The No.7 ranked Indiana Hoosiers pulled the biggest dub of the Curt Cignetti era against Dan Lanning’s No. 3-ranked Oregon Ducks with a 30-20 victory. What makes this crazier is that they went on the road and beat the Ducks at Autzen Stadium, which was practically impossible under Dan Lanning’s era. Nobody picked the Indiana Hoosiers to win this matchup, especially the College GameDay crew, except Pat McAfee himself. Heading into the game, the entire GameDay crew, including Nick Saban, Desmond Howard, Sabrina Ionescu and Kirk Herbstreit, had picked the Oregon Ducks to beat the Indiana Hoosiers—and for a good reason.

Curt Cignetti was famously known for not winning against a top-10 program. Last season, in their 10-2 campaign, two of their losses came against ranked programs such as the Ohio State Buckeyes in the second half of the season and the national runner-up Notre Dame in the playoffs. Considering all that, it was a no-brainer to pick the Oregon Ducks over the Indiana Hoosiers. And folks, that’s exactly why Fernando Mendoza clutched up and grabbed the biggest win of Curt Cignetti’s tenure. Pat McAfee and Fernando Mendoza are having the last laugh.

On October 11, in a post-game on-field interview, Fernando Mendoza gave a big shout-out to Pat McAfee for believing in him and picking them over the Oregon Ducks: “Quick shout-out to my guy Pat. Also want to give a quick shout-out to my guy Pat McAfee for shouting us out. Jesus friends, my guy Steve Levy, and also Boston Connor. Let’s go Hoosiers. God bless.” Pat McAfee reposted on his X with total frat king energy: “HOO HOO HOO We LOVE what you’re doing for this state brother Fernando Mendoza Let’s GOOO @BostonConnr, the Hoosiers are UNDEFEATED.” 

This game was special for many reasons; before this game, Indiana had only one win in 73 tries against top-five teams and had lost 46 straight games to such opponents. This time, the Hoosiers outscored Oregon 20-10 in the second half. Fernando Mendoza out-balled Heisman favorite Dante Moore and led the way for Indiana, completing 20 of 31 passes for 215 yards, with 1 touchdown and one interception.

His favorite target, Elijah Sarratt, caught eight passes for 121 yards and a touchdown, making big plays when the team needed them most. Indiana’s offense totaled 326 yards, compared to Oregon’s 267, and they had more first downs (23 to 14), proving that Curt ‘google me’ ball is actually legit. Dan Lanning and No.3 ranked Oregon Ducks had no chance to flex their dominance throughout the game. The Oregon Ducks’ stock is about to take a quick nosedive. The Indiana Hoosiers are most likely to make a jump all the way to the top 2 with the next release of the AP Poll.

What changed the game for the Hoosiers?

The game had its ups and downs. Indiana started strong with a defensive stop and an early field goal. Oregon answered with a long touchdown, but Indiana kept fighting and tied the game before halftime. A surprising moment came right before the break when Indiana’s kicker Brendan Franke, who had never made a college field goal before, drilled a 58-yarder to give his team a 13-10 lead at halftime. That kick became one of the MVP of the night.

In the second half, Oregon tied the game again, but Indiana didn’t back down. Roman Hemby (RB) scored twice on the ground, and Mendoza connected with Sarratt for another key touchdown. Even after throwing a pick-six, Mendoza stayed calm and led another scoring drive late in the fourth quarter.

Indiana’s defense sealed the deal with 2 picks by Louis Moore, and when the clock hit zero, the Hoosiers celebrated one of their biggest wins ever. Fans and players flooded the field, chanting and singing in honor of coach Curt Cignetti, marking a night Indiana football won’t forget.