Indiana Reinstates Hoosier The Bison After 60-Year Hiatus, To Debut at 2025 CFB Opener

An iconic Indiana mascot is back.

The school announced Monday that it has reinstated Hoosier the Bison as its official mascot after a nearly 60-year hiatus. According to a press release from Indiana, the Bison will make its debut when the Hoosiers take on Old Dominion in their season opener on Aug. 30 at Memorial Stadium.

According to the university, the return of the Bison comes after the Indiana University Student Body Congress passed the "Bring Back the Bison Act" in December.

"In response to the student government vote to re-adopt the Bison as the official IU-Bloomington mascot, IU Athletics moved forward with embracing it as a symbol of both the department and campus' spirit, passion, tradition, unity, and success," the university said.

While a bison might seem a bit random to those outside of Bloomington and the state of Indiana, the animal has ties to the state dating back to the early 19th century.

"The bison first appeared on official court documents signed by then Indiana Territory Governor and future U.S. President William Henry Harrison in 1801, a full 15 years before Indiana became the country's 19th state in 1816," the university said. "The Indiana Territory seal depicted a woodsman chopping trees while a bison runs in the foreground, symbolizing the country's expansion on the Indiana frontier (at the time, the western boundary of the United States). The bison has been a part of the Indiana state seal ever since."

According to Indiana, the first Bison mascot appeared in 1965 and took on a few different looks over the years before entering a hiatus after the 1969 season. The legend of the Bison has lived on across campus over the past six decades, but now it will return in an official capacity.

The return of the Bison couldn't come at a better time for Indiana.

The Hoosiers are coming off one of their best seasons in program history, going 11-2 overall and 8-1 in conference play on their way to their first College Football Playoff appearance.

New coach Curt Cignetti has taken Indiana from being a Big Ten bottom-feeder to a national contender, and the Hoosiers will look to have a strong season with the Bison back on the sidelines.