CrimsonCast

On this episode of CrimsonCast Scott is joined by special guest Connor Onion from the Big Ten Network!

Episode Highlights

• The Ultimate Glow-Up: A look back at the wild ride from a three-and-nine team to a 16-0 national champion.
• When Belief Set In: Connor and the host discuss the exact moment they realized this wasn't a fluke—the Big 10 Championship game against Ohio State.
• The Heisman Warrior: A breakdown of Fernando Mendoza's incredible season, balancing his "warrior" mentality on the field with his "goofy" social media persona.
• Breaking College Football: How Indiana’s success is confusing the national media and why Big Ten rivals are now celebrating when they don't have to play the Hoosiers.
• The Cignetti Factor: Why Curt Cignetti is the perfect coach for Bloomington and how he’s building a legacy that might eventually include multiple statues.
• Behind the FOX Curtain: Connor takes us inside the network's preseason "referee boot camp" where announcers get quizzed on targeting and new rules.
• The Transformation of the Rock: Celebrating the new, electric atmosphere at Memorial Stadium and how it finally became a legitimate home-field advantage.

• 00:25 – Welcome to the show: We are national champions!
• 01:31 – Connor Onion on following the journey from 3-9 to 16-0
• 02:54 – The turning point: Winning over the skeptics in the Big 10 title game
• 04:52 – Remembering the ominous start vs. Old Dominion
• 09:20 – Media shifts: Preparing for early morning "Big Noon" kickoffs
• 14:18 – A sidebar on the "dumbest T-shirt ever"
• 15:52 – Can anyone replicate the Indiana model?
• 19:43 – Fernando Mendoza: Heisman winner and on-field warrior
• 22:52 – FOX Sports referee boot camp and the mystery of the pivot foot
• 34:55 – Five-year outlook: Is this level of success sustainable?
• 37:51 – The legacy of Curt Cignetti
• 48:58 – From empty tailgates to a sold-out Memorial Stadium
• 51:43 – Closing thoughts and basketball tournament hopes

Galen Clavio sits down with Griffin Gonzalez for an “exit interview” that turns into a perfect snapshot of what the last few years of Indiana football have felt like from inside Memorial Stadium.

Griffin shares what it was like serving as IU football’s on-field mic personality through the program’s lowest moments — and then watching the place transform into a full-blown destination as the wins (and the crowds) exploded. They talk about the unseen work that goes into fan experience, the pressure of “being the ambassador of fun” even on brutal Saturdays, and the upgrades that changed the in-stadium production along the way.

Plus: Griffin explains why he’s leaving Indiana for a new on-air opportunity in Boston, tells the behind-the-scenes story of Hoosier the Bison’s return (and the stress of introducing him), and reflects on the playoff run as a lifelong IU fan who never really let himself believe something like this could happen.

Galen Clavio drops a quick Friday “mini episode” with updates on Indiana football and a deep dive into what’s happening with Indiana men’s basketball under the hood.

First: IU football news, including Broyles Award winner Bryant Haines and what it says about the credibility (and sustainability) of Indiana’s defensive identity.

Then Galen pivots to hoops with a detailed look at the advanced numbers—why IU’s season has essentially become two different teams: an early stretch powered by defense, followed by a January run where the offense has become elite while the defense has slipped.

Finally, Galen explains why those trendlines matter with Illinois and Purdue looming, what Indiana can realistically change late in the year, and how Big Ten Tournament seeding (and avoiding Wednesday) should shape the stretch-run mindset.

Galen Clavio and Grace Ybarra are back with a midweek IU athletics update — and this one is all about Indiana men’s basketball finding traction.

They open with the Hoosiers’ 92–74 win over Oregon, highlighted by another monster scoring night from Lamar Wilkerson and a huge efficiency game from Sam Alexis. The conversation then turns to what’s changing under head coach Darian DeVries (including how he’s adjusting Alexis’ usage), why Indiana’s offense is beginning to feel more sustainable, and the one looming concern: a defensive trendline that’s drifting the wrong way even as the wins pile up.

From there, it’s a forward look at Illinois—matchup strengths/weaknesses, injury questions, and what Indiana needs to do to steal one on the road—before zooming out to bracketology and the Big Ten Tournament seeding mess (yes, including the dreaded 11 a.m. tips).

Welcome back to CrimsonCast\! In this episode, host Scott Caulfield sits down with Bloomington local and media veteran Ken Bikoff to reflect on Indiana University's "dream season" and national championship run. Having hosted postgame call-in shows for years, Ken has felt the pain of IU fans more than most and joins the show to discuss the surreal reality of reaching the top of the mountain.

**Episode Highlights**

* **\[00:25\] Welcome & News:** Scott opens the show with updates on finding CrimsonCast on YouTube and Substack.

* **\[01:37\] Meet Ken Bikoff:** Scott introduces the man who has been a voice for IU fans through football and basketball postgame shows since 2011.

* **\[02:51\] The Surreal Reality:** Ken shares the feeling of being an IU alum holding a "perfection" shirt and realizing the national championship actually happened.

* **\[05:32\] Dreaming Big:** Ken reflects on Scott’s past idealism for the program, questioning "why not us?" when others were just hoping for a bowl game.

* **\[08:12\] Coaching History:** A journey through the program's evolution, from the Mallerie and Cam Cameron eras to the pivotal hard reset under Kevin Wilson.

