Indiana’s defense delivered a national championship. The Hoosiers held off Miami 27-21 Monday night at Hard Rock Stadium, capping a perfect 16-0 season and claiming the first title in program history. The Hurricanes made it interesting down the stretch, but a blocked punt returned for a touchdown in the third quarter proved to be the difference.
The CFP National Championship awards both an Offensive and Defensive MVP after the final whistle. Here’s the full breakdown of Monday’s winners.
Who Won the National Championship Offensive MVP?
Fernando Mendoza finished 16-of-27 for 186 yards. He also added a pivotal rushing touchdown — a 12-yard scramble on fourth-and-4 in the fourth quarter that gave Indiana a two-score cushion and will be replayed in Bloomington for decades.
The Heisman Trophy winner didn’t need to put up video game numbers. He managed the game, avoided turnovers, and made the one play that mattered most. Miami’s defense bloodied his lip early and hit him repeatedly, but Mendoza never flinched.
FERNANDO MENDOZA TAKES IT BY HIMSELF AND DIVES INTO THE END ZONE TO EXTEND INDIANA’S LEAD! 💪 #NationalChampionship pic.twitter.com/ocjkMN7TJt
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) January 20, 2026
Mendoza grew up less than a mile from Miami’s campus in South Florida. He attended Christopher Columbus High School, where his father was teammates with Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal. Winning a national title in his hometown, against the program down the street, couldn’t have been scripted better.
“I would say the meaning, It means so much to myself and my family, having grown up in Miami, having grown up a University of Miami fan,” Mendoza said at media day Saturday. “It’s kind of like a full circle moment.”
Mendoza’s mother, Elsa, has multiple sclerosis and uses a wheelchair. He’s spoken throughout the season about how her fight inspires him.
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“She battles it every single day, and she is my light and inspiration,” Mendoza said earlier this year. “No matter how hard it gets, she always maintains this unwavering positivity.”
That positivity has become Mendoza’s trademark. His viral postgame interviews, which includes thanking God, referencing stoicism, and calling his teammates “the strongest glue ever,” made him a folk hero during Indiana’s playoff run. Monday night was no different.
Who Won the National Championship Defensive MVP?
Mikail Kamara made the play that won Indiana a national championship. The defensive lineman broke through Miami’s punt protection in the third quarter, extending his arm to block the kick. Isaiah Jones recovered it in the end zone for a touchdown, turning a tight 10-7 game into a 17-7 cushion that the Hurricanes never fully overcame.
Kamara finished with four tackles, but the blocked punt defined his night and earned him CFP Defensive MVP honors.
The sequence broke Miami. The Hurricanes had just forced a three-and-out and appeared ready to seize momentum in a game that felt like it could tip either way. Instead, Kamara blew up the play, and Indiana suddenly led by double digits with the crowd at Hard Rock Stadium — Miami’s home field — sitting stunned.
From 0 star recruit to JMU to blocking a punt for 6 in the natty
Mikail Kamara is such a dog
pic.twitter.com/ljNbqlsmvd— Evan (aka Ebo) (@EBoKnowss) January 20, 2026
Kamara’s journey to this moment defies belief. He was a zero-star recruit out of Ashburn, Virginia, who landed at James Madison when the program was still in the FCS. He missed the entire 2021 season with an injury. When he entered the transfer portal to follow Curt Cignetti to Indiana, he was ranked 997th overall and 99th among defensive linemen.
After recording 10 sacks in 2024 — Indiana’s first double-digit sack season since 2008 — Kamara could have entered the NFL Draft. He chose to return for his sixth year.
“There’s talent everywhere. You’ve just got to have either the right coaches or the right spotlight put on the players,” Kamara said during the playoff run. “We always talk about the numbers. The five stars and four stars, and that stuff really means nothing.”
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Indiana’s defense held the Hurricanes to 69 total yards in the first half, extending a streak of 31 consecutive scoreless quarters dating back to the regular season. Jamari Sharpe added an interception of Carson Beck late to seal the victory. D’Angelo Ponds and Louis Moore combined for 12 tackles, while Aiden Fisher recorded a sack.
The JMU pipeline that followed Cignetti to Bloomington — Ponds, Fisher, Kamara, and the rest — now has a national championship ring.
How Miami’s Comeback Fell Short
The Hurricanes didn’t go quietly. Mark Fletcher Jr. was the best player on the field for stretches, finishing with 112 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries. His 57-yard scoring run was the second-longest rushing touchdown in BCS/CFP title game history, behind only Ohio State’s Beanie Wells (65 yards).
Freshman sensation Malachi Toney hauled in 10 catches for 122 yards and a touchdown, proving the FWAA Offensive Freshman of the Year belonged on this stage. Beck threw for 232 yards and engineered multiple scoring drives, but his late interception proved costly.
Miami became the first team to play for a national championship at its home stadium. The Hurricanes’ seven-game winning streak to close the season — including playoff wins over Texas A&M, Ohio State, and Ole Miss — fell one game short of their sixth title.
Indiana Completes Historic Season
The Hoosiers finished 16-0, joining 1894 Yale as the only teams to go undefeated with that many wins in the history of college football’s top division. Indiana entered the season ranked No. 20 in the AP preseason poll — a relatively low seed for a national champion, though higher than Auburn’s No. 22 preseason ranking when they won in 2010.
Two years ago, Indiana was among the losingest programs in FBS history. When Cignetti was hired, a reporter asked why anyone should believe he could win. His response became legend: “It’s pretty simple. I win. Google me.”
Now when you Google him, you’ll find a national champion.
Mendoza joins Will Howard (2025), Stetson Bennett (2022, 2023), Joe Burrow (2020), Trevor Lawrence (2019), Tua Tagovailoa (2018), and Deshaun Watson (2017) as quarterbacks to win CFP Offensive MVP. He’s the second Big Ten signal-caller on that list, after Howard.
The Hoosiers will celebrate in Bloomington. For Mendoza, the next stop is the NFL Draft — he’s projected as a potential No. 1 overall pick. Based on Monday night, his stock has never been higher.
