Indiana beats Miami 27-21 to clinch undefeated season and first national title

The program that entered the season as the losingest in Division I college football history is now a national champion.

The Hoosiers just put a bow on a 16-0 season with a thrilling win over the Hurricanes in the CFP title game. What a win for Indiana.

With Miami driving, Hurricanes quarterback Carson Beck throws an interception, not seeing Indiana's Jamari Sharpe waiting to jump the route. The Hoosiers take over with 44 seconds to play and are just a few kneel-downs away from winning a national title.

A chip-shot field goal by Indiana has left Miami 1:42 to drive the field and take the lead. Indiana's defense has a chance to make a national title-winning stand.

Charlie Becker made a stunning catch on Indiana's previous drive on fourth down that kept the possession alive, enabling the Hoosiers to later score. And on this drive, his jump-ball catch on third and 7 has moved Indiana well into Miami territory.

It’s not over yet!

The Hurricanes answered Fernando Mendoza’s heroics with a 91-yard touchdown drive. Malachi Toney performed his own highlight reel for Miami on the possession. He had a 41-yard catch and run to get the Canes inside Hoosier territory. Then two plays later, Toney took a handoff and ran for a 22-yard score.

The best players on the field are stepping up right now!

It’s 24-21 Indiana.

Thirteen yards from the end zone, Indiana decided against kicking a field goal that would have put it up only 20-14 and instead called a quarterback run by Fernando Mendoza. Mendoza looked to be cut off short of the first-down line before he somehow found a hole, stayed on his feet and dove for a touchdown.

Incredible play, and it has given Indiana a 24-14 lead with 9:18 to play.

Fernando Mendoza hasn't had an easy second half, but he just threw the biggest pass of the night to convert a fourth-and-5 play thanks to an incredible catch by a falling Charlie Becker up the sideline.

First down Indiana, inside the red zone.

Fernando Mendoza threw deep to Omar Cooper Jr. on third and 5, and the referees missed a blatant hold on Cooper. That’s a huge missed call, as now the Hoosiers will have a big decision to make on fourth and 5.

What a response from the Hurricanes.

After the blocked punt for a score, Miami marched 81 yards in 10 plays for its second touchdown of the game — and the second TD for Mark Fletcher Jr. Nice play call by the Canes on third down, who used a motion by Malachi Toney to open space for Fletcher Jr.

That was also only Miami’s second third-down conversion of the game.

Official attendance for the CFP national championship game: 67,227.

After scrambling around in the backfield, Carson Beck found C.J. Daniels for a 24-yard gain on third and 6 — Miami’s first third-down conversion of the night. With the Hurricanes trailing, Beck and the offense desperately needed that first down.

When Indiana's offense couldn't make headway this half, its special teams unit extended the lead all by itself. Indiana has been excellent on special teams under Curt Cignetti, with eight blocked kicks in his two years at IU, including four this season (ninth-most in the country). In addition this season the Hoosiers have also blocked three punts.

Disaster for Miami!

Carson Beck threw short of the sticks to Malachi Toney on third down, and Toney couldn’t break free for a first down. On the following play, the Hurricanes’ punt was blocked, and the Hoosiers recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchdown.

It’s now 17-7 Indiana. This is the Hoosiers’ second straight game with a punt block.

Indiana punts for the third time this half, and the best thing to come from that possession for the Hoosiers was that their punt pinned Miami inside its own 10-yard line. Doesn't it feel like the team that scores next could break this game open?

Miami’s offensive resurgence was short-lived, as the Hurricanes punted after only three plays on their second drive of the third quarter. A shaky punt gives the Hoosiers the ball on their own 43-yard line.

The Hoosiers punted only 38 times this season in 15 games, but tonight they have already punted four times. Their offense has largely been bottled up since halftime.

Fernando Mendoza enters this drive with 12 completions on 18 pass attempts. Those six incompletions are more than he had in his last two games, combined, after he went 14-for-16 against Alabama and 17-for-20 against Oregon in last week's semifinal. The Heisman Trophy winner has 116 yards through the air.

Wow!

Mark Fletcher Jr. just ran off right tackle for 57 yards and a touchdown to get Miami within one score in the national title game. That run came after the Hurricanes' defense made a stop to open the second half, and now we have a tight one.

It’s a 10-7 Indiana lead with 11:05 left in the third quarter.

