Josh Pate Makes Stunning Statement About One College Football Playoff Contender

Indiana Football has coach Curt Cignetti during the 110th running of the Indianapolis 500. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Indiana Hoosiers are one of the greatest stories in the history of college football.

Indiana Has Become College Football's Ultimate Cinderella Story

The Hoosiers have historically been one of the worst programs in the sport. According to College Football Reference, they've gone an abysmal 509-692-38 in their history. However, things changed when the program decided to hire Curt Cignitti from James Madison before the 2024 season.

Cigntetti has brought new life into the dormant program. He instantly made them a contender. In Year 1, he led the Hoosiers to their first double-digit win season, going 11-2 and making the College Football Playoff for the first time in school history. While that was a nice story, no one really bought into it.

That was until they did even better in 2025. The Hoosiers did even better, going 16-0 and winning the school's first national championship. But it wasn't just team success; star quarterback Fernando Mendoza became the first Indiana player to win the Heisman Trophy and the first to be taken No. 1 in the NFL draft since 1938.

Indiana's Josh Hoover (10) during the Indiana football spring game at Memorial Stadium on Thursday, April 23, 2026. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Josh Pate Says Another Championship Would Rewrite History

Since Indiana isn't a traditional power, many are wondering if they will come back down to earth and become the Indiana that many grew up watching. But what if they don't? What if, instead, they do exactly what they did this last season, win the national championship, and quarterback Josh Hoover wins the Heisman Trophy?

Well, if that happens, Josh Pate revealed on "Josh Pate's College Football Show," they would become the greatest story in the history of the sport.

"I'm already of the opinion that you could argue that last year's Indiana season was the greatest accomplishment in the history of college football," Pate said.

"Even if you disagree, you would probably grant me that it belongs in the conversation. If they run that thing undefeated again and they win a national title again and Cignetti has another Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback, then it's the greatest story in the history of college football."

The Hoosiers Have a Path to Another Playoff Run

The Hoosiers do have a manageable schedule this upcoming season. They face the Ohio State Buckeyes and USC Trojans at home, while traveling to the Washington Huskies and the Michigan Wolverines.

Those are the four toughest games on the schedule, but all four are winnable. Even if Indiana were to slip up on one or two of those, they could make the College Football Playoff.

Indiana's rise under Cignetti has already changed the perception of what is possible in college football. A second straight national championship would move the Hoosiers from an incredible Cinderella story to one of the most dominant and unlikely runs in the history of the sport.

With a manageable schedule and another talented roster, Indiana has a chance to prove that 2025 was not an anomaly but the beginning of a new era in Bloomington.