In light of the unprecedented 16-0 Indiana Hoosiers championship run, a discussion needs to be had. What made that team so special? Now the easy answer would be their Heisman-winning quarterback, Fernando Mendoza. Or maybe their ruthless, grimacing head coach, Curt Cignetti, who indeed “Wins.” Chalk it up to coaching, chalk it up to luck. But there is one thing that cannot be understated. The Indiana Hoosiers have something that’s never been seen before on the football field and will never be replicated again.
Age.
The 2026 national champs amassed an impressive squad of redshirt juniors, redshirt seniors and a new important class of “super seniors.” For context, a normal athlete would be granted five years in order to play four years of college football (allocating for a medical redshirt year). However, these so-called super seniors have been granted an unprecedented year of eligibility, a result of the NCAA’s decision to award an extra year to every collegiate athlete who had their season interrupted by COVID-19. So instead of the usual timeline, a select four to five classes were given a year of reparation in light of the global pandemic.
But as it hits you as hard as it hits me, COVID was six years ago. Which means the era of the Super Seniors is coming to an end.
Last Monday, Indiana proved that experience matters. Consider the stars: quarterback Fernando Mendoza, running back Kaelon Black and receiver E.J. Williams. All are game-tested veterans.
Black and Williams just finished their sixth year of college football. Both of which have played for two or more programs and both of which have played for nearly three seasons under Coach Cignetti. That level of experience translates to production on the field. Add a seasoned four-year starter in Mendoza, and you get a beautiful offensive harmony. One that wins a lot of football games (16 to be exact).
Characterized as “the oldest college football team ever,” many believe their rise to power was unfair. They had “grown men” playing against college students. The NCAA shouldn’t have let Indiana do this — well, what about Miami?
When you look at the depth chart, the 2025 Hurricanes were comprised of nearly the same goods as the Hooseirs. Almost 15 of their 22 starters are likely now out of eligibility, and of those starters, there were nine super-seniors! Not to mention nearly a third of their rosters transferred from previous colleges (which is not the shock and awe it used to be, but it’s still worth noting). Miami had all the talent and time in the world, if not more than Indiana.
Need more proof? Look at the rosters of semifinalists like Oregon, Ole Miss, and top-15 teams such as Georgia and Texas Tech. Two paths to success emerge.
Money— That’s a given in the altered landscape of college football. You can fight it kicking and screaming, but you have to have funding to win.
Veteran leadership — enough said.
Trindiand Chambliss has just completed his fifth year of college. Ty Simpson finished his final year as a 23-year-old Redshirt Junior. Diego Pavia fought the NCAA for his sixth and final year of college football… and won.
Bottom line: the winners of college football are doing it with experience — a lot of it.
But the long-established names like Pavia and Beck are being forced to declare. The sadly cut short experiences, such as Chambliss or Allar, won’t get another chance to shine. Even the guys who did it old school and waited, such as Simpson and Klubnik, are all beginning to fade.
Their era is over.
And so college football is going to change, but its fate is to be determined. What will a sixth-yearless senior class look like in the upcoming season? How will teams such as Indiana or Miami bounce back after giving the NFL half their rosters?
And when the ground settles and Curt Cignetti gets bored with winning, what tested-and-true “Blue Bloods” will rise back to the top.
I, for one, cannot wait to find out.