Everyone's Saying the Same Thing About Indiana's Cigarette-Themed Promotional Towels vs. Washington

The No. 14 Indiana Hoosiers are enjoying a storybook season in 2024, seeing unprecedented success under new head coach Curt Cignetti in his first year with the program. Through the first two months of the season, the Hoosiers are 7-0 and right in the thick of the Big Ten championship race.

On Saturday, Indiana saw ESPN’s flagship “College GameDay” show set up shop in Bloomington ahead of the Hoosiers’ matchup against the Washington Huskies. The marketing team at Indiana pulled out some stops for this one, putting out rally towels for every person in attendance at the game.

The design on the towel is turning some heads, though.

The play on the classic Marlboro cigarette logo is certainly clever, and it has ignited some feelings among college football fans, with many, like ESPN’s Pat McAfee, going crazy for the marketing.

Of course, there are some fans who bring up the potential downside of using a famous tobacco company's ideal to market your program.

"I’d be curious to see how cancer researchers at Indiana feel about this one..." said one fan.

Whether you like the idea or not, it’s clear that Indiana hit a home run with the hiring of Cignetti. The veteran head coach went viral earlier this year for telling people who didn’t know about his track record to look him up.

"It's pretty simple. I win, Google me," Cignetti said in a press conference.

So far, that’s what he’s been doing with the Hoosiers. After going 19-4 in two years at James Madison, the Indiana coach has done nothing but win so far in Bloomington. We will see if that can continue on Saturday against the Huskies. The game kicks off at noon EDT on Big Ten Network.

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