Indiana head football coach Curt Cignetti has signed a new eight-year contract with the Hoosiers that makes him one of the highest-paid coaches in the sport. Since arriving at IU, he’s completely turned the program around from a non-contender to one of the best programs in the country.

The Hoosiers currently rank No. 2 in the AP Poll, their highest ranking in program history. Cignetti’s new contract is worth at least $92.8 million and the average annual compensation will be approximately $11.6 million.

Students and fans are pleased to hear that Cignetti will remain a Hoosier.

“He’s done a phenomenal job,” IU senior Caroline Schreiber said. “He’s come in hot and turned this whole school’s campus around. We actually are a football school.”

While Cignetti is locked in at Indiana for eight years, the most significant piece of his contract is the $15 million buyout, signaling that Cignetti doesn’t plan on going anywhere.

He echoed this notion himself.

“I couldn’t be more proud to be a Hoosier and I plan on retiring as a Hoosier,” he said. “The way that this state has embraced us and our success in football has meant more to me than anything else.”

Cignetti is 18-2 since arriving from James Madison last year, with his only losses coming against Notre Dame and Ohio State teams which both ended up in the College Football Playoff championship game.

The timing of his extension was also notable, as he was rumored to have been targeted by Penn State after their head coaching vacancy.

“At Indiana University, we are committed to performing at the highest levels in everything we do, and no one has exemplified that more than coach Cignetti,” Indiana University president Pamela Whitten said.

Indiana football has never seen this level of success and recent alum Carlos Velez noted how special the turnaround has been.

“I think it’s super unique seeing him turn the program around from the losingest program in history with like 700 losses to now number two in the country,” Velez said. “There’s been some interesting talk around college football whether it’s on players or on coaches and we see with other teams now, it’s usually on coaches.”

Cignetti’s speedy success is a testament to that. He earned AP Coach of the Year honors last season and very well may repeat the honor this season.

The Hoosiers have just four games remaining en route to an undefeated season and back-to-back College Football Playoff appearances. They’ll face Maryland on the road this Saturday.