Until this season, Indiana Football was known for having the most losses on record, and now they’re on top of the mountain.
On Jan. 19, the Hoosiers ended their season by completing the unlikeliest worst-to-first turnaround in history after they beat No. 10 seed Miami, 27-21, to capture the College Football Playoff national championship title in Miami Gardens, FLA.
Anchored by Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza, whose diving run on fourth down stretched Indiana’s lead to 10 points in the fourth quarter, the Hoosiers completed a perfect 16-0 season only two years after head coach Curt Cignetti was hired.
When Miami drove for a potential game-winning touchdown in the game’s final minute, redshirt junior defensive back Jamari Sharpe intercepted Carson Beck, sealing the deal for the Hoosiers.
“We won the national championship at Indiana University,” Cignetti said postgame on the ESPN broadcast. “It can be done.”
In the second quarter, the Hoosiers went on a 14 play, 85-yard drive, marking the first touchdown of the game. Sixth-year senior tight end Riley Nowakowski lined up behind Mendoza as a fullback, rushing for a 1-yard score.
Miami’s offense started gaining momentum on the final possession of the first half as they gained 43 yards across nine plays. As a result of a missed 50-yard field goal by the Hurricanes, Indiana entered halftime with a 10-0 lead.
Indiana received the opening kick to begin the second half, but it went three-and-out and punted. Miami junior running back Mark Fletcher Jr. scored a 57-yard touchdown, cutting Indiana’s lead to three points.
Though the Hoosiers were battling through offensive struggles, their special teams unit gained a touchdown. Sixth-year senior defensive lineman Mikail Kamara blocked a punt that was recovered in the end zone by redshirt junior Isaiah Jones to put the Cream and Crimson up 17-7.
The Hurricanes weren’t going to let up at this point, as they responded with a 10-play drive that resulted in a three-yard touchdown by Fletcher to cut Miami’s deficit to three in the early phase of the final quarter. Then, after being tasked with a fourth-and-4, Mendoza ran for the touchdown, giving the Hoosiers a 24-14 lead with just over nine minutes remaining.
Miami found an answer to the adversity, with freshman receiver Malachi Toney notching a 41-yard reception before generating a 21-yard touchdown two plays later, cutting Indiana’s lead to three points.
With the Hurricanes seeking a game-winning touchdown, Sharpe sealed the victory for Indiana with an interception.
Now with their first national championship in program history, the Cream and Crimson stand at the top of college football. Completing his second season with the Hoosiers, Cignetti has cemented himself as an Indiana University legend for years to come.
But the championship didn’t end with a historic title, it also delivered excellence on the television side. It was the most watched college football game in 11 years, since the 2014-15 season. According to Nielsen, the game averaged 30.1 million viewers and peaked at 33.2. Also, it is now the second-most watched College Football Playoff title game and cable telecast on record, with Ohio State’s victory over Oregon in January 2015 still holding the top spot at 33.9 million.
According to ESPN, it was the most-viewed, non-NFL sports telecast since Game 7 of the 2016 World Series between the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians. It’s the fourth-most watched college football game in the last 30 years and eighth-most watched ESPN production since the network’s beginning in 1979.
Looking ahead into next season, according to ESPN’s Way-Too-Early Top 25 for the 2026 campaign, Indiana stands atop the list, and Miami is at No. 8.
