Billionaire alum Mark Cuban has been one of the quiet drivers behind Indiana’s football transformation. There was initial hesitation on Cuban’s part about how much to contribute to Indiana football. But one conversation with Curt Cignetti changed everything. Fast forward to now, with Indiana set to face Miami in the College Football Playoff National Championship, and Cuban’s faith in Cignetti’s system looks more than justified, and he’s not yet done writing checks.​

Cuban explained what convinced him to go all-in on Indiana football during an interview on First Take. “We started talking. He [Curt Cignetti] is a western Pennsylvania Pittsburgh guy. Turns out we were born in the same hospital. He’s a Yinzer. He’s got the Pittsburgh accent, blue collar, all the things that I like,” Cuban said. “And it wasn’t about designing a program that just went out and tried to outbid everybody. It was about putting together a program and an organization and a culture, all the things that you need to do to win, no matter what the sport is.”

“It wasn’t any one thing. It was just who he was. He didn’t come in and say, ‘You know, oh, I’m going to do all these grand things.’ He just [said], ‘This is how we do it, right? I have a specific way. It’s always worked. There’s no reason why it’s not going to work again,” Cuban recalled. “It was like investing in an entrepreneur on Shark Tank. He’d been there, done that, and he had an approach. And the fact that he has a system, the way he designs everything, the way he builds organizations, that’s really what connected me.”

Cuban’s support has been key to Indiana’s rise in the NIL and transfer portal era, though he kept the exact figure private. In October 2025, he told CBS Sports he made a “significant contribution” to the IU athletic department. He called it “a big number” and specified it was the first time he’d ever donated to Indiana sports. 

He increased his giving during Cignetti’s second season (2025), telling Front Office Sports he donated more money for the current transfer portal cycle because “they earned it.” “The first time it was like, OK, let’s see what happens… the second time, we know it works. I talked to them about different players and what their strategy was. The previous year, it all made sense, and I wanted to be part of it,” Cuban explained.

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His support helped Indiana land quarterback Josh Hoover, receivers Shazz Preston and Nick Marsh, and other key transfers who’ve been instrumental in the Hoosiers’ undefeated season.​ 

As Indiana prepares to face Miami with a chance to complete the perfect 16-0 season, Cuban’s investment in Cignetti’s entrepreneurial approach to building a football program looks like the shrewdest deal he’s made since selling Broadcast.com to Yahoo! for $5.7 billion back in 1999.​

The Mavericks’ blueprint applied to college football

Cuban’s enthusiasm for Indiana’s approach stems from recognizing the same principles that brought him NBA championship success with the Dallas Mavericks. It was where understanding roster construction within constraints is everything. 

“I saw it with the Mavs in the NBA, there’s kind of like a salary cap, right? You have to know how to build a team. You have to know what kind of players to go after,” Cuban explained. “It’s not about winning the portal. It’s about getting athletes and players who want to that know their role, will work to fill that role, know what their position is with the team. And having an organization and coaches who understand that you’re not getting players that are coming in for four years for you to develop and they be great when they’re seniors. You’re coming in and like coach says, I want, you know, production, not potential.” 

Cignetti’s transfer portal strategy has essentially turned Indiana into the college football equivalent of those championship Mavericks teams. He prioritizes proven contributors over developmental projects. When Curt Cignetti arrived, he brought 13 transfers from James Madison who already knew his system and their roles. He has now added experienced transfers like quarterback Josh Hoover (formerly at TCU) and receivers who could contribute immediately rather than waiting years for high school recruits to develop. That approach has taken Indiana from 3-9 in 2023 to 15-0 heading into Monday’s championship gam. It proves that the mentality works just as well in the NIL era as it did in the NBA.​