Kirk Herbstreit get controversial picking his best college football coach in 2024

Kirk Herbstreit has always had a knack for making headlines with his bold opinions, and his choice for the best college football coach of 2024 is no exception.

While names like Kirby Smart and Dan Lanning seemed like obvious contenders, Herbstreit threw a curveball in his pick.

The ESPN analyst, who has called some of the biggest games around the country, went with a more controversial selection, naming Curt Cignetti of Indiana as his top pick.

Cignetti's journey with Indiana this year has been nothing short of incredible. Taking over a program not typically in the national spotlight, he led the Hoosiers to an 11-1 season, the best in their history.

Along the way, they notched impressive victories against heavyweights like Michigan and Washington, earning a spot in the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff. For a school that hadn’t been on many preseason watchlists, this achievement was monumental.

Oregon's Lanning had an undefeated run, and Boise State's Spencer Danielson guided his team to a stellar season, but what set Cignetti apart in Herbstreit's eyes was the sheer improbability of Indiana’s success. In his first season at the helm, Cignetti managed to energize the program, navigate the competitive Big Ten, and secure a record-breaking eight-year, $72 million contract extension along the way.

Cignetti’s recognition didn’t stop with Herbstreit. He was also named National Coach of the Year, bagging significant bonus money for Indiana’s playoff appearance and his Big Ten accolades. For a coach new to the conference, that’s a lot to celebrate.

Of course, many fans of teams not named Indiana didn't like the selection. Dan Lanning absolutely had a case to be made for the best coach in 2024, and there's also a case to be made the Cignetti might not even be a top-5 coach in the upcoming College Football Playoff when compared with the likes of Lanning, Smart, Dabo Swinney, Steve Sarkisian, and others.

Indiana will begin its College Football Playoff run with a road matchup against the 7-seeded Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The winner of the game will play the 2-seeded Georgia Bulldogs in the Sugar Bowl.

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