Indiana's Magnificent Seven: The James Madison transfers who built a champion

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. -- In the moments after No. 1 Indiana pulled off a thrilling win over No. 10 Miami in the College Football Playoff National Championship, Curt Cignetti couldn't help but crack a smile. 

As one of the most curmudgeonly coaches in the sport, Cignetti is famous for never showing any joy. But as he picked up the elusive national championship trophy, he looked around at a group of loyal soldiers that had followed him further than anyone thought possible. 

Back in 2023, a small FBS upstart called James Madison was irate. The Dukes were in the midst of a transition from FCS to FBS, and believed that they deserved real consideration for the postseason. Teams are traditionally barred from the postseason for two years as they transition levels. Their waiver was denied. Their coach, one Curt Cignetti, was absolutely furious. 

In 2024, Cignetti left JMU to take the head coaching job at woebegone Indiana. Two years later, the core of that James Madison team became the nucleus of Indiana's improbable 16-0 national championship team. 

Seven players remain from the 13 James Madison standouts that followed Cignetti from Harrisonburg, Virginia, to Bloomington, Indiana. And quickly, the group has become a legendary one at Indiana.  

"Having a chip on their shoulder, that's kind of in their DNA," special teams coordinator Grant Cain told CBS Sports. "I don't know if you're ever going to be able to get it out of them." 

James Madison transfers on Indiana 2025 national championship roster

Many of the returners are pivotal players on the field. Defensive lineman Mikail Kamara had 22 tackles for loss over the past two seasons. Linebacker Aiden Fisher led the team with 211 tackles over the same period, while cornerback D'Angelo Ponds earned All-America honors. 

Receiver Elijah Sarratt emerged as one of Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza's favorite targets, while running back Kaelon Black led the team with 79 yards rushing in a 27-21 win in the College Football Playoff National Championship. However, their impact was perhaps even more integral to setting Cignetti's culture. 

"They had that championship attitude," Cignetti said. "They were able to answer questions for the guys to decide to return, and the right guys returned. I think that accelerated our development as a program, there's no question about it." 

When the seven players were recruited at James Madison, the Dukes were only scratching the surface of being an FBS team. The players were recruited with the knowledge that they wouldn't even be allowed to compete for Sun Belt titles at first. 

Many of them didn't have the measurables for major offers. Ponds, for example, stands only 5-foot-9 and 173 pounds. He got a late offer from Syracuse, but otherwise primarily low-majors recruited him. Kamara was also seen as a tweener, and unrated as a recruit as a result. The staff saw something special in them. 

"They do a great job of watching film and not just looking at rankings or stars," Sarratt said. "I feel like that's what a lot of coaches need to start doing, look at the tape. Your tape speaks for itself. They do a great job of believing in that." 

When the coaching staff moved from James Madison to Indiana, they were blown away by some of their new resources. The locker rooms were nice, but they also had substantially more access to major training and nutrition resources. At JMU, there was no indoor facility; November practices could be a brutal affair. In the roster they left, Cignetti saw players capable of winning at the highest level. 

And quickly, the players paid him back. When they transferred into the program, they brought stories of Cignetti's consistency and desire to win. It wasn't an act, they said. This is him, and you should buy in. 

"He's the same guy every day, every night, every second," running back Solomon Vanhorse said. "He doesn't change." 

The transfers were able to advise returning players on Indiana's roster of what they were in for. And with their relentless pursuit of excellence, they proved it was possible. 

"His standards are so high for all of us, and you've got to uphold the standard," defensive lineman Tyrique Tucker said.

As the fairytale came to life in the national championship game, it was those same seven that remained in the middle of it all. Black, who played second-string for most of the season, exploded for a 20-yard run to set up a touchdown. Fisher had a sack and a key tackle of Miami waterbug Malachi Toney, stopping him just short of a the line to gain on third down in the second half, which meant Miami had to punt near the shadow of its end zone. On that play, Kamara screamed around the edge to block the punt, which Indiana recovered for a touchdown. Ponds was masterful in pass coverage and had three pass breakups. 

The Magnificent Seven's fingerprints were all over the performance. 

As recently as November, the Hoosiers were the losingest program in the history of the sport. They hadn't won a conference title in 60 years. The program had never even finished higher than No. 4 in the final AP Top 25. 

Cignetti acknowledged after the game that this isn't a group that will produce many first-round NFL Draft picks, with the exception of likely No. 1 overall selection Fernando Mendoza. There are great college players that might not fully translate to the next level. But during their legendary two-year run -- 27-2 in two seasons with back-to-back AP Top 5 finishes -- the team was greater than the sum of its parts. 

"They were all a little underrecruited, they ended up at JMU for a reason," offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan said. "But maybe it was everyone else who got them wrong." 

Only two years ago, the gritty bunch of misfits wasn't even allowed to compete for national recognition. On Monday, they became national champions. 

"I know for me, it changed my life," Fisher said. "I'm here playing at the highest level with some guys that I was playing at a very small level at, and it's just been a crazy journey and one that I'm so glad that we got to do together."