Curt Cignetti not expected to coach JMU in bowl game as full attention turns to Indiana football

The Indiana football now has clarity on new head coach Curt Cignetti and his upcoming schedule.

Cignetti, who led James Madison to an 11-1 record this season and first Bowl appearance since moving to the FBS level, was set to still coach the Dukes in their bowl game. But now, it appears his full attention will be on the Indiana football program.

On Sunday, James Madison announced that Damian Wroblewsk would be serving as the interim head coach starting in its bowl game.

It’s an extremely critical time for Indiana and Cignetti. Not only does he need to re-work the Indiana roster with the players that have hit the transfer portal, but he also has to go out and add more pieces to his eventual roster.

“My focus is Indiana University,” Cignetti had said during his introductory press conference on Friday. “I’ve got to get to know the roster, the players, last year’s coaches. There’s a lot of work that needs done. At JMU they’re not even sure the bowl date, who the opponent is. They’ll find out soon. We’ll see what happens in terms of coaching that game. The athletic director back there would like me to.

“Indiana’s created a window of opportunity where I could, but they’ll also hire a new football coach back there in about ten days, and depending how quickly he puts his staff together and when the bowl game is, we both agree we need to be nimble on our feet. Regardless, 90 percent of my preparation or more will be here. I won’t be involved much in preparation for the bowl game.”

In addition to Cignetti, Indiana will also be getting numerous members of the coaching staff from JMU, including offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan, defensive coordinator Bryant Haines and quarterbacks coach Tina Sunseri.

James Madison finished the season and head into postseason play ranked No. 24 in the AP poll. It is the seventh straight week that the Dukes have been ranked.