Indiana announces return of mascot Hoosier the Bison, set to make debut at season opener on Aug. 30

Next fall, Indiana football will be getting a little extra spirit on the sidelines. The school announced Monday that its one-time mascot, Hoosier the Bison, has been reinstated as the university's official mascot after a nearly 60-year hiatus.

Indiana had hinted at Hoosier's resurgence last May with a video on social media, but made the bison's return official on Monday. Per the school, Hoosier will make his public debut on Aug. 30, as Indiana hosts Old Dominion for its 2025 season opener.

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Hoosier the Bison returns to Indiana's campus decades after a very short-lived run in the 1960s. The mascot was introduced to the school in 1965, going through two re-designs. But waning interest from the students led the school to effectively retire the mascot in 1969.

Last December, Indiana University Student Government voted to renew the bison as the school's official mascot, per the university. Indiana Athletics was tasked with creating and unveiling the new iteration, which will be getting a new round of merchandise and will also have official social media accounts.

Indiana clarified in the announcement that the school's official nickname will still be "Hoosiers," but that the bison will become the official mascot. (Think the Miami Hurricanes and their mascot, Sebastian the Ibis, or the Stanford Cardinal and the unofficial mascot, the Stanford Tree.)

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With Hoosier on the sideline, Indiana will be hoping to recreate some of the success of last season, as the Hoosiers went 11-2 to finish second in the Big Ten and advance to the college football playoff. Indiana went on to lose to Notre Dame in the first round.