MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — In a stadium just miles from where he grew up, Fernando Mendoza didn’t just play a football game Monday night; he authored a legend. The Indiana Hoosiers, the venerable program that spent more of its life as a loser than any team in FBS history, finished off the greatest turnaround sports had ever seen by beating Miami’s Hurricanes 27-21 to win the College Football Playoff National Championship for 2026.
With the win, the Indiana Hoosiers finish 16-0, becoming the first team to reach that win total since Yale in 1894, and bringing a football title to Bloomington exactly 50 years after Bob Knight’s 1976 basketball team went undefeated.
“We won the national championship at Indiana University,” head coach Curt Cignetti said after the game, still wearing the trademark stoicism that has revitalised the program in just two seasons. “It can be done. I’m just so happy for our fans.”
“We won the national championship at Indiana University, it can be done.”
Indiana Football head coach Curt Cignetti with @MollyAMcGrath after beating Miami 👏 pic.twitter.com/516Ccpe6RF
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 20, 2026
The Gameplay
The game was played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, and it aired on ESPN.
It was the CFP National Championship game, with Indiana and Miami meeting for the title.
Indiana 27, Miami 21. Here’s how it happened, score by score.
Indiana got on the board first in the opening quarter. Kicker Nico Radicic hit a 34-yard field goal to make it 3 to 0.
In the second quarter, Indiana extended the lead with a short touchdown run. Riley Nowakowski scored from 1 yard out, and the extra point made it 10 to 0 going into halftime. Miami didn’t score in the first half.
Miami finally broke through in the third quarter. Mark Fletcher Jr. took a handoff and ripped off a 57-yard touchdown run. After the extra point, Indiana’s lead was down to 10 to 7.
Indiana answered with the swing play of the night, and it came from special teams. A blocked punt ended up as a touchdown when Isaiah Jones recovered the ball in the end zone. That pushed the score to 17 to 7.
Early in the fourth quarter, Miami made it tight again. Fletcher scored his second rushing touchdown, this one from 3 yards out, cutting it to 17 to 14.
Indiana’s biggest offensive moment came next. Facing fourth and 4 at the Miami 12, Fernando Mendoza kept the ball and ran it in for a 12-yard touchdown. Indiana went back up 24 to 14.
Miami responded quickly. Quarterback Carson Beck found Malachi Toney for a 22-yard touchdown pass with 6:37 left, making it 24 to 21.
Indiana didn’t need another touchdown, but it did need points. Radicic drilled a 35-yard field goal with 1:42 remaining to stretch it to 27 to 21.
Miami got the ball back for one last drive. It ended with Beck throwing an interception, and Indiana ran out the clock to finish the perfect season and win the national championship.
| # | Quarter | Team | Scoring Play | Score After Play |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1st | Indiana | Nico Radicic 34-yard field goal | Indiana 3, Miami 0 |
| 2 | 2nd | Indiana | Riley Nowakowski 1-yard rushing TD (XP good) | Indiana 10, Miami 0 |
| 3 | 3rd | Miami | Mark Fletcher Jr. 57-yard rushing TD (XP good) | Indiana 10, Miami 7 |
| 4 | 3rd | Indiana | Blocked punt recovered in end zone by Isaiah Jones for TD (XP good) | Indiana 17, Miami 7 |
| 5 | 4th | Miami | Mark Fletcher Jr. 3-yard rushing TD (XP good) | Indiana 17, Miami 14 |
| 6 | 4th | Indiana | Fernando Mendoza 12-yard rushing TD on 4th and 4 (XP good) | Indiana 24, Miami 14 |
| 7 | 4th | Miami | Carson Beck to Malachi Toney: 22-yard TD pass (XP good) | Indiana 24, Miami 21 |
| 8 | 4th | Indiana | Nico Radicic 35-yard field goal | Indiana 27, Miami 21 |
| 9 | 4th | Miami | Final drive ends on an interception | Final: Indiana 27, Miami 21 |
Key Numbers
Beck ended up with 232 passing yards, completing 19 of 32 attempts and throwing one touchdown and one interception. Mendoza completed 16 of 27 for 186 yards and scored the go-ahead touchdown on that fourth-down keep. Fletcher paced Miami’s ground game with 112 yards and scored twice.
What does the Indiana Hoosiers win mean for fans?
Indiana Hoosiers football has spent decades living with a certain kind of joke, the one fans make to protect themselves. Losing seasons. Empty seats. The long sigh when basketball season finally arrives.
That’s why this title landed as it did. It wasn’t just “a good year”. It was a full rewrite.
The NCAA’s game story calls it Indiana’s first-ever national championship, and it notes the bracket context too: top-seeded Indiana over No. 10 Miami, 27–21.
Even the crowd vibe told the story. Sports Illustrated reported that Indiana Hoosiers fans appeared to outnumber Miami fans in Miami, which is honestly wild when you say it out loud.
That’s what belief looks like when it’s no longer theoretical. People showed up like they expected history. And then they got it.
Also Read: How Many Trophies Did Micah Richards Win in His Career?
What it Means for Indiana
The headline is Indiana finishing at 16 and 0, but the bigger deal is what it says about that program. Indiana Hoosiers aren’t usually in this spot, and that’s why the moment hits so hard. And now a team that spent the better part of a decade as a punchline just won the sport’s biggest game, on a neutral field in South Florida, against a brand-name opponent.
And it wasn’t a fluke night. Indiana led the first half, survived Miami’s best push and a game-changing score on special teams. It’s an enter-the-ring dance party, and that’s a championship formula, straight up.
Sources & References
- Associated Press (AP): Indiana completes undefeated season and wins first national title, beating Miami 27-21 (Full game summary and Curt Cignetti quotes).
- College Football Playoff (CFP): Indiana Completes Undefeated Season With First CFP National Championship (Official tournament recap and statistical breakdown).
- Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC): Miami Falls to Indiana in CFP National Championship Game (Detailed play-by-play and Miami perspective).
- Sports Illustrated: Full Recap of the Hoosiers’ First CFP National Championship (Reporting on the fan atmosphere and 16-0 historical significance).
- Washington Post: Indiana fights off Miami, caps perfect season with national championship (In-depth analysis of Fernando Mendoza’s 4th-quarter touchdown).
- NFL.com: Indiana fends off Miami: Three draft takeaways (Discussion on Mendoza’s Heisman win and NFL draft stock).
- The Indiana Daily Student (IDS): ‘I’ll die for my team’: Fernando Mendoza leads Indiana’s victory (Detailed local reporting and Bloomington celebration photos).
