Rose Bowl Stadium (Pasadena, Calif.) — Still undefeated, clearly No. 1 and keeping a magical season alive, the Indiana Hoosiers are moving on to the College Football Playoff semifinals after wrecking No. 9 Alabama, 38-3, in the Rose Bowl quarterfinal Thursday.
Fast, physical and relentless is the motto of Curt Cignetti and his Hoosiers. That was overwhelmingly evident in the first quarterfinal game under the 12-team CFP format where the team with the first-round bye won.
A slow start to the highly anticipated matchup led to an offensive explosion from the Hoosiers, who had a 17-0 halftime lead that they never came close to giving up. Indiana quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza put up a stunning performance after not playing since the Big Ten title game on Dec. 6, and the Crimson Tide ran out of steam early in a game where they were already out-matched.
“We’re just a bunch of fighters, and we just scratch and crawl for everything,” Indiana center Pat Coogan — named the Rose Bowl offensive MVP — said Tuesday at media day. “We’ve earned the right to be here.”
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The clear underdog, Alabama, fell to a different drawback when quarterback Ty Simpson exited the sport halfway by means of the third quarter with an harm, leaving backup Austin Mack to steer a second straight 17-point comeback try. However Indiana was unstoppable and is off to the Peach Bowl semifinal.
Listed here are 4 key takeaways from the Hoosiers’ demolition of Alabama within the Rose Bowl quarterfinal:
1. Mendoza is, unquestionably, THAT GUY
(Picture by Ronald Martinez/Getty Photos)
With the best way he’s performed all season, Mendoza was topped the Heisman Trophy winner for a motive. However there’ll all the time be doubters, who had been nearly definitely silenced after watching him tear Alabama’s secondary aside. It had been 26 days since Mendoza final took the sector, so possibly he merely needed to remind everybody why he’s faculty soccer’s most excellent participant whereas carrying his crew to the CFP semifinals.
He appeared slightly stiff, possibly slightly nervous, at first in opposition to Alabama, which sacked him 3 times on Thursday, together with twice on the sport’s three-and-out opening drive. Regardless of the robust move rush, Mendoza nonetheless discovered a solution to join along with his receivers or take off downfield himself.
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Finishing 14 of 16 passes for 192 yards and three touchdowns with out an interception, Mendoza reminded followers that he has a knack for extending performs, particularly along with his legs, and could be the perfect on-field improviser in FBS play. He led an Indiana crew that racked up 407 complete yards, had no turnovers and completed with twice as many first downs (22) as Alabama (11).
Maybe his most beautiful landing was the primary of the sport — a 21-yard landing move to extensive receiver Charlie Becker. After the snap, Mendoza had a reasonably clear pocket to work with. Nonetheless, the move appeared like it could simply sail over Becker’s head, till the receiver prolonged large time to provide Indiana a lead it could by no means come near relinquishing.
“Each place we’ve is elite,” Becker stated at Rose Bowl media day Tuesday. “With our O-line with the ability to shield Fernando, and clearly Fernando [winning] the Heisman, with the ability to get the ball out and get it to play-making receivers like Omar Cooper, E.J. Williams, Elijah Sarratt, we simply have weapons throughout. … So it is arduous for groups to concentrate on only one side once they must concentrate on every part.”
Becker led the Hoosiers receivers with 51 yards and a landing off simply two catches.
That first landing was additionally Indiana’s first Rose Bowl landing ever. The Hoosiers’ solely different Rose Bowl look was in 1968, they usually misplaced, 14-3, to USC.
Lengthy after it was clear Indiana had an insurmountable lead over Alabama, Indiana’s Heisman winner referred to as it a day and was changed by his brother, quarterback Alberto Mendoza, late within the fourth.
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2. Indiana’s championship-level protection can’t be underestimated
(Picture by Ronald Martinez/Getty Photos)
The mix of a robust move rush, forcing turnovers, limiting drives and a giant fourth-down cease within the second quarter is what the Hoosiers’ protection is all about. And it’s the type of squad that’s clearly able to profitable all of it. Indiana saved the Crimson Tide sequestered to their half of the sector for a lot of the sport and stifled their progress at practically each flip.
What’s extra, Indiana handed Alabama its first 30-point loss in a bowl since 1998 and its largest bowl recreation lack of all time, per FOX Sports activities Analysis.