Rueben Bain Jr. entered tonight with four sacks in the College Football Playoff, and he just recorded his first of the night to end an Indiana drive. That’s exactly the kind of game-changing play Miami will need even more of from Bain in the second half.

Facing third down and 17, Indiana ran Kaelon Black up the middle for what appeared to be little gain, but Miami got called for a face mask penalty that led to an automatic first down.

With a new set of downs, Indiana put itself in third and long again, and this time there was no escape, with Mendoza sacked for the second time of the half. Indiana can't add to its lead and punts.

Lucas was suspended for the first half after a targeting penalty in the semifinal. Lucas could bring some much needed help to the Miami secondary, which played quite a bit of soft coverage in the first half, allowing Fernando Mendoza to rack up easy completions.

The Hoosiers will start with the ball from their own 25 with a 10-0 lead.

Indiana’s offense, the country’s best at converting third downs into first downs, was 4-for-7 on third down during the first half. Miami was 0-for-6. It's not the one factor that has decided this game to this point, yet it is still illustrative of Miami's pronounced offensive struggles.

The Hurricanes missed a field goal on their final drive of the half, ruining their best possession of the game and keeping them scoreless.

The Hoosiers have dominated this game. Indiana has outgained Miami 116 to 49 and also had the ball for nearly seven minutes longer in the first half.

The Hoosiers will receive to start the third quarter, and they’ll have a chance to extend their lead to three scores.

There's a watch party for fans in Bloomington, Indiana, at Assembly Hall for the game. Here's what the scene looks like.

Miami went for it on fourth and 1 from its own 34 and just barely converted for only the Hurricanes’ second first down of the game.

Indiana features multiple running backs, but Kaelon Black has been crucial. He picked up 20 yards on a third-and-8 to keep the drive alive, and the Hoosiers eventually scored on the ground.

Indiana has 47 yards rushing against a defensive line that is the Hurricanes' biggest strength.

An 85-yard drive that takes 6:44 off the clock ends with Indiana scoring a touchdown on a 1-yard dive by its fullback. The Hoosiers lead, 10-0, with 6:13 left in the second quarter.

The Hoosiers this season scored on nearly 92% of their drives that reached the opponent's 20-yard line, and they punch this one in.

I used to cover him when he coached Oregon, and you will not find a coach in the country who wants to establish the run more than Mario Cristobal, a former offensive lineman. But Miami's ground game has 10 yards on seven carries, which has limited quarterback Carson Beck's passing game.

During a stoppage a few minutes ago at Hard Rock Stadium, a fan had five throws of a football through a hole. For every ball that went in, he earned $200,000 — and he hit three of them. The crowd went wild.

Miami tried to run on third and 2, only to get stuffed for no gain. The Hurricanes have failed to convert on their first four third-down attempts. It’s still 3-0 Indiana, but Miami is going to need to find answers on offense soon.

With thousands of fans cheering on the Hurricanes and the Hoosiers tonight, some familiar faces are in the crowd at Hard Rock Stadium.

Here’s a list of officials and celebrities at tonight’s game. 

President Donald Trump: An avid sports fan, Trump has been to several College Football Playoff championship games.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio: A Miami native and former football player at Tarkio College in Missouri, Rubio will join Trump at Hard Rock Stadium. Rubio is a graduate of the University of Miami School of Law. As of the 2025 season roster, Rubio’s son Anthony is a running back at the University of Florida.

Mark Cuban: The “Shark Tank” personality and billionaire entrepreneur is a 1981 graduate of Indiana University. NBC News has reported that Cuban made a donation to the school’s athletic program for the first time in 2025.

Miami Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava: As the host city for the championship game, the county’s mayor is in attendance at this evening’s game. Miami is also preparing for the 2026 World Cup later this summer, which Cava has participated in several events in anticipation of the games.

DJ Khaled: The Grammy-winning rapper and producer behind hit songs like “I’m the One,” featuring Justin Bieber, and “Wild Thoughts,” with Rihanna, is in attendance at tonight’s game.

Indiana punts after its latest drive and has now punted twice tonight, with Fernando Mendoza frequently running away from pressure from Miami's defensive line. After one quarter, Indiana has 67 passing yards (to Miami's nine) but only three points to show for it.

A defensive struggle in the first half, with only one score coming via field goal.

The Hoosiers have been better, outgaining the Hurricanes 83 to 18. Miami is 0-3 on third down compared to 1-4 for the Hoosiers.

