit. And at the heart of it all is Curt Cignetti - a coach who believed in his vision, stuck to it, and delivered one of the most remarkable seasons college football has ever seen.
Indiana didn’t just prove the doubters wrong. They rewrote the script entirely.