A notable transfer class helped Indiana win 11 games for the first time in school history and make a surprise appearance in the college football playoff this season.

It appears coach Curt Cignetti is attempting to recreate that magic in 2025, landing a pair of notable offensive weapons through the portal ahead of Christmas.

On Monday, the Hoosiers landed Maryland running back Roman Hemby, who rushed for 607 yards and six touchdowns this year and has 2,347 yards and 22 touchdowns on the ground in his career.

He has led the Terps in rushing in each of the last three seasons while earning All-Big Ten Honorable Mention honors twice and being named a Freshman All-American.

Henby will compete with senior Kaelon Black and UAB transfer Lee Beebe Jr. for snaps in the spring.

The Hoosiers got more good news on Tuesday, landing Cal quarterback Fernando Mendoza via the transfer portal, 247 Sports reported.

The 6-foot-5, 225-pound signal-caller has made 19 starts with the Golden Bears over the last two seasons, completing 66 percent of his passes for 4,712 yards with 30 touchdowns and 16 interceptions.

He has also rushed for 197 yards and four touchdowns during his time in Berkeley.

He is the older brother of IU true freshman quarterback Alberto Mendoza. His arrival in Bloomington is huge for the team that needs to replace Kurtis Rourke.

Georgia, Missouri, and UCLA were the other schools that were aggressively pursuing Mendoza, according to 247 Sports.

Mendoza will be the favorite to start at QB next season after top backup Tayven Jackson entered the transfer portal this week.

Indiana lost to Notre Dame in the first round of the first 12-team playoff on Dec. 20. The Hoosiers open the 2025 season against Old Dominion on Aug. 30.

Today is the 20th anniversary of incapacitating snowstorms in Indiana. What are the chances of a white Christmas in Indianapolis in 2024?

What is a white Christmas?

It need not snow Dec. 25 to fit the weather service’s definition of a white Christmas: There just needs to be at least 1 inch of snow on the ground. A trace amount of snow does not count. On average, about 38% of the contiguous 48 states has an inch of snow on the ground on Christmas Day, according to 21 years of data compiled by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Will it snow in Central Indiana this Christmas?

On Christmas Eve,  there’s a 20% chance of rain after 1 p.m., with patchy fog before noon, according to the National Weather Service. The high is expected to be near 41 degrees. There’s a 50% chance of rain at night, mainly after 1 a.m.

It will be a mild Christmas Day. Expect rain, mainly before 1 p.m. The high will be near 42 degrees. At night there’s a 20% chain of rain before 1 a.m., with the low around 39 degrees.

Indianapolis this year experienced its third warmest fall on record, according to a recent report by NWS. Average temperatures hovered near 60 degrees, roughly four degrees above normal.

Record-breaking pre-Christmas snowstorms’ 20th anniversary

Christmas 2024 will be quite a bit different from Christmas Day twenty years ago when pre-Christmas back-to-back snowstorms dumped a total of more than two feet of snow on central Indiana, shut down highways and resulted in Blackhawk helicopters being resued to find stranded motorists.

According to the National Weather Service, two separate snowstorms started in the Central Plains and eventually hit southern and central Indiana on December 22 and December 23. They brought record or near record snowfall to parts of south central and east central Indiana and significant snowfall to the rest of central Indiana. 

Snowfall totals exceeded 20 inches across most of southeastern Indiana with Seymour reporting a two-day record of 29 inches. The area bounded by Vincennes, Terre Haute, Muncie and Kokomo saw a general eight to 12 inches with snowfall amounts diminishing to just a few inches northwest towards Lafayette. 

The weather closed Interstates 64, 65 and 74 in various locations across the state, crippled Interstate 70, and caused a train derailment and collision in southern Indiana. 

One hundred National Guardsmen were called out in some areas, particularly in those areas where motorists were stranded. Two Blackhawk helicopters and 47 Humvees were used in searching for stranded motorists.

Snowfall: Are we seeing fewer white Christmases due to climate change?

What is the average temperature on Christmas Day in Indianapolis?

Average highs across the Indianapolis area on Christmas Day are in the mid-30s, according to the NWS, with a normal high of 38.

Average low temperatures range from the low-20s with a normal temperature of 22.

IndyStar reporter John Tufts and USA TODAY reporters Doyle Rice and Elizabeth Weise

Contact IndyStar reporter Cheryl V. Jackson at cheryl.jackson@indystar.com or 317-444-6264. Follow her on X.com:@cherylvjackson or Bluesky: @cherylvjackson.bsky.social.