So now everyone has hope. And some have questions. Such as: “We have talent, tradition, generations of fans, a mega-stadium, a coach and staff who are paid to win championships, an NIL fund that could buy us a small-market MLB team, and we can’t match Curt freaking Cignetti and the Indiana freaking Hoosiers? How?!”

Cignetti is the marvel of his profession, and the scourge. There are a lot of coaches in this sport who, if pressed by their superiors, could not come up with tangible explanations for why Cignetti went 16-0 this season and they didn’t come close. The truth serum answer would be: “He’s better at coaching football than I am.”

There’s no guarantee that Indiana is about to become an Alabama-like dynasty. Yes, that’s a real sentence typed out in 2026. Even if Cignetti can harness consistent dominance in this era, over more than a decade like his former boss Nick Saban, that leaves championships for others to win. More programs than ever, by far, can hold such aspirations.

And some, from the top of the administration to the most casual fan, should feel terrible right now.

I’m not talking about Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State and that tier. They may be upset that they can’t hoard talent and have scout teams teeming with five-stars anymore, but boo hoo. No one cares. Suck it up. You’re still very much a “have.”

In fact, if you’ve won a national title in the past 20 years, you don’t qualify. You’ve had joy in the smartphone era. Cry yourself to sleep with whatever you recorded that night. The college football outposts that should feel worst are the ones that have put in the effort and resources over an extended period, have nothing to show for it and just watched Indiana zoom on past to grab the checkered flag.

On this day of celebration, renewal and reflection, let’s talk about those poor suckers.

Penn State

This fall will mark the 40th anniversary of the Nittany Lions’ last national championship. It will mark around a year since Penn State found out that, for all its advantages and decades of excellence, it had no shot of hiring the Indiana coach away from Indiana — a Pennsylvanian, no less. This after firing the coach who had Penn State humming along like a blue blood, except when it came to winning the biggest games. Penn State was slow to the NIL era, but it was caught up in 2025, and it went 7-6.

Now Matt Campbell is in from Iowa State, and he’s an excellent coach. He’s also a “less with more” coach, and sometimes that doesn’t translate as well as hoped to places with all the resources and expectations (see: Dan Mullen, Mississippi State to Florida). When it became clear this season that Iowa State was not going to reach its preseason Big 12 title goal, Campbell was asked about it and said: “Not me. That was never my goal. My goal has always been one thing, and that is to become the best version of ourselves that we can become. … and really, my challenge for this year’s team was to become the greatest ‘together team’ in the history of Iowa State football.”

Cignetti, on the other hand: “Yeah, let’s just win every frigging game.”

Tennessee

The Vols emerged from nearly two decades of industry-leading dysfunction — which didn’t shake its fans, which is an incredible story all its own — to regain respectability under coach Josh Heupel and AD Danny White. Tennessee has double-digit wins and top-10 finishes in two of the past four seasons, making the 12-team CFP in 2024 and losing at Ohio State. Its previous two top-10 finishes came in 2001 and 1999. Those came right after the last national championship, capping the 1998 season and kicking off the BCS era.

That’s good, but the 2025 season wasn’t, even with last-second quarterback replacement Joey Aguilar (in for post-spring defector Nico Iamaleava) putting up big numbers. Heupel, previously a scapegoat at Oklahoma and not generally a sacrificer of coaches, fired defensive coordinator Tim Banks to bring in Jim Knowles. He struck out on portal quarterbacks. It’s plug a leak/find a new leak, and stands in such contrast to IU’s brand of sound, consistent, powerful football. And while Vols fans are unshakeable, they may be unkind to Heupel if he can’t figure things out with a young quarterback in 2026.

USC

Remember, Heupel was long presumed to be Bob Stoops’ choice as successor in Oklahoma, having won him a national championship and all as a quarterback. Instead, Stoops fired Heupel as co-offensive coordinator after the 2014 season, brought in Lincoln Riley from East Carolina and handed the program off to him two years later. The hyperbole that accompanied Riley’s departure for USC, and the extent to which he has failed to deliver, are magnified by the exploits of Big Ten “rival” Indiana (which USC last played in 1982).

Cignetti is reaching the Playoff with Kurtis Rourke and winning it all with Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza. Riley is losing eight games in two seasons with Heisman winner Caleb Williams and 10 more in two seasons with a combination of Miller Moss and Jayden Maiava. The days of Pete Carroll, Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush (last title: 2004 season) feel distant.

Miami

The “U” is back. The “U” will be back. But how many chances like that will the “U” get? The reality is, Indiana left the door wide open with a false start and a roughing the passer, and was in a shaky position to strike back on a last possession because of two timeouts it had to use earlier. That is, if Miami took its time, took what was there and moved into position for close shots at the end zone. Carson Beck got greedy and misread a safety. Great run, but few things are worse than getting that close and not finishing.

Mario Cristobal has answered some questions and will have stacked teams ahead. But that’s no guarantee of more runs this deep. Also, if there’s any such thing as football karma, it might just get Miami after the Duke quarterback situation.

Texas

The Longhorns are just on the other side of that 20-year cutoff — if you thought Monday’s game was good, go back on YouTube and watch Texas 41, USC 38 for all the marbles, from Jan. 4, 2006 at the Rose Bowl. And wonder, among other things, how Vince Young isn’t getting fitted for a gold jacket right around now.

Texas has more money and talent than anyone, with a purported genius coaching, so it’s galling enough to see anyone else win it all. But Indiana? A two-bit basketball school? Steve Sarkisian has lifted the Longhorns to their highest consistent level in 15 years, but a title in 2026 is the only acceptable outcome. That was true before, but it’s extra extra true now.

Oregon

A title may be as likely for the Ducks, Stewart Mandel’s early preseason No. 1 team, as anyone in 2026. This is the best program without one, a program with limitless financial support and a 21st century tradition of excellence. It seems only a matter of time, maybe not much time, before Dan Lanning gets the Ducks to the pinnacle. But imagine telling him, or any Oregon fan, that not only would the Hoosiers come into Eugene and get a win this season, they’d put a 56-22 semifinal thumping on the Ducks — and that it would actually be worse than the final score. Cignetti has handed out many a humiliation in the past two years, none as eye-popping as that one.

Notre Dame

Like Oregon, Notre Dame should feel great about its future with its young coach (Marcus Freeman) in place and a lot of momentum. But we’re talking 1988 on this title drought. Like Miami, we’re talking about a team that just got all the way to the final game (last season vs. Ohio State) and doesn’t know when it will return. The start to that run was a 27-17 Playoff win over Indiana, another game that was worse than the final score and a thorough outclassing on both lines of scrimmage. How, a year later, did Indiana become an all-time wagon while Notre Dame didn’t get into the tournament?

Rarely is a team other than Notre Dame the best college football team in the state of Indiana. The Hoosiers are the best team in all the land, while the Fighting Irish are making headlines for skipping a bowl game and co-failing with USC to keep that rivalry from an interruption. That won’t do. The Cignatty should have urgency echoing through the halls in South Bend.