Fernando Mendoza has completed 7 of 10 passes for 67 yards. Carson Beck is 2 of 6 for only 9 yards.

After two incompletions, Carson Beck was sacked on third down and Miami punted. That’s two straight three-and-outs for the Hurricanes, as Indiana’s defense is starting to heat up.

A 12-play, 55-yard drive leads to a Nico Radicic field goal from 34 yards to give Indiana a 3-0 lead with 2:35 to play in the quarter.

Radicic is now 17-for-18 this season on field goals.

Fernando Mendoza got popped by Jakobe Thomas on a read-option fake and appeared to be bleeding from his lip after the play. The Hurricanes clearly want to be physical with the QB tonight.

Indiana has committed only 55 penalties this season — fewer than four per game, on average. Midway through tonight's first quarter, Indiana already has two penalties, both on the offensive line as it deals with a very talented Miami defensive front.

Carson Beck threw incomplete from a clean pocket on third and 5, and the Hurricanes punted for the second straight possession. Strong start for the defenses.

Fernando Mendoza faced pressure from both Rueben Bain Jr. and Marquise Lightfoot on Indiana’s first third down. Miami’s defensive line has been a key factor in its playoff run, and it will be a position group to keep a close eye on the rest of the night.

After Indiana gained 11 yards on its first play of the game on a completion by Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza, the Hoosiers went nowhere on their next three plays and punted to close their first drive. Keeping Indiana in third-and-long situations is critical for Miami tonight, as Indiana leads the country in how often it converts third-down opportunities.

Indiana allowed Miami one quick first down but not a second while forcing a punt. That's not surprising if you've watched the Hoosiers' defense this season. They've allow the fourth-fewest first downs in the country — about 13 per game.

The Hurricanes moved the chains once but couldn’t convert a third and 8 on their second set of downs after Malachi Toney was tackled short of a first.

The Hoosiers will now take over from inside their own 10-yard line.

... and the Hurricanes will start with the ball from their own 28-yard line. The national championship is underway!

Will Indiana go 16-0? Or will Miami win its sixth title?

About 5 miles from the University of Miami’s campus, many students at Christopher Columbus High School were unsurprisingly decked out in orange and green Friday as the hometown Hurricanes prepared to play Indiana in tonight’s national championship. Some, however, opted for crimson.

Dave Dunn wouldn’t choose either.

“Even my daughter tried to get an answer out of me, and I wouldn’t give her one,” Dunn, Columbus’ football coach, told NBC News.

How could he? Five of Dunn’s former players — all of whom have high school state championship rings — are on tonight’s rosters: three for Miami and two for Indiana. And one of those is the Hoosiers’ star quarterback, Fernando Mendoza.

On the sideline before the national title game, Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with NBC News about the Hurricanes' resurgence and makes a game prediction. He also says that he'll be with President Donald Trump at the game and that they have "work-related" matters to discuss.

Secretary Rubio tells NBC News he predicts a Miami victory

01:11

Mario Cristobal has always loved football, but in 1998, as a young coach unsure whether he could make it in the profession, he applied to become a U.S. Secret Service officer. His grandfather, father and brother all worked in law enforcement, so his interest in the profession wasn't entirely out of the blue.

Cristobal eventually earned a job offer and had to make a choice, he told me in 2017 — and he initially went for the Secret Service. But a few hours later, he decided he wasn't done with football. The rest is history, as the Miami job is his third time being a head coach. But his two paths eventually converged once more. When he won a national championship as an assistant at Alabama, the Crimson Tide visited the White House, and Cristobal saw a Secret Service member he recognized.

“All my players were like, ‘I knew you were some kind of special agent!’” Cristobal said back then, when he was at Oregon. “I’d have 20 years in right now if I would have gone. Probably could have retired.”

Nicole Auerbach and Joshua Perry preview Miami vs. Indiana in the CFP national championship, discussing the keys to the game and the storylines to watch.

I think this is going to be a close matchup. These are two teams that are built well on both lines of scrimmage. Each team has an experienced quarterback. They are both violent and aggressive. They can create havoc on defense. Truly, they mirror each other in many facets.

But the difference to me comes down to consistency. I just trust that Indiana will be what it has been all year. A team that plays with elite discipline. A team that doesn’t make mental errors. A team that doesn’t commit penalties. And a team that doesn’t ride the emotions of the game.

