My Two Cents: Four Years Later, 'Brand Bias' Comes Full Circle For Indiana Football

Lots of people are taking Indiana's record-setting start with a grain of salt, but it's not the first time. The same thing happened in 2020, and it took a beatdown of Michigan — their first in 24 tries — to change the narrative. The two teams meet again on Saturday in Bloomington, with little ol' Indiana a two-touchdown favorite.

Tom Brew | Nov 9, 2024

Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Michael Penix Jr. (9) prepares to throw a pass against Michigan in 2020. / Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

In this story:

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — It's amazing how the more things change, the more they stay the same in college football. When it says Indiana on the front of the jersey, earning the proper respect does not always come easy.

Even this year, that's true. The Hoosiers — the worst program in college football history with 713 losses — are 9-0 for the first time ever. They've won every game by 14 points or more and lead the nation in scoring margin, a stunning plus-296 in nine games.

Yet still, when the first 12-team College Football Playoff bracket came out, they were the No. 9 seed, and if they had started today, the Hoosiers would have had to play a first-round game on the road at No. 8 Tennessee.

Indiana fans think they're underrated, of course, but they aren't alone. National voices like Joel Klatt and Barrett Sallee have voiced their opinions loud and clear that Indiana is being slighted in the rankings this year.

And their points are valid. If this was Ohio State that was 9-0 and was boat-racing everyone, they'd be ranked in the top three or four teams for sure. Indiana is No. 8 in the first CFP top-25 rankings.

That's too low.

It's also not a surprise. Even with all the great things that Curt Cignetti has done in his first year in Bloomington — and it's been incredible — there's still some doubt as to how good this team is. They haven't played anyone, right? Well, that's partly true, with no ranked teams on their schedule and all nine opponents with at least four losses each.

But the beatdowns have to be taken into account. They've been that impressive.

Sadly, we've seen this before — and just four years ago. I know most of the Indiana fan base doesn't think much of Tom Allen because of how the last three years of his tenure went, but his 2020 team did some amazing things and was often overlooked too.

They were the best team you NEVER saw.

As we all know, 2020 was the COVID year. The Big Ten didn't want to play the season at all, but once most everyone else — especially the SEC and ACC — carried on as if no one was dying, the Big Ten agreed to play a condensed schedule with no fans .

That part was the biggest shame. I was very fortunate, covering Indiana in my second year with Sports Illustrated, to see every game. It was amazing.

They beat No. 8-ranked Penn State in overtime in their opener at Memorial Stadium with no fans, with Michael Penix Jr. diving for the pylon on a two-point conversion in one of the most iconic plays in IU football history. It was only their second win in 22 tries against the Nittany Lions.

Indiana beat Rutgers next and then hosted No. 23 Michigan at home. The Hoosiers were underdogs, getting no respect.

I couldn't believe it.

The Michigan program was on the skids, and Indiana seemed like a team on the rise. I wrote my prediction column on that Friday that — probably for the first time ever — Indiana was better than Michigan at all the key positions.

Michigan fans roasted me on Twitter, of course.

But I said what I believed, that Penix was a far better quarterback than Joe Milton. I was right. I said Indiana had better receivers, and Ty Fryfogle and Whop Philyor ripped them apart all day. I said Indiana's defense was better, and they held Michigan to 13 yards rushing all day.

Indiana beat Michigan on Nov. 7, 2020, cruising to a 38-21 win that wasn't really that close. It ended a 24-game losing streak to the Wolverines.

Indiana would finish 6-1 that year, with its only loss at Ohio State, losing 42-35 in the greatest college football game I ever saw. Penix threw for 491 yards and five touchdowns that day, but the Hoosiers came up seven points away from a perfect season. It was the best Indiana team I ever saw.

COVID ruined the end of the season. After beating Wisconsin to get to 6-1, they never could get their game with Purdue in. COVID ran rampant through both programs and the game was postponed on Dec. 12, then again a week later. The Hoosiers felt like they had done enough to earn prime New Year's Six bowl game, but instead got shipped to Tampa for an Outback Bowl matchup with Ole Miss.

Allen was upset with the slight, and felt the Big Ten hierarchy had something to do with it. He covered up the Big Ten logo on their jerseys with Outback Bowl logo and the LEO mantra that was a program staple during his time. Ole Miss won, with an injured Jack Tuttle trying to play quarterback with a seperated shoulder. So many Indiana players — over 40 — had COVID in December that they never once practiced as a full team before the Outback Bowl

They finished ranked No. 12 overall in 2020, but that could have been even better.

It's amazing what happened in the four years since that Indiana beatdown of Michigan at Memorial Stadium. The Hoosiers completely fell apart after that season. Penix injuries in 2021 — his fourth straight year of season-ending injuries — contributed to a 2-10 season that started with a No. 17 preseason ranking. Indiana's offensive line was horrible, and players — to a man — admitted that they didn't come into that season with the same preparation and effort.

The Hoosiers went 4-8 and 2022 and 3-9 in 2023 and Allen was fired.

Michigan, meanwhile, was close to firing coach Jim Harbaugh after that 2020 season. where they went 2-4 and had their last three games cancelled because of COVID. But they decided to stick with him, knowing they had a lot of young talent that could turn things around.

They did just that.

In 2021, they went 12-1 in the regular season, beating Ohio State finally and winning the Big Ten title with a win over Iowa. They made the four-team College Football Playoff, but lost to Georgia.

They did the same thing in 2022, going 13-0, beating Ohio State again, whipping Purdue in the Big Ten title game but then were upset by TCU in the playoffs. They finally got it right in 2023, winning the national title by going 15-0. They beat the Buckeyes a third straight time, topped Iowa to win the league and then beat Alabamana and a Michael Penix Washington team to claim the national championship.

Indiana won nine games from 2021 to 2023, while Michigan won 40!!! Forty.

But here we are on Nov. 9, 2024, and we've come full circle. Suddenly — and stunningly — it's Indiana back in the national spotlight and Michigan is just 5-4 and reeling with Harbaugh gone.

The Hoosiers haven't been favored to beat Michigan in the last 42 games. That's a generation or two. But they are on Saturday, The line opened at 10.5 points, but is now over 14. That's amazing.

But you also know what that means come Saturday night. If the Hoosiers beat Michigan, the win will get diminished too because the Wolverines just aren't very good.

All we know is this. The Hoosiers just need to keep on winning, and everything will take care of itself. The disrespect? It's real. But it's also irrelevent. Keep winning, and everything will take care of itself.

All we know is this. Memorial Stadium will be sold out on Saturday, and the scene will be electric. Same with the national TV broadcast on CBS. Indiana football has it going on, and they've been the best story in college football this year.

But there are more chapters to be written. Many more.

Related stories on Indiana football