INDIANAPOLIS — Thirty years from now, Indiana fans will be able to tell you where they were at 11:24 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025.
In Indianapolis, tens of thousands of Hoosier faithful watched as a sea of white jerseys rushed Lucas Oil Stadium’s fluorescent-lit field. They looked on as Indiana football basked in streams of red and white confetti atop an elevated podium.
In Bloomington, hundreds of crimson-clad students took over Kirkwood Avenue, conducting themselves in a manner only college students are capable of. They scattered from their bars of choice as chants of “Hoo-Hoo-Hoo-Hoosiers” echoed through the town’s storefronts.
Millions more fans sat glued to their televisions in awe. Lifelong Hoosiers watched as head coach Curt Cignetti checked off another box in college football’s most unprecedented turnaround.
No matter the location, each scene had one thing in common. Disbelief.
Indiana’s 13-10 win over No. 1 Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship isn’t just improbable, it’s unimaginable. Look no further than the comments uttered by Hoosier players in the aftermath of Saturday night’s win.
“Whoa, this is crazy,” redshirt sixth-year senior right tackle Khalil Benson said before heading into the locker room.
“It feels like a culmination of all my prayers coming together,” redshirt senior running back Roman Hemby said during his postgame press conference.
Sophomore wide receiver Charlie Becker reflected on beating the Buckeyes — the team he grew up rooting for. He called the moment "surreal.”
Ohio State was supposed to be a reality check. The big bad Buckeyes were the untested superpower that were supposed to add a blemish to Indiana’s spotless record. Instead, they were the next chapter in the Hoosiers’ storybook season.
There are plenty of reasons why David beat Goliath. For one, he had a better weapon. For Indiana, that was redshirt junior quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who will most likely be accepting the Heisman Trophy later this week. Still, the biggest factor in the Hoosiers’ Big Ten Championship win was something that started when Cignetti first took over at the helm — culture.
“We're going to go in the playoffs as the No. 1 seed, and a lot of people probably thought that wasn't possible,” Cignetti said. “But when you get the right people and you have a plan and they love one another and play for one another and they commit, anything's possible. And I think that's what you saw happen here.”
Even if Indiana’s head coach has an explanation for how the program jumped from a 3-9 record to an undefeated Big Ten title run in two seasons, does that make it any more believable?
Well actually, yes, it should.
It just makes sense that a team representing Indiana, a state built on agriculture and manufacturing, would form its culture around effort, hard work and brotherhood. While those attributes might be cliches, they perfectly sum up the program since Cignetti arrived in Bloomington.
The Hoosiers are a band of misfits. Most of Indiana’s key pieces are transfers, players that were overlooked by programs like Ohio State. On paper, the Hoosiers’ roster pales in comparison to other highly ranked teams based strictly on talent. According to 247Sports Team Talent Composite, Indiana entered the season with the 72nd most-talented roster.
Well, the 72nd most-talented roster just earned the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.
All of this is my attempt at highlighting the improbability of the Hoosiers’ historic season. It’s the right players, at the right place, at the right time, under the right coach. A mixture that has given Indiana football fans an opportunity to air out decades of disappointment.
As the Hoosiers advance into the CFP, they’ll continue to add more pages to a story that seems too good to be true. While there’s uncertainty on whether Indiana’s book will have a happy ending, this chapter certainly did. So, before the Hoosiers flip the page to the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day, stop for a moment and think.
Where were you last night? Who were you with? Whatever those answers might be, remember them. If there’s one thing sports has taught us, these kinds of moments don’t come around very often. If you need to, pinch yourself, but I promise you’re not dreaming. For the first time in its 138-year history, Indiana football is No. 1.
CLARIFICATION: This story has been updated to better reflect the number of students on Kirkwood Avenue.
Follow reporters Dalton James (@DaltonMJames and jamesdm@iu.edu) and Conor Banks (@Conorbanks06 and conbanks@iu.edu) and columnist Quinn Richards (@Quinn_richa and qmrichar@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana football season.
