Indiana's perfect season is built for the silver screen. The Hoosiersofficially became the biggest long-shot national champions since at least 2001. They put the bow on their storybook runwith a 27-21 win over Miami, the school their Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback, Fernando Mendoza, wanted to play for when he grew up a walk away from its campus.
Mendoza put his body on the line to score an epic fourth-quarter touchdown, and Indiana sealed its first football title with an interception that ended the Hurricanes' potential game-winning drive.
If a movie is made chronicling Indiana's turnaround from Big Ten laughingstock to college football royalty, it could be a box-office hit — that is, if the viewership numbers from Monday night's title game are any indication.
Because the thriller at Hard Rock Stadium drew 30.1 million viewers and was the second-most-watched College Football Playoff national championship game,according to ESPN PR. Ohio State's win over Oregon in January 2015, the final game of the inaugural CFP, still maintains the top spot with an average of 33.9 million viewers,per The Associated Press.
The 2026#NationalChampionshipft.@CanesFootball&@IndianaFootballdelivered:📈 30.1M viewers, 33.2M peak🏈 2nd most-watched#CFBPlayofftitle game📺 2nd best cable telecast ever🏆 Most-viewed non‑NFL sports event since '16 World Series Gm 7🔗https://t.co/IFdlYlrxmcpic.twitter.com/rLM3Yt9iIp
— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR)January 22, 2026
The CFP debuted during the 2014 season. It grew from four to 12 teams last season, which culminated with Ohio State defeating Notre Dame for its first title in 10 years. That matchupattracted an average of 22.1 million viewers, per ESPN PR. At the time, viewership numbers were down compared to the season prior when Michigan and Washington brought in approximately 25 million viewers.
College football's biggest game delivered this time around, and not just due to Indiana's Hollywood script. Miami had a compelling journey, too.
After missing out on the CFP during the 2024 campaign, the 'Canes recorded another 10-win season, snuck into the field and made a run of their own.
As the No. 10 seed, they took down seventh-seeded Texas A&M, second-seeded Ohio State and sixth-seeded Ole Miss. And they gave the top-seeded Hoosiers a fight in a game that saw 24 of its 48 total points scored in the fourth quarter.
ESPN's MegaCast audience peaked at 33.2 million viewers.
Per ESPN PR, the game is now considered the most-viewed non-NFL sports telecast since Game 7 of the 2016 World Series, which featured the Chicago Cubs ending their 108-year title drought.
