It’s one thing many college football followers by no means thought they’d see: The Indiana Hoosiers are college football’s national champions.
The Hoosiers have lengthy been thought of a basketball college and Indiana is named a basketball-mad portion of the nation. No longer. The 2025-26 Indiana Hoosiers on Monday wrote themselves into college football history by pulling off the first 16-0 season in the trendy period, defeating the University of Miami in the College Football Playoff national championship recreation by a rating of 27-21.
The recreation began off sluggish – the Hoosiers and Hurricanes traded defensive stands in the first half, with Fernando Mendoza main his workforce on two scoring drives to make it 10-0 at halftime.
The recreation exploded into life in the second half as Miami’s Mark Fletcher Jr. broke free for a 57-yard landing run that introduced Miami inside a rating of the Hoosiers. IU answered that rating just a few drives later with considered one of the turning factors of the recreation.
As it felt like Miami was seizing management of the contest with its strain on Mendoza, the Hoosiers broke via the Hurricanes’ punt workforce with Mikail Kamara blocking Dylan Joyce’s punt. Isaiah Jones jumped on the free ball in the finish zone as the Hoosiers regained the 10-point lead to go up 17-7.
Miami refused to again down and bought an electrical fourth quarter began with one other Fletcher landing, chopping the Indiana lead once more to simply three factors.
What got here subsequent will reside lengthy in Hoosier lore.
Mendoza led his workforce down the area – developing big in clutch moments.
First, it was a fourth-and-5 cross to large receiver Charlie Becker for 19 yards that saved the drive going. Then, dealing with one other fourth down at the Miami 12-yard line, Mendoza saved the ball on a designed quarterback run.
While taking contact, he made his well past the first-down marker and strived for extra. He shrugged off a few hits and lunged for the aim line, taking a large blow to the again in the course of. But he bought over the aim line, scoring the landing that will finally seal the win.
As that they had all day, Miami answered, going again down the area and scoring a landing on Malachi Toney’s 22-yard landing drive. But Indiana scored the recreation’s closing factors on the subsequent drive, kicking a area aim to go up 27-21.
Miami quarterback Carson Beck and the Hurricanes’ offense had one final likelihood to rating a landing that will break Hoosier hearts and snatch the title for the Canes, however the drive ended on a deep cross that was intercepted by Indiana’s Jamari Sharpe.
The turnover sealed the recreation and the exceptional title for the Hoosiers. An not possible dream come true in South Florida.
