Curt Cignetti walked into the losingest program in college football history. Yes, Indiana University. And he did not whisper. He did not hedge.
He did not offer a five-year plan laminated with hope.

He said two words that are equal parts audacity and résumé:
“Google me.”

And then, because the universe loves a man who backs it up, he went ahead and won a national title in Year Two.

Let’s pause there.

Indiana.
The football program historically known for heartbreak, moral victories, and that familiar Hoosier shrug. The program you tuned into accidentally while waiting for basketball season. The program that lived in the “nice try though” wing of college sports.

And then suddenly there was confetti. And, lots of it.

This isn’t just a sports story. This is a psychological thriller with a happy ending.

Because last night Fernando Mendoza put an exclamation point on the kind of narrative Hollywood would reject for being too much. A former two-star quarterback, scrambling on fourth down, in his hometown, against his hometown team (Miami), for a potential national-championship-winning touchdown after winning the Heisman while his family screamed from the stands.


Imagine being declined as a walk-on by the University of Miami. Imagine that quiet email. That polite no. That “we wish you the best in your future endeavors.”
Now imagine defeating Miami years later for the national title.

That’s not revenge. That’s resolution.

Mendoza didn’t just win the Heisman. He didn’t just lead the most losing program of all time to a championship. He didn’t just play the game of his life. He also immediately added “CFB National Championship MVP” to his LinkedIn. Now that I found amusing.


Then there was the game-sealing interception by Jamari Sharpe who is also from Miami. Because apparently the universe was running a very specific therapeutic exercise called “Return to Sender.”

But back to Curt Cignetti.

Cignetti took over the worst program in college football history and proceeded to deliver the school’s first-ever national championship in just two years. That’s not just coaching. That’s identity reconstruction. That’s walking into a room full of people who’ve been told by history, by statistics, and by everyone else who they are, and then saying

“No. This isn’t your story anymore.”

“Google me” isn’t arrogance when it’s accurate. It’s boundaries. It’s confidence without apology. It’s the refusal to explain yourself to people who haven’t been paying attention.

And I get that vibe.

Because there’s something deeply familiar about not liking to lose. Not because of ego, but because you know what you’re capable of. About doing good work somewhere that doesn’t quite see it. About going elsewhere and winning anyway. About suddenly being celebrated for the same qualities that once made people uncomfortable.

Winning is great. Winning after being underestimated? That’s spiritual.

Indiana didn’t just win a championship. They rewrote a narrative. Mendoza didn’t just score a touchdown. He closed a loop. Cignetti didn’t just coach a team. He issued a reminder.

Sometimes the right response isn’t to explain. Sometimes it’s just to say Google me.

Congratulations, Indiana University.

Sports don’t get better than this.