One of the greatest sports stories was completed on Monday night as Indiana defeated Miami 27-21 to capture the program’s first College Football Playoff national championship, all while capping an unforgettable 2025 season with a perfect 16-0 record.
The win didn’t come easily for the Hoosiers as the Hurricanes closed the gap twice in the second half, even pulling within three with just over six and a half minutes left in the fourth quarter.
The Hurricanes marched down the field 91 yards to score off a 22-yard touchdown pass by Carson Beck to cut it to a 24-21 game, but the Hoosiers managed to give themselves some breathing room with a field goal on the ensuing drive.
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The Indiana defence held the Hurricanes off from there, securing the win with Jamari Sharpe picking off a pass from Beck with just under a minute left.
Fernando Mendoza — the hot favourite to be taken with the first overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft — had the highlight touchdown of the game, running into the end zone on a fourth-and-4 play at the Hurricanes’ 12-yard line, diving through the Miami defence to score to make it a 24-14 game late in the fourth quarter.
It marked an improbable turnaround for the program, which head coach Curt Cignetti took over prior to the 2024 season and has since put up a 26-2 record over the two campaigns going into Monday night’s national title game.
The Hoosiers had scored the game’s first points on a 34-yard field goal on their second drive of the night and they held the 3-0 advantage until they drove 85 yards in the middle of the second quarter to extend their lead.
Riley Nowakowski capped off the 14-play drive with a one-yard touchdown run to make it 10-0 with 6:13 left in the second quarter.
Miami was finally able to get on the board with 11:06 left the third quarter when Mark Fletcher Jr. broke free for a 57-yard rushing touchdown to help pull the Hurricanes within three.
This article initially appeared on The New York Post and was republished with permission.
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