Michigan
When did Big Ten — beside Michigan or Ohio State — last win national championship?
Joe Buck on whether Indiana football coach Curt Cignetti would go to the NFL
Buck says never say never, but he would be surprised.
When Indiana football takes on Miami in the final game of the 2025-26 College Football Playoff on Monday, Jan. 19, the Hoosiers have a shot at making history by winning their first-ever national championship.
But the Hoosiers aren’t the only party associated with the 2026 CFP Championship game that could make some history.
Should Curt Cignetti’s squad come out victorious, it would further extend the Big Ten’s recent dominance in college football with a third consecutive national championship — something only the SEC has replicated in the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) and CFP eras.
The Big Ten is 10-5 in the postseason this season, including 3-1 against SEC programs.
To make its first national championship appearance, Indiana put together two dominant performances over No. 9 Alabama (Rose Bowl) and No. 5 Oregon (Peach Bowl). The Hoosiers’ 35-point and 34-point wins over the Crimson Tide and Ducks, respectively, both rank among the 10 biggest blowouts in CFP history.
Indiana also has a chance to extend the Big Ten’s championship reach from beyond the conference’s two historically dominant programs, Ohio State and Michigan. In fact, if Indiana is able to win the CFP national championship, it would mark the first time the conference claimed a championship, without the Buckeyes or Wolverines, in seven decades.
Here’s what to know:
Who was last Big Ten football team to win national championship?
Ohio State is the most recent Big Ten program to win a college football national championship game, which came just last season with a win over Notre Dame in the 2025 CFP Championship game.
The Buckeyes’ win over the Fighting Irish gave the Big Ten back-to-back CFP titles, with Michigan beating Washington in the national championship game the year prior.
When was last Big Ten championship without Michigan, Ohio State?
Excluding Michigan and Ohio State, the last time a Big Ten team won a national championship was when the AP and UPI polls were still the two largest selectors to award titles.
That came in 1965, when Michigan State went 10-1, finishing the season with a 14-12 loss to UCLA in the Rose Bowl Game. The Spartans split the national championship title with Alabama, taking the UPI poll while Alabama won the AP poll.
The Spartans also have the most recent championship — aside from Ohio State and Michigan — in which it claimed both the AP and Coaches/UPI poll. That was in 1952, when Michigan State finished 9-0.
Teams to win championships before Big Ten admittance
The Big Ten has several programs that won national championships, but which occurred at a time when those programs were not members of the conference.
Here they are, in reverse chronological order:
Former conference affiliation listed in parentheses
- 2004: USC (Pac-10)
- 2003: USC (Pac-10)
- 1997: Nebraska (Big 12)
- 1995: Nebraska (Big 12)
- 1994: Nebraska (Big 12)
- 1991: Washington (Pac-10)
- 1986: Penn State (independent)
- 1982: Penn State (independent)
- 1978: USC (Pac-10)
- 1974: USC (Pac-8)
- 1972: USC (Pac-8)
- 1971: Nebraska (Big 8)
- 1970: Nebraska (Big 8)
- 1967: USC (Pac-8)
Has Indiana football ever won a national championship?
No, Indiana has never won a national championship in college football. The Hoosiers are appearing in their first-ever college football national championship game, both in the BCS and CFP eras.
As noted by the Indianapolis Star — part of the USA TODAY Network — Indiana is looking to become the seventh different athletic program to bring a national championship home to Bloomington. On top of men’s basketball’s five titles, Indiana has won eight men’s soccer titles, six men’s swimming and diving championships, three men’s cross country titles, and one each in both men’s track and field and wrestling in 1932.
Big Ten football CFP history
The Big Ten enters Monday’s game with a 3-1 record in the national championship game, with the lone loss coming in the 2020-21 CFP when Ohio State lost by 52-24 points to Alabama.
A win for Indiana on Monday against Miami would give the Big Ten its first three-championship win streak in the CFP era. Here’s a breakdown of how the Big Ten has fared in the national championship since the start of the CFP in 2014:
- 2014-15 CFP: Ohio State beats Oregon
- 2020-21 CFP: Ohio State loses to Alabama
- 2023-24 CFP: Michigan beats Washington
- 2024-25 CFP: Ohio State beats Notre Dame