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David Hale
MIAMI — What started with an “irrational belief,” as Indiana center Pat Coogan described, culminated in the Hoosiers’ first national championship in football on Monday, potentially signaling a new era in the usually predictable landscape of college football.
Coach Curt Cignetti referred to Indiana’s championship as a “paradigm shift,” paving the way for any program ready to invest in ascending the ranks of the sport, much like the Hoosiers accomplished.
“People can hold onto outdated notions, defining teams and conferences in rigid categories,” Cignetti said. “Or they can adapt to the new reality, the shifting power dynamics in college football today.”
Indiana has become the first new national champion in college football in nearly three decades, achieving a 27-21 victory over Miami. but, this barely scratches the surface of the improbability of their journey. At the start of this season, Indiana held the record for the most losses in the sport’s history, yet triumphed despite a roster featuring just eight blue-chip recruits and numerous players who followed Cignetti from James Madison two years prior.
The previous first-time champion was Florida in 1996-97, but those Gators were already among the elite, boasting stars like Danny Wuerffel, Ike Hilliard, and Fred Taylor. Florida had achieved top 10 AP finishes for five consecutive years leading up to its first title and had secured nine or more wins in nine of the last 13 seasons.
Before a surprising resurgence in Cignetti’s inaugural season in Bloomington, Indiana hadn’t seen a nine-win campaign since 1967, and the Hoosiers’ 16 victories this season exceeded their total from the years 2020 to 2023 combined.
“To reflect on Indiana’s past before our arrival—10, 20, 50 years ago—it was simply a lack of commitment from the top,” Cignetti stated. “Nothing else. Now we have that commitment.”
“People can hold onto outdated notions, defining teams and conferences in rigid categories, or they can adapt to the new reality, the shifting power dynamics in college football today.”
Indiana coach Curt Cignetti
The unexpected ascent of Indiana is a fascinating tale in American sports, but Cignetti believes there was no magical formula that pushed the Hoosiers to success. It was chiefly grounded in belief and a dedication to a process that had previously worked for him at Elon and James Madison.
“A lot of like-minded individuals have to unite for a common cause, and that belief can often seem irrational,” Coogan explained. “Especially in a place like Indiana that hasn’t tasted success. I’ve witnessed it, and I’ve seen the way this program has been perceived. When Coach Cig arrived, he had faith, and he got others to have faith too. Some people scoffed at him and thought he was out of his mind—that’s irrational belief. You must get people to engage and believe in the mission.”
If Indiana’s remarkable rise serves as inspiration for every “sleeping giant” program nationwide, it also highlights ongoing shifts in college football’s power structure. After nearly 20 years of supremacy, the SEC has not had a representative in the national championship game for the last three years. compared to, the Big Ten now boasts its third different champion in as many seasons, following Michigan and Ohio State.
“The results are telling,” Cignetti remarked. “Those are facts. Nobody can foresee the future, but I know we have an extensive TV contract, and all the institutions are profiting greatly. There will be many competitive teams in our league next year.”
Indiana is likely to be among them, though Cignetti refrained from forecasting a dynasty for the Hoosiers.
Quarterback Fernando Mendoza and several key senior leaders will depart next season, and while Cignetti expressed that this year’s achievement shows anything is achievable, sustaining success repeatedly may prove challenging.
“Perfection can’t be consistently realized,” Cignetti noted. “But we will persist, taking it one day at a time, one meeting at a time, one practice at a time, continually improving, committing to the process, arriving prepared, and seeing where it takes us.”
