6-Banner Sunday: IU football rolls to an easy win against North Texas
- Staff
- 1h ago
Welcome to another edition of 6-Banner Sunday, a joint production between The Assembly Call and Inside the Hall, where we highlight the five most essential IU sports stories of the past week. 6-Banner Sunday is written by Ari Shifron.
The major news this week in Bloomington happened on the gridiron as IU football began its defense of its national title against North Texas. The offense looked ready to roll in a dominant win.
Also, a former Hoosier wants to return to the NBA, a documentary debuted focused on a legendary IU announcer and Big Ten basketball rosters continue to take shape. As usual, we will conclude with a look at the weekly shows and the rest of the Hoosier sports scene, which was led by volleyball’s two huge victories over SEC opponents.
Here is what is in this week’s edition:
• IU football dominates North Texas in season opener
• Former IU basketball star Victor Oladipo wants another shot at the NBA
• Don Fischer documentary makes its debut
• Big Ten basketball rosters update for 2026-27 season
• Back Home Network shows
• Hoosier Roundup
Banner #1 – IU football dominates North Texas in season opener
IU football’s defense of its national title kicked off Saturday at Memorial Stadium. The Hoosiers are once again expected to be near the top of the conference and amongst the best teams in college football.
With expectations high, Indiana opened its season with a showdown against North Texas as a heavy favorite.
With a veteran-laden squad, as well as excellent depth, including Stephen Daley and Kellan Wyatt for now, Indiana rolled to a 52-16 victory against the Mean Green in front of a sellout crowd. While the defense surprisingly struggled and Indiana’s trench play looked rusty, other areas thrived.
The offense, led by TCU transfer QB Josh Hoover, was fantastic, going 13-for-16 with four touchdowns. Also, Charlie Becker and Nick Marsh looked in midseason form with tough touchdown grabs and new RB Turbo Richard looked excellent as well.
Afterward, Cignetti spoke and Inside the Hall had a photo gallery as a championship celebration took place pregame to reveal the new marquee in the stadium showing the national championship won in 2025. IU returns to action next week at 12 p.m. ET on BTN against Howard.
Banner #2 – Former IU basketball star Victor Oladipo wants another shot at the NBA
Former IU star Victor Oladipo had a turbulent NBA career. After starring for the Hoosiers and leading them to the number one ranking in the country during 2012-2013, he was drafted into the league by the Magic as the No. 2 overall pick.
He initially lived up to the hype, having a solid career in Orlando and Oklahoma City. However, his big break appeared to come in 2017, when he was traded to the Pacers in the offseason and became the team’s primary star the following year. He led them to a near upset of LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the playoffs and was named the league’s most improved player, averaging a career-high 23.1 points per game.
Despite being embraced by fans in Indiana and appearing to be the next franchise cornerstone as a two-time All-Star, he saw his trajectory change forever the following season. On January 23 of 2019, he went down on a fast break in a game against the Raptors with a ruptured quadriceps tendon. After this, he was never the same player again, losing a step in his athleticism and suffering more injuries. Eventually, he was forced out of the league and played briefly in China.
Last season, Oladipo played in the G League. However, he recently penned a letter in the Player’s Tribune to GM’s asking for one more chance in the NBA, believing he is now healthy at 34 years old.
Whether anyone takes a flier on him remains to be seen. With that said, he remains one of the most beloved Indiana players of recent times, thanks to his stints with IU and the Pacers, where he was their go-to contributor.
Banner #3 – Don Fischer documentary makes its debut
IU legendary broadcaster Don Fischer had a documentary about him released recently. The lead producer and writer for the film Timeless: Don Fischer’s half-century of broadcasting IU sports is Mark Alesia.
It debuted at Assembly Hall recently and is an Indiana Public Media production. It can be viewed on YouTube here.
Banner #4 – Big Ten basketball rosters update for 2026-27 season
The Big Ten saw massive roster turnover across multiple programs, including IU. As a result, Inside the Hall looked at where each team’s personnel stands heading into this fall.
Banner #5 – Back Home Network shows
The Back Home Network has many shows. As a result, it was on air several times this week with programming.
Banner #6 – Hoosier Roundup
• Volleyball had a huge week against the SEC, beating Georgia and defending national champ Texas A&M.
• Men’s soccer tied Louisville and beat Cal Poly.
• Field hockey lost to Louisville but beat New Hampshire.
• Women’s soccer fell to St. Louis.
• Women’s golf finished tied for ninth in its season-opening tournament.
• Men’s golf finished tied for 16th in its season-opening tournament.
• Cross country ran its season-opening event with the Sam Bell Invitational.
• Baseball had an incoming recruit receive preseason honors.
• Softball announced its fall exhibition schedule.
• Track and Field announced its upcoming recruiting class.
• Ten IU swimmers made the US National Team.
• Finally, personnel were announced for the Student Athletic Board.
Thanks for your continued support of The Assembly Call and Inside the Hall. We’ll be back next weekend with a new roundup.
Now go enjoy yourself a 6-Banner Sunday.
Aaron (Ari) Shifron
Assembly Call Contributor
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