The losing-est program of any Power-Four program in the history of college football, Indiana, is just one win away from clinching its first ever National Championship. The Hoosiers finished with a 3-9 record as recently as 2023, but have won 26 of their last 28 games under head coach Curt Cignetti.
Many have lauded the turnaround of the Indiana program as one of the greatest in college football history. However, ESPN’s Paul Finebaum wants Vanderbilt to garner some respect for its turnaround as well. The Commodores won 10 games for the first time in program history this season and had their quarterback (Diego Pavia) selected as a Heisman finalist, alongside Indiana‘s Fernando Mendoza.
“There’s no way you could have told me back in August when we started this that Indiana would not only be winning, but winning with such domination,” Finebaum said during the ‘Matt Barrie Show‘. “There’s just no precedent. In college football’s history, how many times have you heard someone say ‘this Miami team of ’25 reminds me of the ’01 or ’89’. That’s just the way college football people talk. There’s nothing in Indiana history to refer to.”
“It’s just too bad that nobody’s really talking about what a great job Vanderbilt did this year because what they did is equally dramatic and unbelievable. They ended up having to play teams like Texas and Alabama in the regular season. They did lose to a Big Ten team (Iowa) in a bowl game, which I’m sure some people will make a lot of.”
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After an offseason full of boisterous claims (including being one of the best quarterbacks in college football and that Vanderbilt would be one of the best teams in the country), Diego Pavia absolutely backed up everything he said. The controversial figure passed for 3,539 yards (program single-season record), 29 touchdowns, and eight interceptions. He also rushed for 862 yards and 10 more scores.
Maybe more than anybody in recent college football history, Pavia helped completely change the perception of Vanderbilt Football. After being thought of as an afterthought since James Franklin departed in 2013, the Commodores are now hauling in massive recruits (such as Jared Curtis) as they look to become one of the SEC’s powers in the NIL era.
As Vanderbilt heads into maybe its most anticipated season in modern history, Finebaum just wants Clark Lea and his Commodores to command the respect he thinks they deserve. While they aren’t quite on Indiana‘s level, the turnaround in Nashville certainly has to be commended.
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Outlook for Arch Manning
Top 25 shakeup
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