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As someone who grew up with Miami Hurricanes star running back Mark Fletcher Jr., Indiana cornerback D’Angelo Ponds was very surprised to see him have an altercation with his Hoosiers teammate.
The Hoosiers made history Monday night by defeating the Hurricanes to finish the first-ever college football season 16-0 since 1894. It was Jamari Sharpe, Ponds’ teammate and another football player he grew up with in the Miami area, who secured the game-winning interception from quarterback Carson Beck at Hard Rock Stadium.
After the game, the ESPN broadcast captured an altercation in which Fletcher, who scored two touchdowns for Miami in the 27-21 loss, punched Hoosiers’ Tyrique Tucker. It could have escalated even more if Hurricanes teammates and staff members hadn’t held Fletcher back as celebration ensued for the Hoosiers.
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Indiana Hoosiers DB D’Angelo Ponds (5) during a college football game between the UCLA Bruins and the Indiana Hoosiers on October 25, 2025 at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, IN. (James Black/Sportswire Icon)
Ponds was on hand with Sharpe and Hoosiers wide receiver Elijah Sarrat for a celebratory “changeover” at Raising Cane’s in Bloomington, Indiana, and before meeting the rowdy fans outside, he spoke with PK Press Club Digital about that moment with Fletcher and Tucker.
“Those guys that were going at it, he’s a guy that I knew growing up and things like that,” Ponds said of Fletcher, who attended American Heritage High School in Plantation, Fla. — just a half-hour from his own Chaminade-Madonna Prep.
“I don’t know the whole story about it. I was really shocked by this guy because he’s a guy I knew growing up.”
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Ponds suggested that was out of character for Fletcher, one of the Hurricanes’ leaders who helped them reach the College Football Playoff national championship game to begin with.
Tucker was accused of making a remark about Fletcher’s deceased father after the Hoosiers’ victory. Mike Rumph, Miami’s director of recruiting, claimed in an Instagram comment that Tucker made the comment.
“Dude was talking about Mark’s dad who passed away last year. Mark is and always will be one of the most classy people you will ever meet. RIP Mr. Fletcher,” Rumph wrote.
Tucker had a different version of what happened.
Miami Hurricanes running back Mark Fletcher Jr. (4) rushes for a touchdown against the Indiana Hoosiers in the second half during the College Football Playoff national championship game at Hard Rock Stadium on January 19, 2026. (Nathan Ray Seebeck/Imagn Images)
“I was just trying to congratulate him on the game,” he told the Herald-Times. “He tried to sneak up on me, everyone was kind of holding me back. It was a cheap punch. Luckily we won, I don’t really worry. He’s salty, he’s going home with the L.”
Tucker apparently wanted to congratulate Fletcher on his two touchdowns before things went south, according to the Herald-Times. He said he didn’t tell her anything.
Fletcher has yet to comment on the incident.
In lighter news, Ponds also told reporters Thursday at Raising Cane’s in Bloomington, Indiana, that he plans to enter the 2026 NFL Draft.
Indiana cornerback D’Angelo Ponds reflected on Mark Fletcher Jr. hitting his teammate, Tyrique Tucker, after the national championship. (GETTY)
“I haven’t officially announced it,” he said, “but yes, that’s the plan.”
Ponds, a 5-foot-9, 173-pound cornerback, is projected to be a second-day pick next April by draft experts.