Miami has been its best version this postseason. Even still, it’s hard to ignore its midseason inconsistencies. Penalties can creep up like they did in its semifinal matchup with Ole Miss. Against a team like Indiana, whose superpower is discipline, Miami is harder to trust. So give me the Hoosiers to secure the Big Ten’s third straight title.

Scenes from the sideline before the game.

I picked the Hoosiers to win it all six weeks ago when the bracket came out. I’m sticking with this team because it has no weaknesses. Fernando Mendoza, the Heisman Trophy winner, is highly efficient in the pass game. The Hoosiers have a two-headed monster in the run game. They stop the run well and they defend the pass well. They rarely get penalized, and they rarely turn the ball over. They don’t beat themselves, which means I think Miami will have to be basically perfect to win this game.

The Canes are coming off a game in which they were whistled for 10 penalties (and they dropped four interceptions). They have to play a clean game to have a chance, and still that may not be enough.

Indiana may not be the most talented team in college football, but it’s the best team in the country. And I think the Hoosiers will hoist that trophy tonight.

Lil Uzi Vert is said to be Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza's favorite rapper. Here he is at the national championship, holding Mendoza's jersey.

Nicole Auerbach and Joshua Perry compare outlooks for quarterbacks Carson Beck and Fernando Mendoza ahead of the CFP national championship game, where the "pressure" will be on Beck to keep pace with Indiana.

Hear Mark Cuban's thoughts about Indiana's magical run.

At one point this season, Indiana receiver Elijah Sarratt was watching old tape of NFL legend Aaron Rodgers throwing back-shoulder fade passes to Davante Adams when a light bulb clicked. Why couldn’t Sarratt try that with his own quarterback, Fernando Mendoza?

Adams does “a great job of getting the release off the ball, and then around 12, 14 yards, Aaron Rodgers just throwing a laser and ... it drops in the bucket,” Sarratt said recently. “I tend to win off the line more times than not, so I felt like I had a good chance of [trying] it.” (Sarratt’s nickname is “Waffle House,” he once said, “because I’m open 24/7.”) 

One day, Sarratt took the idea to Mendoza. “Same day after practice, we got a couple reps in, just trying to work it, be similar with how [Rodgers and Adams] were,” Sarratt recalled. “Then just communication after that. I try not to be picky. I just try to tell him let me get my hands on it, and he does a great job putting it on the money.”

This season, Sarratt has caught 62 passes for 802 yards and 15 touchdowns — the most receiving scores in the country. He has also caught a number of clutch back-shoulder fades from Mendoza. Look for that play when the game is on the line.

Indiana center Pat Coogan, who was named the offensive MVP of the Rose Bowl, and his fellow Hoosier offensive linemen figure to be the key to the game. Can they keep Miami’s elite defensive line in check and allow Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza time to work?

Miami’s defensive front is uber-talented, led by Ruben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor. The Hurricanes’ stifled No. 2 Ohio State a few weeks ago, when Miami sacked quarterback Julian Sayin five times and intercepted him twice. The Hurricanes’ pass rush could pose real problems for the Indiana offense, unless Coogan and the rest of the Hoosiers’ line can neutralize it.

Miami pass rusher Rueben Bain Jr. is the type of defensive player who can swing the game in the Hurricanes' favor. After racking up four sacks in Miami's first two playoff games, Bain tallied several pressures in the win over Ole Miss. That is exactly the kind of effort that will be needed if Miami is going to pull off an upset tonight.

The Hurricanes’ strength all year has been their play in the trenches on both sides of the ball, with Bain playing a major role in terrorizing opposing offenses. If he can create an extra possession for the offense with a strip sack or make Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza even the slightest bit uncomfortable in the pocket, that is a major win for Miami.

What makes Indiana's offense so difficult to defend? Partly, it's how good the Hoosiers are at converting on third down. In fact, no team is better, with Indiana converting an FBS-leading 58.2% of the time. (Miami also is no slouch, ranking 18th nationally at 47.1%.)

Defensively, it doesn't get any easier, with Indiana opponents converting on only 30.3% of their third downs, the country's eighth-best mark.

Eric Froton dives into his best bets for the College Football Playoff championship match between Miami and Indiana, detailing why you should take the over on total pass attempts by QB Carson Beck.

Indiana coach Curt Cignetti has had a major impact on his players, and not just on the field. The other day, senior linebacker Aiden Fisher — who played for Cignetti at James Madison University, too — was on the phone with his mother.

