What If Indiana Beat Ohio State in 2024? The Alternate History of IU Football

What if Indiana finished the job in Columbus? 🤔On this episode of The Crimson Era, Scott and Coach dive into Indiana football’s heartbreaking 2024 loss at Ohio State — and unpack the massive “what if” hanging over that game.Could IU have made the Big Ten Championship? Hosted a College Football Playoff game? Changed the entire trajectory of the program even sooner?The guys break down how close the Hoosiers really were, why the final score was misleading, and how that loss may have fueled Indiana’s rise into a national power under Curt Cignetti.Topics include:The special teams mistakes that swung the Ohio State gameWhy Indiana was closer than people rememberAlternate CFP scenarios if IU wins in ColumbusCould the Hoosiers have beaten Oregon?How the 2024 losses helped shape the 2025 championship runLessons Curt Cignetti and IU learned from hostile road environmentsWhy Indiana football now has a target on its backPlus:🏀 Previewing future Crimson Era episodes on the 1992 Final Four run and Jay EdwardsDrop your own IU “what if” scenarios in the comments and let us know what Crimson Era topic we should tackle next.Subscribe to the Back Home Network for more Indiana football and basketball coverage.#iufb #IndianaHoosiers #CollegeFootball #BigTen #CurtCignetti #CFP #IndianaFootballTIMESTAMPS / CHAPTERS00:00 Intro + sponsor shoutouts01:30 The “What If Indiana Beat Ohio State?” premise03:00 Why the game felt closer than the final score06:45 Reimagining Indiana’s CFP path09:00 Would IU have beaten Oregon?14:00 How the Ohio State loss helped fuel 202518:00 Lessons learned from Ohio State & Notre Dame23:00 Could Indiana have sustained a title run in 2024?26:00 How Cignetti is building long-term success31:30 Previewing future Crimson Era episodesNote: timestamps may not appear as clickable links for every listener depending on platform/app.