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The Indiana Hoosiers will play the Alabama Crimson Tide in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals on New Year’s Day in what may be the team’s biggest challenge yet.
The Hoosiers solidified their Playoff spot earlier this month with a Big Ten Championship victory over the Ohio State Buckeyes. From here on out, things will only get tougher for the team led by Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza.
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Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Fernando Mendoza (15) and quarterback Alberto Mendoza (16) walk the field to warm up before the 2025 Big Ten Championship Game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Lucas Oil Stadium on Dec. 6, 2025. (Aaron Doster/Image Images)
Mendoza said he will accept the challenge that the Crimson Tide will present. His comments on the Big Ten Network on Tuesday suggested he has the right mindset to pull off a win.
“I think one message we call all-encompassing is, ‘Pressure is a privilege.’ Even though we’re the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff, we have high expectations; it’s the first time Indiana has done this. At the same time, we’re grateful and we want this opportunity. This is what we’ve been working on all offseason.
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Indiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti watches before the 2025 Big Ten Championship Game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Lucas Oil Stadium on December 6, 2025. (Robert Goddin/Image Images)
“It’s not like we’re here to defend something. We don’t have this Rose Bowl victory. We don’t have the national championship. We don’t have a semifinal yet. We don’t have the Rose Bowl trophy, or we don’t have roses in our mouths yet. We have to go get it. We have to go for it, especially against a great team like Alabama, an SEC giant. We have to go take it. We’re very blessed and honored for the opportunity (coach Curt Cignetti said), it’s something we’re going to remember for the rest of our lives, and although the boys’ trip to New York was wonderful, I would say that we have all been working very diligently because we all worked our entire lives for this moment and for this opportunity. As younger children we dreamed of this, as older men, we will remember it.
The Hoosiers finished undefeated in the regular season for the first time since 1945 when they were 9-0-1. The team was ranked No. 1 in the final Associated Press regular season poll for the first time.
A lot of this has to do with how Cignetti led his team during the year and how Mendoza stepped up in games despite costly turnovers.
Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Kalen Deboer yells from the sideline in the first half against the Oklahoma Sooners at Gaylord Family OK Memorial Stadium on Dec. 19, 2025. (Nelson Chenault/Image Images)
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Now, Indiana will certainly be able to show if they are true national title contenders by facing a giant in Alabama.
