Indiana Football Rises to No. 2 in AP Poll: What It Means for Hoosiers

Indiana football moved to its highest ranking in program history once more in both the Associated Press Poll and the US LBM Coaches Poll.

Indiana defensive lineman Stephen Daley celebrates after a play Oct. 18, 2025, versus Michigan State at Memorial Stadium. | Robert Goddin-Imagn Images

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Indiana football continues to reach unprecedented heights this season.

The Hoosiers (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten) rose one spot in both the Week 9 Associated Press Top 25 Poll and US LBM Coaches Poll and are now ranked No. 2 nationally, the highest spot mark in program history. Indiana received six first-place votes, up from three votes the week before.

Indiana took the spot from Miami, which lost Friday night at home to now-No. 19 Louisville.

What it means for Indiana

After earning just their second-ever win against an AP top five team Oct. 11 at Oregon, the Hoosiers overcame human nature and a collection of outside distractions to surge past Michigan State 38-13 on Saturday.

Indiana is 7-0 for the second consecutive season, but the Hoosiers were only ranked No. 13 in the Week 9 AP poll last year. With resume-padding wins over Illinois and Iowa serving as cornerstones around its win at Oregon, Indiana has proven its legitimacy in Year 2 under coach Curt Cignetti.

Now, national respect has followed.

But Indiana redshirt junior quarterback Fernando Mendoza said postgame Saturday the Hoosiers aren't concerned about rankings — at least not yet.

"Personally, and I know a lot of my teammates can attest to this, although it's great that we have a super high ranking at the moment, the rankings don't matter until the College Football Playoff picture comes out," Mendoza said. "Or they don't matter until they're actually put in place for the College Football Playoff.

"So, we're focused on one game at a time right now, executing every single play, every single drive, and every single game. So at the end, when the College Football Playoff picture comes out, we can be in a good position and put the Hoosiers in a good position there."

Indiana returns to action against UCLA (3-4, 3-1 Big Ten) at noon Saturday inside Memorial Stadium. FOX's pre-game show, Big Noon Kickoff, will be in Bloomington for the game.

The Hoosiers won't face another team currently ranked or receiving votes until the postseason. Of note, Oregon rose two spots to No. 6 in the AP poll, and Illinois is No. 23.

Here's an updated look at the Associated Press Top 25, which contains five Big Ten teams and features Ohio State at the top.

1. Ohio State
2. Indiana
3. Texas A&M
4. Alabama
5. Georgia
6. Oregon
7. Georgia Tech
8. Ole Miss
9. Miami (Fla.)
10. Vanderbilt
11. BYU
12. Notre Dame
13. Oklahoma
14. Texas Tech
15. Missouri
16. Virginia
17. Tennessee
18. USF
19. Louisville
20. LSU
21. Cincinnati
22. Texas
23. Illinois
24. Arizona State
25. Michigan