Indiana’s Experience Edge: Myth or Masterclass in Roster Building?
If there’s one thing college football has taught us in recent years, it’s that experience matters. And in today’s game - where eligibility rules have stretched thanks to redshirts, medical waivers, and the pandemic-era extra year - it’s not uncommon to see 23- or even 24-year-olds suiting up on Saturdays.
So when Indiana suddenly surged from obscurity to the national championship game, slicing through Alabama and Oregon along the way, fans and analysts alike started asking: *How did this happen? * One theory gained traction fast - age.
The idea that the Hoosiers simply out-aged and out-experienced their opponents became a talking point. But does the data back that up?
Let’s dig into Indiana’s roster makeup and how it stacks up against other top programs - and even the NFL’s youngest team - to see just how much of a factor experience really played in this Cinderella run.
Indiana’s Starting Lineup: Seasoned and Battle-Tested
There’s no question Indiana fields one of the more experienced starting groups in college football. Of their 22 regular starters - including injured defensive lineman Stephen Daley - a whopping 16 are in at least their fourth season at the collegiate level. That’s not just veteran leadership; that’s a roster full of players who’ve seen a lot of football.
Here’s a breakdown of where each starter stands in terms of eligibility:
- Quarterback Fernando Mendoza is a redshirt junior - meaning he’s in his fourth year.
- Running back Roman Hemby, tight end Riley Nowakowski, and center Pat Coogan are all redshirt seniors, playing their fifth seasons.
- Wideouts Omar Cooper Jr. and Elijah Sarratt are redshirt upperclassmen, while Charlie Becker is one of the few underclassmen in the starting mix as a sophomore.
- On the offensive line, four of the five starters have redshirted, and only Adedamola Ajani, a redshirt freshman, is in his second season.
- Defensively, the pattern continues: Mikail Kamara, Stephen Daley, and Tyrique Tucker are all in their fourth or fifth years, while Mario Landino and Rolijah Hardy are sophomores.
- In the secondary, Devan Boykin and Louis Moore are redshirt seniors, while Jamari Sharpe, D’Angelo Ponds, and Amare Ferrell are juniors or redshirt juniors.
And then there’s E.J. Williams, the team’s fourth-leading receiver, who’s logging his sixth season of college ball. That kind of longevity is rare - and valuable.
All told, the average Indiana starter has 3.86 years of college experience, which is roughly equivalent to a traditional fourth-year senior - typically around 22 years old. That doesn’t mean the whole roster is that old, of course. The depth chart includes seven true freshmen, but they’re mostly in reserve roles.
So… Older Than Everyone Else?
Not exactly.
Take Miami, for example - Indiana’s opponent in the title game. The Hurricanes actually fielded a slightly more experienced starting group.
Their average starter has 3.91 years of experience, edging Indiana by a hair. Miami also had a sixth-year quarterback in Carson Beck, who’s nearly a full year older than Mendoza.
Nine of Miami’s starters were redshirt seniors, and 15 of their 22 starters were in at least their fourth season - just like Indiana. But Miami also leaned heavily on some younger talent.
Standouts like **Rueben Bain Jr. **, Francis Mauigoa, Mark Fletcher Jr., and Malachi Toney were all in Year 3 or earlier.
So while the average experience level was high, the impact of younger players was more pronounced.
The takeaway? Indiana wasn’t older than Miami - just similarly seasoned. The narrative of the Hoosiers bulldozing their way to the title game on the backs of 23-year-olds doesn’t hold up under the numbers.
The NFL Comparison: Indiana vs. the Packers
At the start of the 2025 NFL season, the Green Bay Packers were the league’s youngest team, with an average roster age of 25.2 years. That number is exact - NFL rosters are public and birthdays are well-documented.
College teams? Not so much.
Most programs don’t list player birthdays, so calculating a true average age is more guesswork than science.
Still, let’s play the hypothetical game.
If Indiana’s starters average around 22 years old - which aligns with their 3.86 years of experience - that’s still a full three years younger than the youngest team in the NFL. Even if some of the Hoosiers’ top contributors, like E.J. Williams, are pushing 23 or 24, the overall roster average is likely lower due to the presence of freshmen and sophomores in backup roles.
So while the age gap between Indiana and an NFL team like the Packers might not be massive, it’s still significant. And more importantly, it puts to bed the idea that Indiana was fielding a team full of grown men against college kids.
Bottom Line: Experience Is a Factor - But Not The Factor
Indiana’s rise didn’t come solely from having older players. Yes, experience played a role - and having 16 starters in Year 4 or later is a luxury most programs would love.
But they weren’t an outlier in that regard. Programs like Miami matched them in veteran presence, and others weren’t far behind.
What Indiana did was build a roster full of players who had time to develop, learn, and grow. Whether they redshirted, transferred, or simply stuck around, these Hoosiers had been through the grind. That kind of cohesion and maturity can make a difference - especially in big moments.
But it wasn’t just age. It was coaching, talent evaluation, development, and yes - a little bit of magic.
Because no matter how old you are, beating Alabama and Oregon on the way to the national title game takes more than time. It takes execution. And Indiana delivered.