HARRISONBURG, VA (WTKR)- James Madison has found fast success during its transition to the FBS level, but now they'll have to look to continue that success under a different head coach.
Thursday afternoon, the school announced that head football coach Curt Cignetti resigned his position to take the head job at Indiana.
"This was a really difficult decision and I really wrestled with it hard," Cignetti said in a university-issued release. "These were the best five years of my professional life. We accomplished a lot every year but particularly the last two and this season was so special. I had total intentions and plans to retire here. I had a great job."
Cignetti led the Dukes to an 11-1 campaign in 2023 and they'll discover their first ever bowl destination and opponent this Sunday. In five years at the head of the program, he boasted a 52-19 record, including a 19-4 mark as an FBS institution. JMU has gone 13-3 against Sun Belt opponents and would have been Eastern Division champions each of the last two years, but the team was unable to compete in the conference championship game during its transitional period.
JMU led the country in both rushing defense and tackles for loss per game this season.
Before jumping to the FBS level, Cignetti led the Dukes to three straight Colonial Athletic Association championships, the 2019 FCS national title game and the semifinal round in 2020 and 2021.
The school release says that James Madison will retain a search firm for an immediate national search for its next head coach. Previous coaches Everett Withers and Mike Houston also experienced a great deal of success at the head of the program, leading one to believe that the Dukes' head coaching position will be highly sought-after. Houston led the Dukes to the FCS National Championship in 2016.
Indiana finished the 2023 season with a 3-9 record, it's third consecutive losing season, and fired head coach Tom Allen on Sunday. The Hoosiers have won just three Big Ten Conference games since 2020.