* **\[13:42\] Facility Breakthroughs:** Recalling how Terry Hepner served as the catalyst for stadium improvements and facilities that moved the program forward.

* **\[15:43\] The Cignetti Era:** Analyzing Coach Curt Cignetti’s matter-of-fact approach and the "unbelievably quick turnaround" that made the program sustainable.

* **\[25:01\] Sliding Door Moments:** Revisiting the 2021 Cincinnati game as a turning point that signaled the "beginning of the end" for the previous coaching regime.

* **\[29:34\] Season Pivot Points:** Reflections on the statement win at UCLA and the rainy Maryland game where fans stayed to witness something special.

* **\[36:09\] Overcoming Scar Tissue:** The emotional breakthrough of the Ohio State game, realizing IU could beat anyone and didn't have to wait for the other shoe to drop.

* **\[42:30\] IU Takes Over:** Discussing the positive energy of the fan base and the incredible atmosphere in Atlanta and Miami during the championship run.

* **\[47:34\] Memorializing the Season:** A debate on how to honor this achievement in Memorial Stadium, from flags and statues to permanent design improvements.

* **\[55:01\] Championship Gear & Final Thoughts:** Scott and Ken compare their growing collections of national championship mini-helmets and memorabilia.

Galen Clavio sits down with Eddie Koton, the mind behind the now-infamous “Extended Highlights” series on X/Twitter — the chaotic, brilliant, internet-lunatic companion pieces that became required viewing during Indiana football’s championship season.

Eddie explains how the series started (and why he felt IU football needed its own brand of online insanity), how the bits and recurring characters evolved over the course of the season, and what his actual workflow looks like when he’s building an episode in Premiere from highlights, bookmarks, and whatever his brain decides is funny that day.

They also talk about what it’s like when the content escapes the IU bubble — including the surreal moment Mark Cuban quote-tweeted the final episode — and zoom out into a broader conversation about creativity, editing, and why certain ideas land when you don’t even fully understand why.

Galen Clavio and Scott Caulfield recap Indiana’s gritty 78–77 overtime win over Wisconsin at Assembly Hall — a résumé-building victory that keeps IU trending in the right direction and puts real shape around the Hoosiers’ NCAA Tournament path.

They break down the game’s wild arc (IU’s early surge, the familiar mid-game wobble, and the late-game execution that finally held up), plus the performances that carried Indiana despite major no-shows from key rotation pieces. Lamar Wilkerson stays scorching, Sam Alexis delivers a monster, trajectory-altering game, and Connor Enright continues to be the engine that keeps the offense functioning — including a pair of late whistles that ignited plenty of debate.

Then the conversation zooms out: what this win means for Indiana’s remaining schedule, why holding serve at home matters so much, and where Indiana could realistically land in the Big Ten Tournament bracket (and why those byes are as confusing as ever).

Galen Clavio is joined by Connor Hitchcock (Homefield Apparel) for a wide-ranging conversation about Indiana’s unforgettable playoff run and what it’s felt like to experience it as an IU football fan — from the once-in-a-lifetime crowds in Pasadena, Atlanta, and Miami to the emotional whiplash of finally watching the Hoosiers finish the job.

Connor also shares the behind-the-scenes story of one of the coolest moments of championship weekend: how Homefield pulled off the in-stadium “National Champions 2025” jacket reveal after Jamari Sharpe’s late interception of Carson Beck, including the inside-out-jacket trick to get past stadium bag rules.

It’s part fandom therapy session, part business/CFB culture discussion, and part “how is this real life?” reflection — and it captures exactly what this season has meant to Indiana fans.

Galen Clavio and Grace Ybarra open with a big CrimsonCast announcement — Grace is joining the show as a regular host — then dive into a two-sport update on Indiana basketball and Indiana football.

On the basketball side, they recap IU’s split in L.A.: why the UCLA double-overtime win looms even larger now, what went wrong in the USC loss, and how the Hoosiers’ late-game decision-making and three-point reliance shape the NCAA Tournament ceiling. They also look ahead to the Wisconsin home game and what Indiana needs to do to stay on the right side of the bracket conversation.

After the break, it’s football: Indiana absorbs its first meaningful offseason “losses” as coaches move on, then quickly answers with a familiar name — Tino Sunseri returns to the staff. Galen and Grace discuss why keeping the core intact (including OC Mike Shanahan and DC Bryant Haines) matters, what ESPN-style roster/portal evaluations get right (and wrong), and how Indiana’s talent evaluation under Curt Cignetti continues to challenge the sport’s assumptions. Finally: spring game timing and what could be a massive Little 500 week in Bloomington.

Galen Clavio is joined by Taylor Lehman to put a bow on Indiana football’s national championship run — starting with what actually happened in the title game against Miami, why it got dicey in the third quarter, and the handful of pivotal moments (including the blocked punt TD and the late interception) that slammed the door.

From there, it’s a forward-looking, roster-building deep dive: how Indiana replaces key departures (including Stephen Daley, Aidan Fisher, D’Angelo Ponds, and Lewis Moore), why continuity with Curt Cignetti’s staff matters, and what the portal class says about the program’s “production over potential” strategy heading into 2026 — with detailed talk on Josh Hoover at QB, the tight end depth concern, and why the new wide receiver room could be even nastier.

Presented by Homefield Apparel and Posh Hotel Bloomington.