“I don’t even remember what we were talking about,” Fisher said recently. “I was just like, Yeah, I hope somebody doesn’t get complacent. And I was like, Wow, I have been with Cig way too long. And she said, ‘Yeah, I said the same thing the other day.’ She used the word ‘complacent.’”

“It’s funny, when you’ve been with somebody for so long you start talking like them a little bit,” he added.

Both Indiana and Miami have experienced rosters, but one of the best players on the field tonight will be a teenager: Malachi Toney, the Hurricanes’ true freshman wide receiver.

Toney should be in high school right now. Instead, he decided to reclassify as a recruit and enter college early. He was 17 years old when Miami’s season started and turned 18 in September. This year, Toney has caught 99 passes for 1,089 yards and nine touchdowns, including an electric 36-yard catch-and-run score in the College Football Playoff semifinal.

His quarterback, Carson Beck, is an elder statesman by comparison. Beck is 23 and in his sixth season of college football. When Beck's freshman season started, Toney was just 12 years old.

The Hoosiers’ receiving tandem of Elijah Sarratt and Omar Cooper Jr. can tilt the game in Indiana’s favor. Neither’s production, as gauged by pure receiving yards, stands out. But they show up when it matters most. Sarratt’s 15 receiving touchdowns lead the country, while Cooper’s 13 rank third. Mendoza clearly looks for both in the red zone and for big plays.

Football coaching is a small world. It is common for coaches on opposing sidelines to know one another or have worked with one another. The defensive coordinators in today's national championship game are an extremely clear example of how close friendships pause with a game on the line.

From 2019 to 2021, Indiana defensive coordinator Bryant Haines and Miami counterpart Corey Hetherman worked together as part of Curt Cignetti's staff at James Madison. When Haines got married, Hetherman was his best man. This week, Hetherman told reporters, the communication has been minimal, little more than a "good luck" text message to each other.

"We’ve stayed very close because I think we are very similar in our beliefs in football and life and everything else that we handle," Hetherman said. "We’ll remain close. Obviously this week it’s one of those things. He’s on the other sideline. There’s been times this year, last year I coached against close friends. You just don’t pick up the phone that week."

Nicole Auerbach and Joshua Perry explore what Miami and Indiana's CFP national championship matchup means for the ACC, the CFP selection committee and college football at large.

I love both teams’ trajectories and paths to get to this point, but there’s no comparison in the history of college sports for what the Hoosiers are trying to do in a sport in which they’ve basically never had success.

For so, so long, college football was dominated by blue bloods; it was set up in a way that was largely designed to keep Davids far away from Goliath, at least when it came to determining champions. There was never really a path for a team like Indiana to do this. There was never a path for a team like Indiana to attract enough talent to compete with the sport’s elite teams. Now there is, thanks to NIL/revenue sharing and transfer rules that allow players to have immediate eligibility.

Other teams have flipped rosters quickly and seen their win totals increase year over year, but Indiana is doing this so much better and so much faster than everyone else. It’s truly the dawn of a new era. I really think an Indiana national title would be a seen as a clear dividing line between college football’s past and its new world order.

The Indiana coach took the podium in his first news conference in November 2023 and was asked why he could turn around one of the worst programs in history. His response is now legendary.

"I win. Google me."

The 2001 Miami Hurricanes might have had the best defense in college football history. That group had 11 players who would go on to become first-round picks in the NFL — household names like Ed Reed, Sean Taylor, Antrel Rolle, Jonathan Vilma and Vince Wilfork.

The 2025 Hurricanes defense would make that team proud. In 15 games this season, Miami has compiled 47 sacks, the most in the country, and 16 interceptions. Now a new generation of Hurricanes are making names for themselves. Defensive linemen Rueben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor have combined for 19 sacks just themselves. Freshman defensive back Bryce Fitzgerald (six interceptions) and senior transfer Jakobe Thomas (five) have a boatload of picks.

Miami will be chasing Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza all night, but expect to hear some of their names on future Sundays, too.

The Hoosiers' signal-caller, a transfer from Cal, earned the Heisman Trophy as the best player in college football this season. Over the course of Indiana's undefeated season, he threw for 2,980 yards and a national-best 33 touchdown passes while also running for six scores.

Heisman Trophy winner’s emotional tribute to his family

01:14

Nicole Auerbach and Joshua Perry reveal their predictions for the CFP national championship between Miami and Indiana, with full confidence in Curt Cignetti and the Hoosiers to cap off a dream season.