#1 Indiana and #5 Oregon battle in the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Peach Bowl 

By Nick Jenkinson/Excel H Sports

    For the third straight year the Big Ten will have a team in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game and that spot will be decided in the Semifinals at the Peach Bowl in Atlanta, Georgia between the #5 Oregon Ducks and the #1 Indiana Hoosiers from the Mercedes Benz Stadium this evening at 7:30 PM on ESPN.  The Winner heads to the National Championship Game on January 19, in Miami, Florida to face the #10 Miami Hurricanes who knocked off the #6 Ole Miss Rebels 31-27 in the other Semifinal at the Fiesta Bowl at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona Thursday Night.

   The Big Ten has won the last two National Championships and three since the College Football Playoff began after the 2014 Season. Michigan beat Washington 34-13 on January 8, 2024, as Huskies moved to the Big Ten to start the 2025 Football Season. Ohio State beat Notre Dame 34-23 on January 20, 2025, at the same venue the Hoosiers and Ducks will square off.

    Oregon has been in the National Championship Game twice and have come up short. The Ducks lost to Auburn 22-19 in Glendale, Arizona on January 10, 2011, when it was the Bowl Championship Series and to Ohio State 42-40 on January 12, 2015, in Arlington, Texas in the first College Football Playoff National Championship Game. Indiana is looking to make its first ever National Championship Game appearance as neither team has ever won a National Championship in Football.

    The Hoosiers are one of the best stories in all of sports from rags to riches and just two games away from a National Championship in a sport that Hoosier Nation never thought was even possible. Indiana is 14-0 and ranked number 1 in the country and the top seed in the College Football Playoff. The Hoosiers have changed the narrative around a program that has achieved success under second year Head Coach Curt Cignetti that fan base could only dream of. Indiana finished 11-2 a season ago and 8-1 in the Big Ten as they lost in the first round of the College Football Playoff at Notre Dame. This was the first time that the Hoosiers achieved 10 wins or more in a season and 8 wins in the Big Ten.

     Indiana completed a perfect 12-0 regular season for the first time in program history along with a 9-0 Big Ten record and just the second ever that the Hoosiers finished a season without a loss as the 1945 team won the outright Big Ten title with a 9-0-1 record. Indiana made it to its first ever Big Ten Conference Championship game as the number 2 team in the country and beat then #1 and previously  unbeaten Ohio State 13-10 on December 6 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis to win the Big Ten Conference Championship for the third time in school history and the first since 1967 when the Hoosiers split the Big Ten Title and appeared in the Rose Bowl losing to top ranked USC 14-3 on January 1, 1968.

    The Hoosiers became the number 1 team in all major polls for the first time in program history and were awarded the number 1 seed in the College Football Playoff and the only team in the FBS to finish with a perfect  record. Indiana was awarded with a trip to the Rose Bowl Game for the just second time ever 58 years after making their first appearance.

   Before the Hoosiers played in the Rose Bowl and had to wait to find out who they were going to play they went through the College Football Award Season as Quarterback Fernando Mendoza and Head Coach Curt Cignetti took home all the major awards as Mendoza won the Player of the Year and Cignetti the Coach of the Year. December 13th became another historic day as Mendoza became the school’s first ever Heisman Trophy Winner and he along with his family, coaches and teammates got to celebrate in New York City.

    The Hoosiers watched the First game of the College Football Playoff Quarterfinals between #9 Alabama and #8 Oklahoma in Norman on December 19, as Alabama came back from a 17-0 deficit to beat Oklahoma 34-24 and advance to the Rose Bowl to face Indiana for the very first time on the gridiron. Indiana playing it’s first game as the Number 1 team in the country showed why they are the Number 1 team in the country dominating the Crimson Tide 38-3 for their first ever Rose Bowl win, it was the Hoosiers first College Football Playoff win and the first win as the number 1 team in the nation.

     The Hoosiers are the only team in the 2 years of this 12 team playoff format to win their Quarterfinal after receiving a first round bye. Fernando Mendoza showed why he was the Hiesman Trophy Winner as he completed 14 of his 16 Passes for 192 yards and threw three touchdown passes as Indiana dominated Alabama with 407 yards of total offense including 215 rushing yards and holding the Crimson Tide to 193 yards total offense and just 23 rushing yards.

    After a scoreless first quarter the Hoosiers scored 17 points in the second quarter and outscored Alabama 21-3 in the second half. Center Pat Coogan and the offensive line were named the Rose Bowl Offensive MVP and D’Angelo Pounds was named the Defensive MVP for his hit on Alabama Quarterback Ty Simpson forcing a a fumble that was recovered by Isaiah Jones and knocked Simpson out of the game

    The Hoosiers have been dominant with 583 points for an offensive average of 41.6 per game. On defense Indiana has been lights out giving up 144 points for an average of 10.2 points per game. Indiana has allowed 20 or more points in just two games giving up 20 points at Oregon and 24 points at Penn State. The Hoosiers are 25-2 under Curt Cignetti and have won 21 of those games by double digits.

    Oregon is 13-1 overall  and has won 8 in a row since the 30-20 loss to Indiana at home on October 11. The Hoosiers snapped the Ducks 18 game home winning streak and took them out of the Big Ten Championship Game with an 8-1 Big Ten Record. Oregon is coming off 23-0 win over #4 Texas Tech in the College Football Playoff Quarterfinals at the Orange Bowl in Miami which is the site of the National Championship Game.

    The Ducks defense led the way as Matayo Uiagalelei caused a fumble to set up a touchdown and Brandon Finney Jr had two takeaways with two interceptions and a fumble recovery as the Ducks held the Red Raiders 215 yards of total offense. Oregon racked up 309 yards with 245 of those through the air.

    Since the loss to Indiana,  Oregon has scored 279 points and allowed 121 points and seven of the eight wins have come by double digits. The Ducks survived an 18-16 win at Iowa on November 8 and the Hoosiers beat the Hawkeyes by five points 20-15 earlier in the season. Oregon has scored 532 points for an offensive average of 38 points per game while they have given up 212 points for a defensive average of  15.1 points per game. Oregon survived a 30-24 double overtime victory at Penn State on September 27 as the Hoosiers railles to beat the Nittany Lions 27-24 in State College with Omar Cooper Jr’s incredible catch in the back of the end zone in the final seconds to keep the Hoosiers unbeaten hopes alive.

     It is hard to beat a team twice in the same season and most times the team that falls in the first game gets revenge in the rematch. For Oregon they would love to continue the trend and be able to return to Miami for the second time in 18 days. For Indiana it’s to keep the story alive of the greatest turnaround in sports alive and for Fernando Mendoza he and his brother Alberto would get a chance to return to their hometown of Miami and play for National Championship against the Hometown Team in the Miami Hurricanes but regardless of who wins this game the Big Ten will have a team in the National Championship and have a chance to be on top the College Football world for the third year in a row.