Indiana Hoosiers blowout of Alabama Crimson Tide sends firm message about the future of College Football Playoff
In previous years, only the blue bloods of college football had a chance to win the national title. Indiana’s ascent epitomizes why the playoff is important.
The Indiana Hoosiers weren’t supposed to be here.
When they hired head coach Curt Cignetti, it was an upgrade from coaching the James Madison Dukes, but the program wasn’t exactly high-end. Going into the 2024 season, the Hoosiers had the second-most losses in the history of the FBS and hadn’t won a bowl game since 1991, when they defeated the Baylor Bears 24-0 in the Copper Bowl.
Since then, the Hoosiers were 0-7 in bowl games before they defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide 38-3 in the Rose Bowl Quarterfinal of the College Football Playoff on Thursday, and it might be the most important game in the recent memory of college football.
Indiana’s blowout win vs. Alabama was no fluke
The last two years have been a renaissance for the Hoosiers. Cignetti has a record of 25-2 with their two losses being to top-10 teams in the Ohio State Buckeyes and Notre Dame Fighting Irish in last year’s College Football Playoff. Going into the Big Ten Championship against the aforementioned Buckeyes, there were still plenty who didn’t believe. They won a war 13-10 and came into the Rose Bowl with something to prove.
Led by Heisman Trophy-winner Fernando Mendoza, they marched into the Rose Bowl and jumped out to a 24-0 lead in the third quarter, allowing just a single field goal and outgaining the Crimson Tide 407-193. It was a thorough domination that started in the trenches, and they proved the moment wasn’t too big for them.
“Well, I mean, why should it be too big? Because our name is Indiana?” Cignetti said. “We have a lot of veteran starters. They’ve played a lot of successful football in their careers. They have high character. There’s great leadership and character on this football team, and we’ve come through in clutch moments. So I’m proud of the way they responded, prepared, and met this challenge… it’s a great win.”
Indiana Hoosiers’ success gives hope to the rest of college football
We’ve seen the Hoosiers completely turn their program around in the last two seasons, something nobody expected to happen. In a four-team playoff system, a team like Indiana would not be able to have any blemishes on their resume. Alabama can make the playoff while not even playing in the SEC Championship Game, but Indiana would have to be flawless. Now that there are 12 teams in the playoff, teams that would have been considered outsiders now have a chance.
What Indiana has done is unprecedented, and it would be foolish to believe that another team could easily replicate their success. However, what their tremendous run has done is give hope.
If you are a fan of programs like the Syracuse Orangemen, the Northwestern Wildcats, or the UCLA Bruins, this should give you a large sense of hope. If you get the right head coach and infrastructure in place, you can give yourself a playoff run. It’s especially possible with the advent of the transfer portal and recruiting becoming more and more leveled out.
Nothing is guaranteed in college football, nor is it predictable. What the expanded playoff and the Hoosiers have shown is that the national title isn’t just available for the blue bloods of the sport. If you can get your program set up properly, you can make a run to the College Football Playoff. Having hope is important in college football, and having more teams with it will be great for the sport long-term.
Indiana may be the first to surprise us with a run in the College Football Playoff, but they won’t be the last, and that’s a good thing.
Alabama Crimson Tide News
Alabama’s loss to Indiana in the Rose Bowl is just the latest in what has become a disturbing trend in the Kalen DeBoer era
Alabama’s loss to Indiana wasn’t only disappointing, it was the latest in what has become all too common under Kalen DeBoer.
