Indiana is set to kick off its 2025 season at 2:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, August 30, at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington against Old Dominion.
The Hoosiers are coming off of a historic 2024 season in which the program reached 11 wins for the first time, received its first ever bid in the College Football Playoff and reclaimed the Old Oaken Bucket trophy after a 66-0 win over rival Purdue.
A handful of key pieces including quarterback Kurtis Rourke, nose tackle CJ West, linebacker Jailin Walker, cornerback
Jamier Johnson, and running backs Justice Ellison and Ty Son Lawton departed in the offseason, with most exiting due to exhausted eligibility and the NFL Draft.
The program reloaded in the transfer portal, snagging former California quarterback Fernando Mendoza, running backs Lee Beebe and Roman Hemby, and building out the defensive line.
I’d say expectations remain high, but the Hoosiers entered 2024 with very little expectations, at least externally, and blew just about every projection out of the water. Last year’s team set a new bar for success in Bloomington and most projections have the 2025 group reaching that, for the most part.
The Hoosiers rank in at No. 20 in the AP’s preseason poll. That ultimately means nothing, of course, but it’s a far cry from where 2024’s group was at this time last year.
Here’s a handful of goals the program aspires for and how the Hoosiers’ odds are looking, per FanDuel Sportsbook.
Big Ten Championship? Not likely, but!
The Hoosiers have the sixth-best odds to win the Big Ten in 2025 at +3000, per FanDuel Sportsbook, trailing the likes of Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan and Oregon, among others.
That particular goal is always going to be a longshot in a conference with some of the sport’s titans. But Indiana is tied with Nebraska and has better odds than teams like Illinois, Iowa, Washington and Wisconsin. Overall a good spot for the program to be.
#9Windiana? Again? Perhaps
Indiana at long last reached nine wins last season, finally fulfilling the viral internet campaign initiated by this blog’s forefathers and the good folks at Homefield Apparel. For 2025, FanDuel has them right at o/u 8.5 wins on the season, with the under favored at -128.
It’s feasible, but the Hoosiers have to avoid losing a game they shouldn’t and manage to pull off a win they shouldn’t, something this program has yet to show, albeit in an extremely limited sample size.
Another Playoff appearance? Apparently not
FanDuel has Indiana with decently long odds to make a second consecutive appearance in the College Football Playoff, with “yes” to making the field coming in at +610 and “no” sitting at -1000.
It’s understandable, Indiana has a less favorable schedule this year and, on paper, lacks some of the depth that made it so stout in 2024. But Curt Cignetti has defied the odds before.
Hoosier Heisman?
Kurtis Rourke was one of the best quarterbacks in the country last year. Without his steady hand, Indiana has turned to the transfer portal and Fernando Mendoza to fill in the void.
If you’ve been paying attention this offseason you’ll already know that Mendoza has impressed. He’s made more than a few wow throws in practice and has the kind of mobility that Rourke lacked. He enters 2025 at +5000 to win the Heisman Trophy, per FanDuel.
