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Atlanta–the principle of dominance has been Indiana Football from the moment coach Curt Cignetti arrived on campus.
Since the start of the 2024 season, Indiana leads the nation in point differential, outscoring its opponents by 28.8 points per game, an average of 5.4 points better than any other team. But every step in Indiana’s historic journey through the College Football Playoff has brought concerns about whether the Hoosiers will continue to win with style — or whether they will just keep winning. CFP games are known to be hard-fought, like Thursday’s semifinal miami And ole miss At the Fiesta Bowl.
But Indiana has no interest in drama. Just more dominance. Top-seeded Hoosiers finished 5th oregon 56-22 In the CFP Semifinals at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl on Friday, they took the lead in the first game from scrimmage with a defensive score and never looked back. Indiana blew a 42–7 lead and scored touchdowns on four consecutive offensive drives, repeating a familiar script on another big stage and avoiding the fate of other teams in a rematch against an opponent it had defeated.
The Hoosiers improved to 15–0 and advanced to the national championship game, where they will face No. 10 seed Miami on January 19. storm’s home rangeHard Rock Stadium, but in homecoming for IU quarterback Fernando MendozaHeisman Trophy winner.
“We always come with a big accomplishment on our shoulders, something to prove,” wide receiver Charlie Baker told ESPN. “A lot of people doubted us, they say every game we played was going to be close games, or they said, ‘We’re going to take on the other team.’ But I think we’ve come here and proven that we can handle these types of games, and as the years go on, our chip on our shoulder grows more and more, making the dog in us want to come out even more.
Baker said the completeness of Indiana’s victory was created by Cignetti, who improved to 25-2 as Indiana’s coach. Indiana defeated alabama and Oregon by a combined score of 94–25 in their two CFP games.
“There was a lot of suspicion after last year that we were a fluke,” Cignetti said. “He [2024] The team did a lot of great work and got everything started. That team never trailed until the ninth game of the year, and when it did, it led 10–0 in the first quarter. michigan stateHe scored 47 runs straight. …I think a lot of the negative talk in the media is encouraging for the guys returning from this team, and we’ve added some real key pieces.”
Indiana’s offense started from cornerback on the first play from scrimmage. D’Angelo Pond jumped a route to oregon malik bensonintercepted the ball and drove into the end zone for his third scoring return in as many seasons. Ponds saw the play as a run-pass option and played away from Benson so he could break on the ball.
“It’s like reading [Moore’s] Eyes and got a good jump on it,” Ponds said. “It’s an amazing feeling to walk into the end zone.”
Moore then lost two fumbles – his first in an Oregon uniform – later in the first half, by one. Daniel Ndukwe bag. Indiana punted deep into Oregon territory and converted a touchdown to extend its lead.
“I know that [Moore] We left our last game thinking, ‘I was seeing a ghost.’ I have cleared those mistakes. ”I’m going to be better this time,” Indiana defensive coordinator Bryant Haynes said. “Your team lost six points because of your first throw, I think it affected him [significant],
Mendoza made no such mistakes, delivering another nearly flawless CFP performance, completing 17 of 20 passes for 177 yards and five touchdowns. In two CFP contests, the Heisman winner has eight touchdown passes, zero interceptions and only five incompletions.
“My job is to be effective with really accurate balls and really great decisions, and that’s what I’m proud of every single game,” Mendoza said. ‘So I’m glad these results have come. However, none of this matters. that’s all that matters right now [the] National championship.”
Mendoza is a Miami native who attended the same high school (Christopher Columbus) as Miami University coach Mario Cristobal, who teamed there with Mendoza’s father, also named Fernando. The younger Mendoza grew up less than a mile from the University of Miami campus and attended games at Hard Rock Stadium but never played there.
Now he’ll try to win Indiana’s first national championship in what Mendoza called “a very fulfilling moment.”
“We’ve definitely talked about it,” the Indiana quarterback said. Alberto MendozaFernando’s younger brother told ESPN. “We saw Miami in the playoffs, we were like, ‘Wow, play Miami in the playoffs.’ We knew we were going to make it, but just knowing that we could see them in Miami in Miami is kind of crazy, because everyone in my hometown is a Miami fan. It would mean a lot.”
Alberto Mendoza said he hopes some Miami fans support him and Fernando in the title game – not that Indiana needs any extra support. Hoosiers fans flocked to Atlanta and filled the stands at Merced-Benz Stadium, providing a home-like atmosphere.
“Seeing the fans really come out and show love, it really puts it into perspective, the gravity of what we’ve done here,” Ndukwe said.
However, Indiana is not finished. An unimaginable opportunity awaits at the National Championship.
Another chance to win. Another chance to dominate.
“It’s a standard at this point,” Baker said. “But still, the job is not over. We still have one more game to play.”
ESPN’s Pete Thamel contributed to this report.
