Another year of college football has officially come to an end and as a shock to everyone: the Indiana Hoosiers are national champions.
On Jan. 19 in Miami, the No. 1 Indiana Hoosiers of the Big Ten took on the No. 10 Miami Hurricanes of the ACC in the second year of the College Football Playoff’s 12-team format. This newly adapted playoff format, which was limited to only four until last season, saw many unexpected early exits. Notably, No. 2 Ohio State, losing to Miami in the quarter final Cotton Bowl 24-14 and No. 3 Georgia losing to No. 6 Ole Miss in the quarterfinal Sugar Bowl 39-34.
Indiana came into the national championship game with an assortment of accolades, including a Big Ten Conference championship, a victory of the quarter final Rose Bowl over No. 9 Alabama 38-3, a semifinal Peach Bowl victory over No. 5 Oregon 56-22, a Coach of the Year Award given to Curt Cignetti, and college football’s most prestigious award, the Heisman Trophy, given to junior quarterback Fernando Mendoza.
Miami came into the national championship game with a chip on its shoulder, being the last Power Four to make the playoffs while simultaneously being left out of their conference title game. Regardless of the abnormality, the Hurricanes cruised through the playoff rounds, beating No. 7 Texas A&M in the first round of the playoffs 13-10, defeating No. 2 Ohio State in the quarter final at Cotton Bowl 24-14, and defeating No. 3 Ole Miss in the semifinal Fiesta Bowl 31-27.
After a fortunate coin toss, Indiana kicked off to begin the game. Both teams exchanged punts early to begin the first quarter. Indiana’s defense Indiana quarterbacks celebrate while holding the national championship trophy, Photo courtesy of Jamie Squire caused Miami’s offense, led by fifth-year Carson Beck, to go three-and-out, forcing Miami to punt yet again, with the Hoosiers’ offense starting on Miami’s 29-yard line. The first down on Miami’s 20-yard line, Mendoza would get hit hard, causing him to get a bloody lip. Miami’s strong pass defense would eventually catch up to the Hoosiers, forcing sophomore kicker Nico Ratkick to make a successful 34-yard field goal to make the score 3-0 with 2:42 left in the first quarter.
Indiana’s first sack of the night came early in the second quarter, with senior linebacker Aiden Fischer sacking Beck for 7 yards and forcing Miami to punt. Indiana would quickly get the ball back fast, with the Hoosiers’ defense forcing an early punt on fourth and two. With Indiana starting on their own 15-yard line, the Hoosiers would find their way near the endzone with several explosive plays, including a 20-yard run from senior running back Kaelon Black to put the Hoosiers on Miami’s 23-yard line. The Hoosiers would eventually find their way into the endzone, with senior tight end Riley Nowakowski finding his way into the endzone for a 1-yard run to make the score 10-0 with 6:13 left in the second quarter. Miami responded by missing a 50-yard field goal with 33 seconds left in the half, though the Hoosiers were unable to capitalize on the short field position before time ran out.
Miami kicked off to begin the second half with a touchback, though unable to capitalize on their opening drive as Mendoza was sacked twice during the drive, forcing the Hoosiers to punt.
Miami responded immediately with a 57-yard rushing touchdown by senior running back Mark Fletcher Jr. to make the game competitive 10-7 with 11:06 left in the third quarter. Both teams exchanged several punts with little result in gains. In a sudden spark of talent, or just good luck, Miami’s junior punter Dylan Joyce, with 5:03 left in the third quarter, had his kick blocked by defensive end Mikail Kamara, and junior linebacker Isaiah Jones returned for a touchdown to make the game 17-7 with 5:04 left in the third quarter. Miami made up for its blunder by airing the ball out down the field to sophomore and senior receivers Malachi Tony and CJ Daniels, which allowed Fletcher Jr. to run it in a 3-yard touchdown play to make the score 17-14 with 14:57 left in the fourth quarter.
After Miami’s touchdown play, Indiana began their own 25-yard line. The Hoosiers were able to convert a crucial fourth and five thanks to a 19-yard reception from junior wide receiver Charlie Becker, setting the Hoosiers up on Miami’s 18-yard line. On the same drive, fourth and five, Mendoza was able to scramble into the endzone for a 19-yard rushing touchdown, asserting their dominance over the Hurricanes 24-14 with 9:18 left in the fourth quarter. However, Miami would not go down without a fight, after a 41-yard completion from Beck to Malachi Tony set the Hurricanes up on Indiana’s 22-yard line. Malachi received a 22-yard touchdown from Beck to keep Miami in this game, with the score being 24-21, 6:37 left in the fourth quarter. Indiana would answer by finding themselves on Miami’s side of the field yet again, with Radicic kicking a successful 35-yard field goal to make the score 27-21 with 1:42 left in the fourth quarter. With the game on the line, all Miami needed to do was score a touchdown to win the game, or at the very least kick a field goal to take the game into overtime. After a costly 15-yard roughing the passer penalty on Indiana, Miami seemed like they had a shot at winning, but the team’s newfound momentum was short-lived. Beck would throw a game-losing interception on Indiana’s 47-yard line to junior cornerback Jamari Sharpe. When the dust settled, Mendoza kneeled out the clock, and the Indiana Hoosiers were crowned national champions, the final score being 27-21.
At the start of the season, Indiana University’s all-time football record was 534-715-44, the losingest record in NCAA Division I football history and in 2023, their record was 3-9. Everything seemed to change when head coach Curt Cignetti arrived in Bloomington, with his overall coaching record with the Hoosiers now being 21-2. The drastic turnaround of the football program is something that has literally never been done before in the long history of sports. Many didn’t believe a small program like Indiana could win a national championship, but coach Cignetti doesn’t seem to care: “We won the national championship at Indiana University; it can be done!”
