Indiana’s ascendence to the top of the college football world is nothing short of stunning, as Curt Cignetti arrived in Bloomington and immediately turned into a contender. Cignetti’s displays a powerful ability to get buy-in from all levels of the program, from players to the administration to boosters, tapping into Indiana’s alumni base to get the Hoosiers closer to the nation’s top programs in spending.
Among the alumni that Cignetti convinced to invest in the program is billionaire Mark Cuban. The investor and now-minority owner in the Dallas Mavericks has plenty of cash on hand after selling the majority stake in the Mavs, and after never giving to his alma mater’s athletics department previously, Cuban made back-to-back major donations to help the Hoosiers compete in the portal.
Cuban confirmed he sent in another donation prior to the opening of the transfer portal on Jan. 2, telling Front Office Sports he “already committed for this portal.” While he wouldn’t confirm how much he gave, he did hint that it was a bigger gift than last year — “Let’s just say they are happier this year than last year.”
That investment from Cuban and others has already paid major dividends for the Indiana program. After a playoff berth in 2024, the Hoosiers improved even further in 2025, landing the No. 1 overall seed in the College Football Playoff after an undefeated season and winning the Big Ten championship. They’re now the favorites to win it all and will look to punch their ticket to their first national title game in a rematch with No. 5 Oregon on Friday night in the Peach Bowl.
The transfer portal played a huge role in Indiana’s success, as Cignetti brought much of his James Madison team with him in addition to a number of key players via the portal — most notably Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza.
While the on-field focus remains the Ducks, the Hoosiers are aggressive once again in the portal for 2026. Indiana’s put together another big portal haul, ranking fourth in 247Sports’ transfer portal class rankings, putting Cuban’s money to good use by landing nine commits. The headliners so far are TCU quarterback Josh Hoover and Michigan State wide receiver Nick Marsh, as they look to reload at key positions on offense to stay on top of the Big Ten.
