Former Wisconsin Badgers coach was secret weapon for Indiana Hoosiers championship run

The Indiana Hoosiers wouldn't have won the national championship if not for the critical work of a former Wisconsin Badgers coach.

Bob Bostad was a key part of the Badgers' success under Bret Bielema and Paul Chryst, and he made the same kind of impact for their Big Ten rival this year.

The Wisconsin-native served as the offensive line coach and run game coordinator for Indiana for the past three seasons, helping develop a group of front that protected quarterback Fernando Mendoza well throughout his Heisman season.

Kirk Herbstreit can’t stop gushing about Indiana’s offensive line after the Hoosiers kicked Alabama’s arse. The O-line coach? That would be Bob Bostad, Pardeeville native and FORMER #Wisconsin O-line coach. Key word there is FORMER.
— Tom Oates (@TomOatesWSJ) January 2, 2026

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Their blockers came up big in the national championship game, limiting star Miami pass rusher Ruben Bain to just one sack and two quarterback hurries on 34 pass rushing snaps, according to PFF.

Mendoza was under pressure on only six of his 21 pass attempts, despite being blitzed 10 times. They also sprung free a pair of explosive runs by the Hoosiers' running backs.

It was the same quality of offensive line play that Wisconsin was used to under Bostad's tutelage.

Bostad's Badgers legacy

He held the run game coordinator role for the Badgers from 2006 to 2011, helping produce NFL offensive linemen that included Joe Thomas, Gabe Carimi, Kevin Zeitler and Peter Konz among others.

Bostad left to coach in the NFL for a few seasons before eventually coming back to Wisconsin under Chryst, this time as inside linebackers coach from 2017 to 2021.

He again produced a bevy of draft picks that included Jack Cichy, Leon Jacobs, Ryan Connelly, Zack Baun and Leo Chenal.

How does Indiana have 3 RBs over 5 YPC on the season? It’s because their Offensive Line plays like this ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/0vOTnez4mk
— LandonTengwall (@LandonTengwall) January 16, 2026

Related: Badgers starting offensive lineman transfers to Indiana to reunite with former Wisconsin OL coach

Bostad coached offensive line at Wisconsin for one more season in 2022 before Chryst was fired, so he jumped to Indiana and hasn't looked back. Even in that one year, he helped develop future NFL starters Joe Tippmann and Tanor Bortolini.

Now the Hoosiers look to have multiple future professional players on their offensive line thanks to the ex-Badgers coach.

Since he left the school, UW has gone through three offensive line coaches in four years, with Fickell hoping that newcomer Eric Mateos can provide some stability that Wisconsin has lacked without Bostad.

It's hard for Badgers fans to watch Indiana enjoying that stability instead.

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