Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti shouts to the fans as he leaves the field following an NCAA college football game against UCLA, Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, in Bloomington, Ind. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

The Franco family has a good feel for Indiana coach Curt Cignetti, who has built the Hoosier football program into a national power.

John Franco is an IUP graduate who was close to Cignetti’s father, Frank, the former West Virginia and IUP head coach.

In 2016, Franco was offered the IUP quarterbacks coach job, but it was late in the summer, and he felt the timing wasn’t right. He also sensed that Cignetti would soon start climbing the coaching ladder, which he did.

“Curt is a really good recruiter,” Franco, a local high school football coach for 40-plus years, said. “That’s his strength, and in today’s college game, that’s what you need. He was always a good coach and a really good organizer. He got to the next level by listening to his dad and letting his coaches coach. He has two fantastic coordinators (Mike Shanahan and Bryant Haines).”

Franco’s sons, Johnny and Steve, played for Cignetti at IUP, and Johnny was then part of the coaching staff for three seasons.

Johnny saw Cignetti’s potential but admitted, “I don’t know if I saw them being No. 2 in the country.”

One thing that Cignetti never lacked was confidence.

“He had been at Alabama under (Nick) Saban and coached NFL guys,” Johnny Franco said. “I remember his demand for perfection. When he started out, it was his first time as a head coach so he had to come in and make an impression and he came in with a non-nonsense mentality. His first meeting, he walked in and told us how it was going to be – that we were going to win –and he walked out.”

Johnny plans to attend the game today as he’s remained close to Haines and Shanahan, who were his roommates. In fact, both were once on Mansion Park Summer Basketball League rosters.

After successful stints at Elon and James Madison, Cignetti underscored his brashness upon his introduction at a Hoosiers’ basketball game.

He said, “I’ve not taken a backseat to anybody, and I don’t plan to start now,” then riled up the Assembly Hall crowd by shouting, “Purdue sucks! So does Michigan and Ohio State!”

John Franco, Tyrone’s head coach, watched the video and just shook his head.

“Curt’s got a good sense of knowing what a program needs, and Indiana needed some confidence and some swagger,” he said. “And he’s probably the best coach in the country to provide swagger.”

PSU coaching search

As the Penn State search for James Franklin’s successor continues, there’s no shortage of speculation.

One rumor that seemed to be gain some traction this week is Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm.

The Cardinals’ coach has been successful at Western Kentucky, Purdue and Louisville, where he played quarterback. In fact, at Purdue, the Boilermakers posted three wins over top-five teams, including Ohio State, and Louisville just won at No. 2 Miami two weeks ago.

Brohm issued a non-denial denial Wednesday on being mentioned for other jobs.

“We’ve got good resources here,” he said. “We’ve got a good football team. For me, it’s concentrating on the season and worrying about the next game, and that’s what we’re doing.”

Make of this what you will, but there was a photo posted of a Penn State football truck spotted in Louisville on Thursday. While you’d think Brohm would be confirmed before he’d start moving, the internet had a field day with the image.

The company’s owner then issued a statement that the truck was being used by a PSU alumnus and wasn’t for Brohm. Hmm.

NITPICKING

• Today marks the first game at Beaver Stadium since James Franklin was fired on Oct. 12. Terry Smith has appealed to the fans for positive support, and it will be interesting to see how both the team and the crowd respond now that the Franklin cloud has been lifted. The Lions will need all the energy that can be mustered against the Hoosiers.

• Former PSU linebacker Trey Bauer, a member of the 1986 national championship team, bluntly accessed what has gone wrong this year on the Blue White Tailgate podcast. Bauer said: “You have to be able to put people on the ground and be tough. I don’t think we’re very tough.” He also blames this season “squarely on the players – not the coaches.”

• Smith went into the Ohio State game preaching two keys – an improved run game and a pass defense that prevented the deep ball. The Lions went 0-for-2, but those points of emphasize remain the same as PSU must control the clock and thus limit offensive possessions for the Hoosiers offense, led by quarterback Fernando Mendoza.

• Speaking of QBs, whatever is left in this season is especially important for Ethan Grunkemeyer, who is pretty much auditioning for whomever coaches PSU next year. Depending on that, he’s also a candidate for the transfer portal. That goes for the entire Nittany Lion team, but quarterbacks are in the highest demand.

• So far, Grunk has accounted himself fairly well. Now after road games at Iowa and Ohio State, he needs to hit the open man as well as he manages the line of scrimmage.

• People are scoffing at the idea of Liam Clifford being the Lions’ emergency quarterback, and he did take a couple snaps at OSU. But with Jaxon Smolik injured and no experience behind him that has taken a live snap, Clifford can at least be counted off to execute the handoff.

• Smith used the excuse earlier this week of young receivers not knowing the entire playbook as a reason Koby Howard hasn’t been thrown to more often. It reminds me of the story after the 2015 loss at Temple when a freshman running back named Saquon Barkley only carried once. A Franklin confidant asked the coach why Barkley didn’t get more action and was told there was an acclimation to the playbook. The confidant responded: “Well, then, run the plays he knows!”

• The video of an Ohio State staff member chatting with PSU freshman edge rusher Chaz Coleman on the way off the field last week did not go unnoticed.

• Is there still time for this veteran Penn State offensive line to live up to its preseason billing? That would be a hard no, but it can at least finish strong.

• Andy Kotelnicki used an extra lineman and multiple tight ends at Ohio State and that power alignment actually had some success. Hint.

Neil Rudel covers Penn State football and can be reached at nrudel@altoonamirror.com.