Lincoln Riley's ultimate coaching test in 2026 is Curt Cignetti

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USC football did not have to play Indiana in each of the last two seasons. That's a good thing for the Trojans. They almost surely would have been 0-2. While Lincoln Riley struggles at USC, Curt Cignetti has rocketed to the very top of the college football coaching profession. Though on the job only two years at Indiana, Cignetti has established himself as the best current coach in the sport. Kirby Smart and Dabo Swinney had elite runs of several years, but Cignetti has been the best coach in America the past two seasons. If he keeps stacking elite seasons, he will become one of the all-time greats. Nittany Lions Wire has more on Cignetti:

"Curt Cignetti wasted no time reshaping the way people think about Indiana football. In just two seasons, Cignetti has taken the Hoosiers to the College Football Playoff in back-to-back seasons and won a national title last season. He promised wins upon his arrival, and it is clear as day he has delivered. He has exceeded expectations in Bloomington given the program's history, but Cignetti won't see it that way. Cignetti was mentioned as a top coaching candidate for Penn State following last year's in-season coaching change, and that may have led to Cignetti landing a lucrative re-worked contract to stay with Indiana. Now, he is appearing on the cover of EA Sports College Football 27. What will Cignetti have up his sleeve for an encore this season?"

Curt Cignetti is what Lincoln Riley hoped to become. It will be hard for Riley to beat Cignetti outright this season, but USC must at least be robustly competitive against the Hoosiers for Riley to earn a measure of respect.

This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Lincoln Riley's ultimate coaching test in 2026 is Curt Cignetti

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