[6][11] Sheldon proved to be one of the most successful coaches in Indiana football's early years, leading the Hoosiers to four winning seasons and as high as third in the Big Ten Conference rankings.

[14] Part of the team's success in this period is attributable to George Taliaferro, an African-American who helped break down color barriers in sports and played for the Hoosiers two years before Jackie Robinson suited up for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

[17] Bernie Crimmins came to Indiana from his post as an assistant under legendary coach Frank Leahy at Notre Dame and brought along high hopes that IU football prominence would be restored.

[22] The sanctions resulted from violations that included the offering of free plane tickets to several athletes along with financial stipends, according to an NCAA report, while other recruits were delivered envelopes filled with cash.

[22] The sanctions were a stain on Indiana's notoriously clean record and undermined the ability to convince talented athletes to come to Bloomington.

[27] With sophomore stars Harry Gonzo, John Isenbarger and Jade Butcher returning for two more years, the Hoosiers were ranked in the preseason top 10 nationally in 1968.

[29] Lee Corso left Louisville and took over as IU head football coach in 1973,[30] leading the Hoosiers to two winning seasons in 1979 and 1980.

[6] The 1979 regular season ended with 7–4 record and earned a trip to the 1979 Holiday Bowl;[6] there the Hoosiers would beat the previously unbeaten BYU.

[33][34] For one season, Sam Wyche, formerly an assistant with the NFL's San Francisco 49ers, led the Indiana Hoosiers football program.

[6] Although he finished with a winless 0–11 record during his first campaign at Indiana in 1984,[37] it would take Mallory just three seasons to lead the Hoosiers to their first bowl appearance under his direction.

[37] Indiana finished with a 6–5 regular-season record in 1986 and capped its season by playing a talented Florida State team in the 1986 All-American Bowl on New Year's Eve.

Indiana running back Anthony Thompson, who was playing in his first bowl game, finished with 127 rushing yards on 28 carries.

In 2006, Hoeppner announced he was taking a medical leave of absence but died shortly afterward following a lengthy battle with brain cancer.

Lynch's tenure has been noted for his strong recruiting and identifying and developing high character young men who want to be part of a family atmosphere.

[70][71][72] When he was hired by IU, Wilson signed a seven-year contract worth $1.2 million annually excluding incentives.

However, Wilson resigned as head coach on December 1, 2016, amidst "philosophical differences" with athletic director Fred Glass and allegations of player mistreatment.

[97][98][99] On December 1, 2016, Hoosiers defensive coordinator Tom Allen was promoted to head coach, replacing Kevin Wilson.

[104] On August 3, 2017, ESPN's College GameDay announced that it will hold its first show of the season in Bloomington, the first time it has been held in that city.

[105] On September 9, 2017, Allen would record his first win as the head coach of the Hoosiers, defeating the Virginia Cavaliers, in Charlottesville, by a score of 34–17.

On November 30, 2019, the Hoosiers defeated in-state rival Purdue 44–41, in two overtimes, to win the Old Oaken Bucket for the first time since 2016.

[121] After the season concluded, defensive coordinator Kane Wommack would leave to become head coach of the South Alabama Jaguars.

On September 23, 2023, Indiana barely eked out a 29–27 victory in 4 overtimes over the Akron Zips, themselves a struggling team that finished its season 2–10 overall.

[136] The 62-year-old Cignetti arrived in Bloomington with impressive credentials, never having a single losing season in 13 years as a head coach at JMU, Elon and IUP.

[137] He also oversaw the Dukes' successful transition from the FCS to the FBS and served as wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator at Alabama under Nick Saban from 2007 to 2010, playing a significant role in the recruitment of many of the Crimson Tide's key players as well as coaching and developing star wide receiver Julio Jones and others.

A proposed stadium, north of the current facility, was planned by the university; however, the outbreak of World War I postponed construction.

The final varsity athletic event for Jordan Field, a baseball game, would occur in 1950 prior to the facility being turned into a parking lot for the nearby Indiana Memorial Union.

The John Mellencamp Pavilion is the primary indoor athletics training facility of the Indiana Hoosiers's football program.

The indoor practice facility contains a regulation-sized football field, featuring a Sportexe Momentum 41 artificial surface which was installed in 2007.

[174] Then-Buckeyes head coach Earle Bruce called Indiana's 1987 win over the Buckeyes "the darkest day in Ohio State football history".

During a bye week, after signing a contract extension, Coach Curt Cignetti claimed Indiana was, "the emerging superpower in college football".