It was not surprising when the AP preseason poll was released August 11 that Texas and Penn State were the top two teams, respectively. After all, there was much anticipation in Austin leading into Arch Manning’s first season as the starting quarterback after spending two seasons behind Quinn Ewers. In Happy Valley, the Nittany Lions were loaded for bear on both sides of scrimmage with quarterback Drew Allar joining Manning among Heisman candidates.
It was also no surprise that Ohio State, Clemson, Georgia, Notre Dame and Alabama were in the top 10. Those four teams came into this season having won 11 of the last 14 national championships, including nine of 11 in the College Football Playoff era.
The Irish did not win one of those 11 titles. In fact, they have not celebrated a championship since Lou Holtz’s 1988 squad, though they have not been strangers when it comes to being in the running for college football supremacy. In fact, they made it to the final four in three of the previous seven seasons, including losing to Ohio State in the championship game last year.
Indiana? A stunningly prosperous 2024 campaign in Curt Cignetti’s first season at the helm of the Hoosiers resulted in a No. 10 postseason showing in the AP. The Hoosiers, though, checked in at No. 20 in the 2025 preseason poll. No track record, no respect. But guess who has been the mightiest in the land?
The Hoosiers could be the first team to win 16 games in a season. They enter Monday evening’s championship matchup with Miami – the ‘Canes are seeking a sixth national title, which would halt a 24-season drought — at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens seeking their first national title.
Move over, big boys
It is not like the powerhouses noted above petered out this season. On the contrary. The Buckeyes, Crimson Tide and Bulldogs each made the playoff. Clemson, though, was a disappointment (7-6) and lost four games at home for the first time since 1998. A year after defeating Indiana in a first-round playoff matchup, the Irish were bumped from the CFP party in favor of Miami in the final ranking and decided to sit out the bowl season. (No Pop-Tarts for them.)
When looking at the larger picture of this year’s final four, only Miami stood out as far as championships are concerned. Ole Miss was recognized by the FWAA as the national champ in 1960, though settled for second in the final AP poll and third in the UPI, both released before the bowl games. Oregon has been knocking on a door they have yet to bust through. Meanwhile, the Hoosiers entered this season as the losingest team in college football with a record of 520-714-45 in 139 years of play. They arrived in Miami Gardens still with 714 defeats, and with Big Ten foe Northwestern possessing a larger number in the loss column.
Indiana’s sudden surge may not signal a changing of the guard, though NIL and the transfer portal could at least allow IU to plant its feet among the blue bloods for something far longer than a couple of years.
Building through transfer portal, NIL
Make no mistake about this: Indiana has a decent amount of homegrown talent. Redshirt junior left tackle, Carter Smith, was an All-American and Outland Trophy semifinalist this season. As such, he is likely high atop Fernando Mendoza’s Christmas card list. Linebacker Isaiah Jones bided his time for two seasons (four games) before Cignetti’s arrival and became a key cog within Bryant Haines’ unit. Receiver Omar Cooper, Jr. had a TD catch for the ages at Penn State this season, his fourth with the program.
What has made the difference between, say, being very good and often appearing invincible is a transfer portal that has yielded two quarterbacks in as many years that are/were in the top two nationally in pass efficiency. The Hoosiers’ first Heisman winner, Mendoza, leads the way in pass efficiency this season after Kurtis Rourke, who transferred from Ohio, was second in 2024.
There are many other players acquired through the portal who have been key contributors, including the running back duo of Kaelon Black and Roman Hemby. The former followed Cignetti from James Madison and was one of 27 transfers on IU’s 2024 roster. The latter transferred from Maryland last winter to spend his final season of eligibility in Bloomington, and is one of only two active FBS players with at least 3,000 career yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving.
Linebacker Aidan Fisher and receiver Elijah Surratt were among others who joined Cignetti at Indiana after playing for him at JMU. Stephen Daley transferred from Kent State ahead of this season and was a monster off the edge (19.5 TFLs) before a freak injury following the Big Ten championship game sidelined him for the playoff.
Mendoza’s NIL stock shot up as this season progressed and, including a recent deal with adidas, his valuation increased to an estimated $2.6 million. Seemingly at the flick of a switch, or at least a coaching hire and shrewd transfer portal acquisitions, Indiana’s profile ballooned. That includes off the field where ongoing renovations of Memorial Stadium and a 20-year, $50-million naming rights deal with Merchants Bank underscore what is taking place within the larger picture of the program. Talk about playing with the big boys.
Cignetti, who as recently as 2016 was a 50-soemthing coaching at the Division II level, has so quickly built a brand where one previously not exist while turning IU football into must-see TV. A blue blood? Of course not. A major player in the current landscape of college football? You better believe it.