Big Ten · Bloomington, Indiana
Indiana Football History
Championships, records and rivalries
Program history
IND history
The most improbable national champion in the sport's history.
IND history
715 losses, then a title
Indiana had lost 715 games before the 2025 season, the second most in FBS history. In the three years before Curt Cignetti arrived the program finished 2-10, 4-8 and 3-9.
In 2025 it went 16-0 and won the national championship, beating Miami 27-21. It was the first 16-0 season in the modern era — the only other team to do it was Yale in 1894, playing multiple games a week — and the first program since 1996 to win its first national title.
IND history
How the season went
Indiana finished the regular season 12-0 for the first time ever, with a first-ever win at Penn State and a road victory over then-No. 5 Oregon. It then beat No. 1 Ohio State 13-10 in the Big Ten Championship, a first conference title since 1967 and the first outright since 1945.
In the playoff it beat Alabama 38-3 in the Rose Bowl and Oregon 56-22 in the Peach Bowl. Quarterback Fernando Mendoza won the Heisman Trophy, the first in program history.
FAQ
IND history questions
When did Indiana win the national championship?
January 19, 2026, beating Miami 27-21 in the College Football Playoff final to complete a 16-0 season — the first national title in the program's 139-year history.
How bad was Indiana before that?
The program had lost 715 games, second most in FBS history, and went 2-10, 4-8 and 3-9 in the three seasons before Curt Cignetti arrived.
Who won the Heisman at Indiana?
Quarterback Fernando Mendoza, in 2025 — the first Heisman winner in program history.
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