Urban Meyer names college football program that can win the national championship

In a social media post, FOX analyst Urban Meyer contemplated whether a college football squad could win the national title and dropped a resounding, "Hell yeah, they can." Meyer was clearly preparing for FOX's Big Noon Kickoff when he spoke briefly on the Indiana Hoosiers, who are headed for an intriguing battle with a rallying UCLA squad. Asked about the biggest stories in college football, Meyer brought up UCLA's three-game winning streak with a new coaching staff and then moved on to discuss Indiana.

Meyer's Take

Indiana-- can they win it all? Hell yeah, they can. I'm going to say, Indiana's shame, losingest program in college football history, crowds that won't show up? But this team is legit.
Urban Meyer

Indiana's Impressive Season

It has been a long and strange path for the No. 2 Indiana Hoosiers. Indiana had never won 10 games in a season in program history and had not finished in the top 10 in a major poll since 1967. But Curt Cignetti ended that path and has the 7-0 Hoosiers thinking about a potential national championship.

Indiana's excellence rests largely with a potent offense. Cignetti's group is fourth in the nation in scoring offense (43.9 points per game) and seventh in yardage (497.3 yards per game). Indiana leads the nation in QB rating and is 13th in rushing (226 ypg). The Hoosiers connect on 54.9% of third-down attempts (fourth best nationally). QB Fernando Mendoza is a genuine Heisman Trophy contender.

The Hoosiers blasted a ranked Illinois team 63-10 and outlasted now-No. 6 Oregon on the road 30-20. There are no more ranked foes remaining on the regular season slate for IU, which has a 94.5% shot at the College Football Playoff per ESPN's FPI.

An Unimposing History

That said, IU history has not been golden. As Meyer noted, the Hoosiers have the most losses in NCAA history, 715. Indiana shared a Big Ten title in 1967 and otherwise, won one in 1945. The last Indiana bowl victory came in 1991, and the Hoosiers went 14 years between bowl appearances in the 1990s and 2000s. Indiana is now setting attendance records, but throughout the program's weaker years, a half-full stadium was a common site.

Indiana's dismal past contrasts abruptly with a brilliant present and a promising future. Cignetti's immediate turnaround of the program makes it clear that virtually anyone can be competitive in modern college football. Urban Meyer's rubber stamp of IU's title hopes is just another step of respect for the former Big Ten dormats who are now having seasons to remember.