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INDIANAPOLIS — Fernando Mendoza, welcome to New York City. Coach Curt Cignetti, welcome to immortality. Indiana football, welcome to No. 1.
Once the losingest program in college football history, No. 2 Indiana capped its greatest regular season with a 13-10 win against top-ranked Ohio State to claim its first outright Big Ten championship since 1945. The Hoosiers (13-0) also secure the No. 1 overall seed in the upcoming College Football Playoff and will play Jan. 1 in the Rose Bowl.
Crimson and cream confetti filled the air at Lucas Oil Stadium as Hoosiers fans cheered and wept. Players took selfies and hopped on FaceTime videos in celebration. In an accomplishment many would have considered impossible just two years ago, Indiana slayed its next-door neighbor and greatest nemesis.
In the big picture, the outcome matters little to either program when it comes to Playoff seeding. The Buckeyes (12-1) likely drop to No. 2 or No. 3 and will receive a bye in either the Cotton or Orange bowls. But the eruption inside a stadium 45 miles from IU’s campus when Cignetti held the Big Ten championship trophy above his head told a different story.
“THE HOOSIERS ARE FLIPPIN’ CHAMPS!” 🗣️@IndianaFootball QB Fernando Mendoza was with @JennyTaft after winning the @bigten championship ‼️ pic.twitter.com/qNJBmXCSfW
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) December 7, 2025
“It’s so hard to even comprehend,” said an emotional Nicholas Baeza, who flew in from Florida to join his daughter, Lindsey, to take in the game. “IU’s here. IU’s for real. They’re for real. And I’m just excited to be here.”
It’s not just that Indiana won the Big Ten championship and clinched its first Rose Bowl berth since 1967. It’s that the Hoosiers did it against the defending national champion Ohio State. In the series’ 99 games, the Buckeyes have won 81 times. Since Woody Hayes became coach in 1951, Ohio State owned a 60-2-2 mark against the Hoosiers entering Saturday night. The Buckeyes had won 30 straight in the series and hadn’t lost to IU since 1988.
But this game was different from any preceding it. It was the fourth No. 1 vs. No. 2 battle in Big Ten history, but it was the first time in the league’s 15-year championship history. A pair of special teams calamities crushed Indiana’s hopes of upsetting Ohio State in their 2024 regular-season matchup. This time, IU was battle-tested and confident in its quest to win the league title. In a pre-championship news conference, Buckeyes coach Ryan Day seemed more focused on securing the No. 1 overall seed as his top focus.
Cignetti, who is just two years into his Indiana tenure, brought in a collection of transfers from his former job at James Madison and other G5 schools. Their desire to prove everyone wrong provided ample motivation to beat a team that oozes five-star talent at every position.
“We’ve got the biggest chip,” said Indiana defensive tackle Tyrique Tucker, who joined Cignetti from James Madison. “It started with the G5 narrative. We kind of shut that down. Now it’s just a bunch of three stars, no stars, doing this. ‘Can they really do it?’ We wanted to shut that down as well and just show the world.”
But Indiana doesn’t win the Big Ten championship without its quarterback. Mendoza, who was voted the Big Ten’s most valuable player by coaches and media, transferred from California to Bloomington last winter. He guided the Hoosiers to road victories in multiple tough environments this year, but this one came against the nation’s top defense. In a third-quarter drive that could win him the Heisman Trophy, Mendoza hoisted the Hoosiers on his shoulders with epic precision.
Trailing 10-6, Mendoza took over at his 12-yard line and completed a 51-yard strike to Charlie Becker. Four plays later, Indiana faced third-and-8 at the Ohio State 17. Mendoza finished the drive with a 17-yard, back-shoulder touchdown pass to Elijah Sarratt to give the Hoosiers the lead.
Then with the Hoosiers facing third-and-6 at their 24 with 2:40 left, Mendoza again threw deep toward Becker, who pulled down a 37-yard catch to pick up a first down.
FERNANDO MENDOZA TO BECKER AGAIN 🎯@Indianafootball pic.twitter.com/HMA75IKVHh
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) December 7, 2025
“I wasn’t going to play not to lose,” Cignetti said. “We were playing to win.
“You’ve got to get a first down. I wasn’t going to punt the ball back to them with two minutes to go and no timeouts. We had to give our guys an opportunity to make plays. We were getting on top of them at certain points in that game, and Fernando was throwing great deep balls. And it was a great play.”
Mendoza completed 15 of 23 passes for 222 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
Indiana’s defense also came up with a major stop to thwart an Ohio State drive late in the third quarter. The Buckeyes drove to the Indiana 5-yard line and faced fourth-and-1. Quarterback Julian Sayin attempted a quarterback sneak and was ruled down at the 3-yard line. A review concluded that Sayin’s knee was down at the 5-yard line, which gave the Hoosiers possession. Indiana’s defense held Ohio State to 58 rushing yards.
The Hoosiers also had a little fortune go their way. Late in the fourth quarter, Ohio State kicker Jayden Fielding missed a 27-yard field goal that would have tied the game. The Hoosiers then ran out all but the final 18 seconds and Sayin’s desperation heave went for 46 yards, but the game ended at midfield.
Indiana fans stayed in their seats and cheered wildly. The Colts’ home loudspeakers filled with songs from John Mellencamp, an Indiana native and lifelong fan. As Mendoza took the dais to collect his MVP hardware, chants of “Heisman” drowned out emcee Joel Klatt from Fox Sports. Before meeting with the media for interviews, Tucker pulled on a crimson Big Ten championship shirt with a white hat. On his taped-up left wrist, the word “Tonya’s”, and on his right wrist, the word “son.”
Last year, Tucker’s mother passed away, and he dedicated this season to her. He smiled throughout his celebration, but his depth of feeling never left.
“I really wanted to go out there and do this for her,” He said. “And to just top it off like that really means a lot to me.
“It’s pretty surreal, a magical feeling.”
