'That is a legitimate National Championship contender': Joel Klatt all in on Indiana following win at Oregon

‘Fraud’. ‘One hit wonder’. ‘Overrated’. Everything that went into the national discussion around Indiana football over the last year has officially hit a wall. Following Indiana’s win at No. 3 Oregon on Saturday, the talk has shifted nationally, recognizing Indiana football for what it is — a real national championship threat.

After an 11-2 season in Curt Cignetti’s first year in Bloomington — and both losses coming to Ohio State and Notre Dame — 2025 signaled a significant season for the Hoosiers and Cignetti. Was 2024 just a good story, or was that the new standard and expectation for the Indiana football program.

Saturday’s win signals it’s the latter.

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“Let’s be very honest about this game — the score was not indicative of the game played,” FOX Sports college football analyst Joel Klatt said on Monday. “Indiana beat Oregon up. They won the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and fundamentally they were just better than Oregon. Their players were excellent and continue to be underrated.”

Klatt has long been involved in the national discourse of Indiana football. Last year he was more in on the Hoosiers than most. This year, however, he was unsure just how good this Indiana team could be.

(On3+): Curt Cignetti Quick Hitters — ‘Rip off the rearview mirror’, team mindset, Fernando Mendoza, development of Isaiah Jones

Saturday answered those questions for him — in a big way.

“Close your eyes for a moment and wonder to yourself for a second that the game we just saw, there was a different logo than Indiana. If that was Penn State that did that, Ohio State that had done that or Michigan that had done that we would be sitting here basically crowning that team, ‘Oh this is the absolute national championship favorite’. Nobody does that to Oregon, not in that building,” he said. “And Indiana, all they get from us is, ‘oh they’re for real’. No, they are more than for real. And I’m guilty as charged. I’ll always tell you when I’m wrong and this is one of these moments. I’ve been wrong about Indiana all season long and waiting for the other shoe to drop and it’s not dropping. That is a legitimate national championship contender.”

Indiana’s 30-20 win over Oregon was significant, yes. The monkey is off the Hoosiers’ back in a big way. Winning on the road is hard and IU did that at Iowa. Backing it up on the road against Oregon, a team that had the longest home winning streak in the nation, and it shows just how talented and legit this Indiana team is.

Fernando Mendoza isn’t just one of the top quarterbacks in the country — he’s one of the most impactful players. Elijah Sarratt and Omar Cooper have proven to be one of the top wide receiving duos in the nation. Defensively? Indiana just held Oregon to its lowest yardage total since 2021. Players like Aiden Fisher, Mikail Kamara, D’Angelo Ponds, Louis Moore, Isaiah Jones and others highlight one of the toughest defenses for the second straight season.

Indiana turns the page on a massive win, however, and goes full steam ahead into the final six games of the season — all of which will have Indiana as the favorite.

So for now, Saturday’s win signals much more than just an ‘arrival’ to the nation. But, Indiana has to continue to back it up.

“Rip off the rearview mirror, so to speak. Total focus on Michigan State,” Cignetti said on Monday. “I think the key now is our response coming off of this game. But that’s always the key. Right? And this team has met every challenge up to this point, because they’ve been hungry and humble, prepared properly and put it on the field, which requires commitment, discipline, sacrifice, you know, eliminating the noise and clutter, controlling the controllables, and putting themselves in the best position for success, because when you prepare properly, it breeds confidence and brings out your best.”

Controlling the controllables has been key for Indiana through the first 19 games under Cignetti.

But, it’s evident that this Indiana team is in the group of real contenders who can beat anyone at any given time.

“Their team is good enough to win a national championship. Point blank. Indiana is a legitimate national championship contender,” Klatt added. “They have great quarterback play, they’re balanced, they play great defense and have an excellent coaching staff.”

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