Has Indiana football beaten Penn State on the road? Hoosiers' record, history
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Early in his tenure as Indiana's football coach, Curt Cignetti offered this now-famous phrase when asked how he sells his vision to recruits and transfer portal players:
"It's pretty simple," Cignetti said. "I win. Google me."
Two-plus seasons into his Indiana football tenure, that's exactly what Curt Cigentti has done. He has led the Hoosiers into uncharted territory, turning Indiana into a "football school" and putting them in a position for back-to-back berths in the College Football Playoff.
In Week 11 of the 2025 season, the second-ranked Hoosiers now face an opponent that they, historically, have been unable to beat: beat Penn State.
The Nittany Lions, one of the Big Ten's traditional powers and likewise a CFP team last season, are in the midst of a historic losing that has not only taken them well out of the top 25, but also resulted in the firing of 12th-year coach James Franklin.
Penn State is also playing with a banged-up quarterback room, as redshirt freshman Ethan Grunkemeyer is starting over preseason Heisman Trophy candidate Drew Allar, who sustained a season-ending injury in Week 7 against Northwestern.
Here's a look at IU football's history against Penn State, including when the Hoosiers last beat the Nittany Lions:
When did Indiana football last beat Penn State?
The last time Indiana beat Penn State came in the condensed COVID-19 season in 2020, when former Indiana quarterback Michael Penix Jr. led the Hoosiers to a 36-35 overtime win at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington.
It was a historic win for the Hoosiers, as it marked their first win over a top-10 opponent since Oct. 10 of the 1987 season, when they beat Ohio State 31-10.
With Indiana trailing 28-20 with 1:42 remaining in the fourth quarter, Penix stepped up when it mattered the most, completing three consecutive passes of at least 10 yards to get to the Penn State 6-yard line. A 5-yard pass to Peyton Hendershot then got the Hoosiers to the goal line, where Penix plunged into the end zone himself to make it a 28-26 game before converting the 2-point conversion himself to force overtime.
Penix delivered again for the Hoosiers in overtime. After Penn State scored on its first possession of the extra-time period, Penix completed all three of his pass attempts, punctuated by a 9-yard touchdown pass to Whop Philyor. Instead of going for point-after attempt, the Hoosiers elected to try and win the game with another 2-point conversion, which Penix successfully converted with a gutsy full-body lunge to the pylon.
"Since I’ve been here, we’ve found ways to lose these types of games. This game, we found a way to win," former Indiana coach Tom Allen said after the Hoosiers' win.
He added: "These kids come here with a belief that we’re gonna do things like we did tonight."
Has Indiana ever won at Penn State?
No, Indiana has never beaten Penn State on the road in University Park, Pennsylvania. The Hoosiers are 0-13 on the road vs. the Nittany Lions. That said, the Hoosiers' home (2-10) and neutral-site (0-2) records vs. Penn State aren't overly impressive, either.
Indiana football record vs Penn State
- Series leader: Penn State 25-2
- Indiana's last win: 2020 (36-35) (OT)
- Penn State's last win: 2023 (33-24)
According to Indiana football's record book, the Nittany Lions lead the all-time series 25-2. On top of its 2020 win, Indiana's other win over Penn State came in 2013, when the Hoosiers beat the Nittany Lions 44-24 in Bloomington.
This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: What is Indiana football's road record vs Penn State? Series record
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