Leadership Lessons from Coach Cig
As I sit in my office in Bedford, IN writing this blog, I am 27.6 miles away from the epicenter of the biggest story in college football this year - the sudden and dramatic rise of Indiana University from perennial doormat to national title contender. Even if I were elsewhere, the story would be impossible to ignore. Curt Cignetti - the blunt, perpetually scowling, no-nonsense head coach - has been an instrumental part of this stunning turnaround. While marveling at IU’s path from the outhouse to the penthouse, I have also been reflecting on some of the leadership lessons Coach “Cig” has been quietly exhibiting and thinking about how these tie into running a business as well as a college football program.
The first thing that jumps out to me is his strength in talent evaluation. Scouting college football players is certainly an inexact science, but the general rating system involves assigning a number of stars to a prospect. A five-star prospect is projected to be a first round pick in the NFL, a four-star is expected to play pro football, a three-star recruit is a power conference player, and a two-star recruit is expected to play at a non-power Division 1 program.
Indiana’s team features fewer four- and five-star recruits than several of the schools they have defeated this year. Many players, including Heisman winning Quarterback and projected top NFL draft pick Fernando Mendoza (a three-star prospect himself), were lightly recruited. Coach Cig has been able to identify diamonds in the rough who have the traits to be successful but were overlooked by the recruiting services for some reason or another.
This trait has been on display for years - in his time at North Carolina State, Cignetti brought in a two-star Quarterback. This player went on to become the starter, get drafted, and win a Super Bowl and the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award. The Quarterback? Russell Wilson. Coach Cig had a vision of what could be and took a chance on an undersized baseball player, and the rest is history. He saw something the recruiting services and other schools didn’t see or couldn’t measure. This is a talent that has continued to serve him well.
Identifying the right talent is key to any organization’s success
Another unique element is Coach Cig’s focus. For 60 minutes of game time, he is all business - and so are his players. Players take their cues from the coach, and whether the team is up by 3 points or 30 points the behavior is the same. Everyone is locked in, paying attention to the game, and focusing on doing their job when their number is called. I have not seen this team let down until the game is over. Not up by 30 with 3:00 left and all but decided, but all the way over with 0:00 showing on the clock. Many teams start to celebrate and lose focus in the first situation - not Cig and not IU. I have not attended a practice, but I would guess those look very similar. Work when it’s time to work, relax when you’re all the way done.
Keep focused until time is out and the job is done
He also deflects attention from the team and allows players to focus on doing their job. Some of his sound bites are designed to take the attention, criticism, and off the field media circus and focus it squarely on him - not his players. When he says things like “Purdue sucks, but so do Michigan and Ohio State” he is setting the expectation for players, fans, and media that IU is a doormat no more, and he’s drawing any negative attention to himself and away from his players. He is removing barriers to success for his players and allowing them to focus on the task at hand.
Shield your team from unwanted distractions and let them focus on their work
Cig has a permanent scowl on his face during games, and this is the subject of a lot of pretty funny memes. But one thing he doesn’t do during games? Go ballistic criticizing his players’ performance. I have seen other coaches turn purple on the sidelines from yelling at players who make mistakes. While I’m sure Cig doesn’t love it when guys miss assignments or make mistakes, these errors get corrected in private on the practice field - not in front of 60,000 rabid fans and a national broadcast. The kind of guys he recruits are smart enough to know they made a mistake, they don’t need it brought to their attention. They also likely hold themselves to an incredibly high standard and are more upset with themselves than Cig could be. What’s the point in piling on? Also, the game is still unfolding and the player who made a mistake needs to get back to work and focus on what they can control - their performance on the next play. There’s no time available for being upset over the last play.
Coach in private, not in front of an audience
In an industry that has a perpetual carousel of coaching changes, Coach Cig has had remarkable continuity among his top assistants. Mike Shanahan has been his offensive coordinator since 2016 - a relationship that has persisted across four schools. His defensive coordinator, Bryant Haines, has been working with him since 2017. In a high-pressure environment like coaching college football, trust is key. Cig’s coordinators have bought in to their roles on the staff, and don’t appear to have the “grass is always greener” outlook that so many assistant coaches have. This coaching team has been together for a remarkably long time and has likely developed a better working relationship than others just by virtue of time spent together. I’d bet there’s a tremendous amount of trust between these three coaches that has been forged over years of intense work. Would Coach Cig and IU have the same level of success if he had to replace coordinators every year? Possibly, but I sure wouldn’t bet on it.
Trust takes time to build but allows an organization to reach its full potential
Another thing that strikes me is the level of alignment within Indiana University when it comes to the football team. The University President, Pamela Whitten, understands the role that a successful football team can play at a university. IU’s student applications have gone through the roof since the football team started winning. Scott Dolson, the Athletic Director, deserves credit for identifying and hiring Coach Cig and for giving him the resources to build a program. Dolson’s success as an AD hinges on his ability to hire and retain high quality coaches who win games. Coach Cig, his boss, and his boss’s boss are all aligned and all want to see a winning football team. The key stakeholders in making this happen are all in agreement.
All of the key stakeholders should be focused on the same outcome for success
So now it’s time to land the plane - how does all of this matter to leaders in the stone industry? There are six key lessons above - bring in good people that fit your organization, focus completely on what matters and finish the job, remove obstacles and let your people focus on doing their jobs, criticize and coach in private, keep a trusted leadership team together, and ensure that all key stakeholders are focused on the same outcome. IU football shows that if you can do this in your organization, you too can reach unprecedented success.