Curt Cignetti is a national champion and Chipotle aficionado
How about a side of guac with your College Football Playoff National Championship?
Chipotle is honoring Indiana Hoosiers head football coach Curt Cignetti’s historic season by adding “Coach Cignetti’s ‘I Win’ Bowl” to its menu nationwide, inspired by the burrito bowl he orders for lunch every day.
The bowl includes brown rice, black beans, chicken and a side of guacamole, matching the meal Cignetti said he orders every day, unless the team is traveling, totaling roughly 500 times since being hired at Indiana in November 2023.
The honor follows the Hoosiers’ undefeated season, which ended in beating Miami 27-21 in Monday’s championship.
Additionally, Indiana fans can get a free entrée with the purchase of one on Thursday after 4 p.m. at Chipotle locations in the state by wearing the team’s gear.
"This team’s historic run has energized fans across the state," Stephanie Perdue, Interim Chief Marketing Officer of Chipotle, said in a statement. "This BOGO offer rewards a dedicated fan base and honors a team with the same commitment to excellence that we bring to our restaurants every day."
The bowl’s name references Cignetti’s now-iconic quote from his introductory press conference, where he declared: “I win. Google me.” The quote’s impact has even extended to Google itself, where searching his name triggers the message, “Yup, he won.”
Placing the order through the assistant director of football operations Jake McDonald’s Chipotle Rewards account, Cignetti’s fondness of the fast-casual Mexican spot has earned the account a spot in the top 1 percent statewide in Indiana for accumulated Rewards points, Chipotle says.
“He just wants to be able to eat it, watch his film and go for the next game,” McDonald, who has picked up his bowl for the past two years, told theWall Street Journal last week. “He’s a simple man.”
Being Cignetti’s “burrito guy” comes with perks. McDonald once racked up about 64,000 Chipotle Rewards points, which equate to roughly $6,400 in burrito bowls. After Indiana’s playoff semifinal win, he had 18,529 points, which would be enough for 11 free burritos, 37 sides of guacamole, 53 bags of chips or 218 extra tortillas, the Journal reports.
While the exact start of Cignetti’s daily Chipotle habit is unknown, his habitual love for repeat meals began 15 years ago with his first head coaching job at IUP.
“It would be chicken and zucchini or squash,” former IUP punter Brett Ullman told the Journal. “We never ate differently except the one time we made it pretty far in the playoffs. We got steak.”
Although Cignetti seems like a prime candidate for Chipotle’s “Celebrity Card” program, which gives select superfans, including the late Ozzy Osbourne, rapper Big Sean and NBA player Mikal Bridges, a free entrée, side, and drink each day, he has not yet received the offer.
“We are aware of Coach Cignetti’s fandom and have been in contact with his management,” a Chipotle spokesperson told the WSJ last week before the big game.
The Independent has contacted Chipotle for comment.
After the championship win, Cignetti is aiming for a repeat next season, with Indiana ranked No. 3 in Yahoo Sports’ early 2026 top-25 despite losing quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who has declared for the NFL Draft.
Category: General Sports