Scott Dolson wants to make sure that the success of Indiana football ‘isn’t a one hit wonder’

In less than a year with Indiana football, Curt Cignetti has completely changed the culture of a once-dormant program both on and off the field.

The culture change started in the locker room as Cignetti was able to get his guys to believe that they could do what many believed was impossible. That belief and Cignetti’s process that came with it has translated to the team winning 10 games for the first time in school history and currently on the precipice of earning a spot in the College Football Playoff.

The success has translated to a fanbase that has completely bought into Cignetti and Indiana football. Ticket prices have soared and it was announced that Memorial Stadium had sold out for the team’s final four home games.

While many across the country have seen this as a Cinderella story in college football, Indiana Athletic Director Scott Dolson wants to make sure this season is not a ‘one-hit wonder‘.

“This isn’t a one-hit wonder. When President [Pam] Whitten supported making certain that we made a commitment to football, it’s a long time commitment,” Dolson said on the Hoosiers Connect Podcast. “We want to make certain that we can continue to compete, sustain success, and be a proud member of the Big Ten in the best football conference in the country. So we’re committed to continuing to invest the resources in our program to keep things going.”

Part of that investment means keeping Cignetti in Bloomington. While Dolson did not directly say it, he hinted that they were in the process of rewarding Cignetti with a new contract.

Dolson shared that fans have regularly told him they need to keep Cignetti in Bloomington including this past weekend when he walked around the parking lots ahead of the Michigan game.

“So many people were like, ‘Hey Scott make sure that we keep Cig and open up the checkbook’,” he said.

On Saturday, it was announced that Dolson and the athletic department opened the checkbook and rewarded Cignetti with a massive contract.

The contract will earn Cignetti at least $8 million a year through 2032, making him one of the highest-paid coaches in the country and the highest-paid employee in Indiana University’s history. In addition to the pay increase, his contract comes with larger salary pools to help Cignetti retain his assistant coaches, as other schools could try to poach some of Indiana’s top assistants this offseason.

Keeping Cignetti in Bloomington was step one, but there is more that needs to be done to help the Hoosiers sustain success.

The other key area in need of improvement is the facilities as Indiana football is continuing to focus on improving in all facets.

The program has already started the process as last offseason new turf was installed in Mellencamp Pavillion, the team’s indoor practice facility. 

Dolson also shared plans to renovate and improve Memorial Stadium.

With the current landscape of college sports being extremely predicated on NIL, Dolson also emphasized the importance of investing in the program with Cignetti.

“We’ve committed that we’re going to fund the full [revenue] share. We’re going to figure out ways to make that happen. That’s where investing with Coach Cig and making certain that our football program can compete,” Dolson said.

“You can see the crowds that are coming in. The residual impact of having a successful football program is massive. We still have lots of room to grow and that’s why our supporters are so important to us because we need to make certain we continue to be able to compete.”

Indiana football is likely going to have to invest heavily into the roster once again this offseason. With more than 15 key players in their senior year, Cignetti will have his work cut out for him this offseason as he is tasked with replacing their production and rebuilding the roster once again. 

With Dolson and the athletic department seemingly ready to invest more resources into Cignetti and the program it should help make the job easier this time around.

Dolson shared that balancing how the athletic department’s revenue would be divided is going to be a challenge. He emphasized the important role that a successful football and basketball program can play in helping build other sports and increase funding across the board.

“The better football does and the better men’s basketball does the better everybody does. We’re all really on the same page with that,” Dolson said.

While the season is still a long way from being finished, the athletic department is clearly committed to building off of the success of Indiana football as they want the program to be able to compete year in and out.

SEE ALSO: ‘They’ve dominated everyone they’ve played’ — Indiana football continues to impress College Football Playoff committee heading into final stretch

Make sure to follow Hoosier Illustrated, part of the Full Ride Network, on Twitter @Indiana_FRN, Facebook and YouTube to stay up to date on all of the news, updates and coverage of Indiana University athletics. You can also listen to the Talking’ Bout the Hoosiers podcast on Spotify.

Looking for a place to get more Indiana content? Hoosier Illustrated has partnered with Tom Brady’s company ‘Autograph’ to streamline our coverage, so you can continue to do what you do best – follow IU sports. Use the CODE: Indianafr to get started today. For more info, you can start here.