6 Things Hoosiers and Ohioans Will Argue About Forever
Neil Armstrong grew up in Wapakoneta, Ohio, and got his diploma in Indiana.
Hoosiers and Ohioans both claim him as theirs, and that’s just one argument between the neighbors.
Here are the things Hoosiers and Ohioans will argue about forever.
1. Football Bragging Rights
Football gave Ohio State and Indiana a fresh argument, and you only have to go back to January 2025 to see where it starts.
That’s when Ohio State won the national championship, beating Notre Dame 34-23 in Atlanta.
Notre Dame came in ranked No. 5 with a 14-2 record.
Then Indiana showed up.
On Dec. 6, 2025, the No. 2 Hoosiers beat No. 1 Ohio State 13-10 to win the Big Ten title.
Indiana hadn’t beaten Ohio State in 37 years.
It was Indiana’s first Big Ten title in 58 years.
That win moved Indiana to 13-0 and likely clinched the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.
Indiana finished the job on Jan. 19, 2026, beating Miami 27-21 for the first national championship in program history.
Ask a Buckeye fan and a Hoosier fan which result matters more, and many of them will give you a different answer.
2. Basketball Banners
Basketball flips the football argument, and if you count men’s national championships, Indiana has the longer list.
Indiana won the national championship in 1940, 1953, 1976 and 1987, among others.
Ohio’s titles came from two schools: Ohio State won in 1960, and Cincinnati followed in 1961 and 1962.
Ohio State and Cincinnati were both in the Final Four in 1961 and again in 1962.
Jerry Lucas was the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player in Ohio State’s 1960 title run.
Keith Smart earned the same honor for Indiana in 1987.
If you count by school, Indiana’s list is longer than Ohio State’s or Cincinnati’s.
Then there’s 1976.
If you want a perfect season, Indiana’s team that year went 32-0.
Many Hoosiers will point to that perfect season, and many Ohioans will point to Cincinnati’s back-to-back titles.
3. Wright Brothers
The Wright brothers give Indiana and Ohio the same bragging point from two directions.
You can find “Birthplace of Aviation” on Ohio license plates, a nod to the Dayton brothers and their bicycle shop.
Indiana has Wilbur’s birthplace.
If you drive to Henry County, you’ll find a state historical marker for the birthplace of Wilbur Wright.
He was born on April 16, 1867, and the marker sits 3 miles north of Millville.
Wilbur and his brother, Orville, began studying flight in 1896.
Indiana Public Media argues that the brothers’ deep roots in Indiana give the state a strong stake in how aviation began.
Both sides have a point.
Many Hoosiers and Ohioans will tell you their side settles it.
4. Neil Armstrong
Neil Armstrong is an Ohio hometown hero with an Indiana diploma.
Wapakoneta, Ohio, is Armstrong’s hometown, and the Armstrong Air & Space Museum is there.
The museum is at 500 Apollo Drive.
Purdue University lists him with a bachelor’s degree in aeronautical engineering.
Many Hoosiers point to the diploma, and many Ohioans point to the hometown.
Both claims hold up.
If you’re keeping score, you can give Ohio the hometown and Purdue the degree.
Purdue’s Astronaut Count
Purdue says 27 of its graduates have become astronauts, Ohio’s Neil Armstrong among them.
Eighteen of them earned degrees from its School of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
Its astronaut alumni page is titled “Cradle of Astronauts.”
5. Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison was born in Ohio and built his career in Indiana, which leaves you with two states that can claim him.
Harrison was born on August 20, 1833, in North Bend.
He attended Farmer’s College, a prep school in Cincinnati, then graduated from Miami University in 1852.
If you trace his path from there, he studied law in Cincinnati and moved to Indianapolis in April 1854.
Indianapolis elected him city attorney in 1857.
In 1862, Indiana’s governor commissioned him a colonel, and he led the 70th Indiana.
The Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site in Indianapolis describes itself as the home of the 23rd president.
Call it a tie.
Psst! How much do you know about Indiana and Ohio? Flip through these cards and see how many you can get right.
6. Johnny Appleseed
Johnny Appleseed did his nursery work in Ohio and died in Indiana, which gives each state a piece of his story.
His apple saplings centered on what’s now Richland, Ashland, Wayne and Knox counties in Ohio.
He later worked his way toward northwestern Ohio, including Hancock, Putnam, Mercer, Auglaize and Defiance counties.
He died on March 18, 1845, at the home of friends near Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Accounts say he caught pneumonia after a long walk in the cold.
He reportedly left roughly 1,200 acres to his sister.
The Johnny Appleseed Museum says the exact spot of his grave is disputed.
If you go looking, you’ll find a memorial in the Archer family graveyard.
It went up in 1916 because the exact grave was unmarked.
The group that decided to honor him that year was the Indiana and Ohio Horticultural Society.
3 Cold-Weather Grooming Habits Indiana Veterinarians Say Do More Harm Than Good
Veterinarians at Purdue University warn that salt and ice-melt chemicals stuck to a dog’s paws after a winter walk can injure the skin underneath.
Skipping your dog’s paw wipe-down is one of many cold-weather habits that can do more harm than good.
3 Cold-Weather Grooming Habits Indiana Veterinarians Say Do More Harm Than Good
10 Kroger Finds Ohioans Secretly Hoard
Kroger’s start traces to a single store on Pearl Street in downtown Cincinnati in 1883.
Its headquarters is still in Cincinnati.