Hoosiers defensive coordinator Bryant Haines’ group was persistent, limiting the Crimson Tide to simply 93 complete yards within the first half and 193 total. Alabama’s first (and solely) rating of the sport didn’t come till the two:44 mark within the third quarter, after Indiana had added one other landing to its lead.
“The entrance seven is actually underrated, particularly the D-line,” Indiana defensive again Louis Moore stated Tuesday at media day. “I do not know their stats, however from my perspective again there, it seems to be like they’re pushing the quarterback each play on the move [rush], however even the run protection.”
Certainly one of Alabama’s extra environment friendly moments got here late within the second quarter and was largely due to two completions from Simpson for eight yards to tight finish Josh Cuevas after which for 13 to extensive receiver Ryan Williams. However on third-and-7 from Alabama’s personal 49-yard line, Simpson noticed a gap, rushed for 9 yards and what would have been a primary down however fumbled the ball away. That was the one turnover by both crew, and Indiana capitalized by scoring a landing on its subsequent possession.
The Hoosiers swarm, hit arduous and seemingly by no means faltered from their A-game. They had been second total in FBS scoring protection (10.8 factors per recreation allowed), and going into the Rose Bowl, they held their final three opponents to a mixed 20 factors, per FOX Sports activities Analysis.
Nicely, that’s now 23 factors in 4 video games, and it’s clear Indiana’s protection is to not be trifled with.
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3. You’ll be able to’t count on to erase a 17-0 deficit twice in the identical CFP
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A scoreless first quarter — the Rose Bowl’s first since 2000 — steered this CFP quarterfinal can be a defensive slugfest, particularly following a wet morning. However the Hoosiers’ offense is likely one of the extra prolific within the nation and exploded within the second quarter with two touchdowns and a subject aim.
By halftime, Alabama was caught in a well-known 17-0 deficit. However the odds had been tremendously stacked in opposition to the Crimson Tide coming again Thursday the best way they did in opposition to No. 8 Oklahoma within the CFP first-round recreation. Towards the Sooners, Alabama not solely tied the sport up by halftime, but it surely additionally received a number of assist from cartoonish Oklahoma errors.
However Indiana and Oklahoma aren’t on the identical degree. Whereas the Hoosiers’ protection is statistically on par with the Sooners, their explosive and balanced offense is at one other degree. And the Crimson Tide discovered that the arduous manner, as little or no went of their favor.
“[It’s] undoubtedly one thing that we’ll look again on in years to come back and say, ‘We had been in a position to play in opposition to the perfect of the perfect and shoot our shot in opposition to the perfect of the perfect,’” Indiana operating again Roman Hemby stated at media day Tuesday.
“We will play actually arduous and do every part that we are able to to win,” added Hemby, who completed with 89 yards and a landing on 18 carries. “I really feel like that is what Massive Ten champions, and that is what nationwide champions do.”
Out of halftime, Alabama began with the ball and had a fast three-and-out drive, whereas the Hoosiers hit the tip zone on their first drive of the second half. That just about set the tone for the remainder of the sport for each the Hoosiers and the Crimson Tide, who had been merely out-matched throughout the board.
Alabama transformed simply 3-of-11 third downs, and Simpson accomplished 12-of-16 passes for 67 yards, whereas Mack went 11-for-16 for 103 yards.
4. Alabama wants an environment friendly run recreation to compete in a 12-team CFP
(Picture by Ronald Martinez/Getty Photos)
Alabama’s floor recreation has fallen a good distance because the days of Mark Ingram and Derrick Henry, or much more lately with Najee Harris and Jahmyr Gibbs. After all, the Crimson Tide are in a special period lately, however a nonexistent run recreation restricted all of them season. Their 109.9 speeding yards per recreation this season ranked them one hundred and twentieth in FBS play and was the bottom common in a season since 1955, per FOX Sports activities Analysis.
They nearly definitely wanted a two-dimensional offense to take down the No. 1 crew within the nation. Of Alabama’s 193 complete yards within the loss, simply 23 had been on the bottom. And in response to FOX Sports activities Analysis, the crew completed the season being held to fewer than 300 complete yards in 4 straight video games and fewer than 30 speeding yards in three straight video games.
4 ½. What’s subsequent?
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The highest-ranked Hoosiers dominated and superior to the School Soccer Playoff semifinal recreation on the Peach Bowl in Atlanta on Jan. 9. They’ll face a well-known opponent in No. 5 Oregon with a visit to the Jan. 19 nationwide championship recreation on the road. Indiana and the Geese met in Eugene in October, and the Hoosiers prevailed in a 30-20 victory.
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