A Look Back at This Season: Indiana
In this series we will look back at this college football season through the lens of my personal top 25 teams. We will be starting with the National Champions, Indiana Hoosiers, who had a stellar 16-0 season, a Heisman quarterback, and a head coach who became a meme.
Indiana did not start out being the favorites to win the National Championship. In fact, they started out ranked No. 20 in the Associated Press poll. Their first win was an unconvincing 27-14 win against Old Dominion. Heisman quarterback Fernando Mendoza did not even throw a touchdown in the game, although he did have 193 passing yards. Roman Hemby rushed for 111 yards, and Jonathan Brady had a 91-yard punt return for a touchdown. So, at the first week, Indiana was not looked at as a very dominating presence, but what about week two?
Indiana actually lost a few spots in the top 25, moving down to No. 23, when they had a dominating 56-9 win against Kennesaw State. This looked more on brand for Indiana as Mendoza threw for 245 yards and four touchdowns. The defense was also much more dominant with 14 tackles for a loss and they kept Kennesaw State from getting any kind of a run game going. However, given that Kennesaw State was 0-2 at the time, Indiana only moved up one spot the following week.
The No. 22 Indiana then faced off against Indiana State in a 73-0 shutout. Mendoza threw for 270 yards and five touchdowns while his brother Alberto Mendoza threw for 104 yards and two touchdowns. Omar Cooper Jr. had 10 receptions for 207 yards and four touchdowns. Overall, a dominant performance as the defense also got five sacks against Indiana State’s Brock Riddle and Keegan Patterson, but perhaps the nation started to take notice next week when the newly No. 19 ranked Indiana took on No. 9 Illinois.
The 63-10 win over Illinois was when the Hoosiers were put on the map, in my opinion. Mendoza threw for 267 yards and five touchdowns with still no interceptions yet. Khobie Martin rushed for 107 yards and two touchdowns and Kaelon Black rushed for 89 yards and a touchdown. Elijah Sarratt had nine receptions for 92 yards and two touchdowns. The defense also had 10 tackles for a loss, seven sacks, and D’Angelo Ponds had a punt return for a touchdown. All of this was against a top 10 team in the nation.
This dominating win bumped Indiana up to No. 11, when they took on Iowa, and barely got a win out. Mendoza threw his first interception in this game but still threw for 233 yards and two touchdowns. Sarratt had an incredible game against the Hawkeyes with seven receptions for 156 yards and a touchdown. Perhaps though, the defense is what kept the Hoosiers from losing this game though as the Hawkeyes were staying in it. The Hoosiers defense secured two interceptions against Mark Gronowski and Hank Brown.
Yet this slow period did not harm the Hoosiers as they went on to beat No. 3 Oregon, 30-20 (a preview of what would happen in the College Football Playoffs.) Mendoza threw for 215 yards and one touchdown with an interception. Roman Hemby rushed for 70 yards and two touchdowns and Sarratt had eight receptions for 121 yards and a touchdown. The defense however got six sacks and eight tackles for a loss led by Aiden Fisher and Rolijah Hardy. Isaiah Jones and Louis Moore also had an interception each. Not only did Indiana cause some turnovers against Oregon’s Dante Moore, but the Hoosiers were able to stomp down Oregon’s running game and protect Mendoza as Oregon was only able to get one sack. If there was any doubt about Indiana before, this game sealed them as having a legit shot at the title.
However, the season was far from over. Indiana would go on to defeat Michigan State, UCLA, and Maryland. Although, they were on the edge when they faced off against Penn State, who saw a resurgence after a troubling start to their season. Although, the No. 2 Indiana Hoosiers were able to win 27-24. Part of the reason the Hoosiers got in trouble was Penn State was able to largely stop the Hoosiers run game. Although Mendoza still threw the ball around a lot, Hemby or Black could not break five yards a carry in the game. The Hoosiers defense also struggled to get to Penn State quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer as he was only sacked once. The defense also struggled to contain Penn State running back Nicholas Singleton, who had 71 yards and two touchdowns. The Nittany Lions made too many mistakes though between fumbles and interceptions that likely cost them this game.
After Indiana defeated Wisconsin and Purdue, it was time for the Big Ten Championship, where it was expected that the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes would win. Yet, Indiana pulled off the upset. The game winning drive happened in the third quarter. Hemby started it off with a five yard run within the Hoosiers’ own 20. Then, Hemby had another small gain of three yards. However, Mendoza then let it rip for a 51-yard pass to Charlie Becker all the way down to Ohio State 29 yard line. Hemby and Black traded small yard runs and Mendoza was pressured and threw an incomplete pass. Then, on 3rd and eight, Mendoza threw a touchdown pass to Sarratt for 17 yards. After this score, Ohio State missed a field goal and turned it over on downs. The Hoosiers then rose to be the Big Ten champions and set their sights on the College Football Playoffs.
The Hoosiers watched the first round and saw that they would be taking on the legendary Alabama Crimson Tide at the Rose Bowl. However, the Hoosiers dominated the Crimson Tide like they had other teams throughout the season in a 38-3 win. Mendoza threw for 192 yards and three touchdowns while Black rushed for 99 yards and a touchdown. Alabama could just not get anything going. Ty Simpson only threw for 67 yards before he was benched for Austin Mack who threw for 103 yards. The run game for the Crimson Tide was non-existant. Both Simpson and Mack had a fumble each.
After a dominating performance, Indiana went on to face Oregon for round two, just after the Ducks dominated the Texas Tech Red Raiders. However, the Hoosiers won comfortably, 56-22. Mendoza threw for 177 yards and five touchdowns while Black rushed for 63 yards and two touchdowns. Sarratt also had seven receptions, 75 yards, and two touchdowns. The Hoosiers defense was able to recover two fumbles and intercept Moore once. The Ducks could just not score with the second quarter being dominated by punts, a fumble, and a missed field goal while Indiana ran up the scoreboard.
After defeating the Ducks, it was time for the National Championship. Although a close contest, Indiana was able to pull it off. Although Mendoza was unable to score a passing touchdown, a legendary running score helped ignite the Hoosiers with 9:18 left in the fourth quarter and made the score 24-14. Miami responded to make the score 24-21, but after a field goal from Radicic that made the game 27-21, Miami had to hurry to win the game with 1:42 left.
Penalties were plaguing the Hurricanes all game, but it was a final Carson Beck interception that sealed the deal for Indiana to be the National Champions.
Indiana’s season was historic and legendary to say the least.