The Indiana Hoosiers, an original member of the Big Ten Conference, are not a powerhouse on the field. Still, they dip their toe into something essential to the league's history: the Midwestern, Northern Plains culture.
“In the next few years, you're going to see Indiana win some football games, or they're going to take me out and put me under six feet of ground.”
– Beau McMillan, football coach 1934-47
school history
Legislation establishing a state seminary was adopted in 1820, and construction began in 1822. The first students began attending the seminary in 1825, and the state seminary became Indiana University in 1828.
In 1838, Indiana University finally became the name of the school in Bloomington. Only four years later, a law school was established. During IU's first 70 years, a legal and political battle raged between IU and Vincennes University over which was the official state university. In 2024, while everyone had heard of the Hoosiers, few outside the region knew about Indiana's first university.
Enrollment did not exceed 1,000 students until the 1900s. Currently, the public research university has more than 40,000 students at its flagship campus. In the latest U.S. News and World Report rankings, Indiana University ranks 73rd among national universities and 34th among public universities.
Soccer program history
No joke, Indiana University has been one of the worst programs in college football since the beginning. The Hoosiers didn't win a game in their first three seasons, then went without a team for what would have been their fourth season. In 1891, the team was a contender for the championship, but went 1-5 that year.
Indiana has won the Big Ten title only twice, in 1945 and 1967. The Hoosiers only bowled to him in 13 games, of which he won three. Among Division I programs with more than 1,000 games played, Indiana has her third-worst winning percentage (42%). They hold the record for most losses by a Division I team with 713.
Even without success, six Hoosiers have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. Speaking of Hoosiers, the term originated in the 1800s to describe Indiana natives and was first used at the university during his 1923 football season. However, there is no Hoosier mascot. In fact, the state of Indiana is represented by mascots such as a bull, a bull, and a bearded man named “Hoosier His Pride.”
Championship and Heisman Trophy Winners
National Championships Claimed: None
Conference title: 2
Heisman Trophy winner: None
Oregon State plans to join the Big Ten Conference in 2024. For league-wide information and details on other programs, see “Oregon Football's New Big Ten Conference Opponents: Rich History, Distance.”
