Indiana vs. Miami: College Football Playoff National Championship Preview
Preview of the College Football Playoff national championship game, Indiana vs. Miami. Featuring key players, strategies and predictions.
- This article frames the hypothetical Indiana state championship as the most unexpected event in modern college football history.
- Some of these surprise champions, such as Auburn in 2010 and Pittsburgh in 1976, were led by Heisman Trophy winners.
What could have been written back in August no longer applies: Indiana’s last outright Big Ten championship was 1945, its last nine-win season was 1967, and its last consecutive bowl appearances were in 2015-16. The last time they won consecutive games was in 1987-88.
Without a doubt, Indiana’s title would be the most unexpected in modern Bowl Subdivision history, considering the program’s dismal history as a doormat in the Big Ten and Power Four.
The Hoosiers, reborn as a powerhouse team by second-year coach Curt Cignetti, will enter the title game against Miami with a reason to be considered the best team in the College Football Playoff era.
With the undefeated Hoosiers in a class by themselves, let’s take a look back at eight past national champions who defied odds and expectations and came out of nowhere to win a title.
Two words: Cam Newton. After going 5-7 in coach Tommy Tuberville’s final season, the 2009 team went 8-5 under new coach Gene Chizik and tied for fourth in the SEC West. Auburn, ranked No. 23 in the preseason poll, then signed Newton and went on to a perfect 14-0 record with seven single-digit wins, including the Iron Bowl (28-27) and the title game against Oregon (22-19). This was Auburn’s only ranking from 2008 to 2012. The other four teams surrounding the title team had a combined score of 24-26.
It would be worth paroloing down
Perhaps the most consistently successful post-war program hit rock bottom in the 1990s, posting a three-game losing streak from 1996 to 1998 under then-coach John Blake. But Blake recruited a significant portion of the same roster that Bob Stoops had led to a national championship in his second year on the job, leading a team that debuted 19th in the preseason to the most unexpected of the program’s seven titles. Junior college quarterback Josh Heupel leads the offense, and the defense features outstanding players, including LB Rocky Calmus.
1990 Georgia Tech
The Yellow Jackets shared the title with Colorado and finished 11-1 in 1989, finishing fourth in the coaches poll. In comparison, Tech improved to 2-9 in 1987, 3-8 in 1988 and 7-4 in 1989 under new coach Bobby Ross. The 1990 George Tech team wasn’t ranked until October and didn’t crack the top five until late December, when they defeated the University of Nebraska in the Citrus Bowl to win the common title. The Jackets would fall to 19-27 over the next four seasons.
1984 Brigham Young
The last team outside of the current Power 4 teams to win a national title, BYU finished the 1984 season as the nation’s only undefeated team and one of only four teams with fewer than two losses. This perfect storm scenario lifted the Cougars over No. 2 Washington in a close poll, making the 1984 team the fifth team in six years under coach LaVell Edwards to win at least 11 games.
1983 Miami (Florida)
Miami debuted in 1926 and enjoyed some success in the 1950s, but had only two winning seasons, going 6-5 from 1968 to 1978. However, under coach Howard Schnellenberger, the program began to grow, going 9-3 in 1980, 9-2 in 1981, and 7-4 in 1982. The 1983 team lost its season opener to Florida by 25 points and did not break into the top 25 until October, ranking fifth when it played Nebraska in the Orange Bowl. After stopping the Cornhuskers’ two-point shot at the last minute, Miami surged to No. 1 after losses to Texas and Illinois and a narrow victory for Auburn, christening the dynasty that dominated the sport for the next two decades.
1976 Pittsburgh
From 1964 to 1972, Pittsburgh went 22-68-2 with four one-win seasons, including a 1-10 loss in 1972. After hiring coach Johnny Majors, the Panthers went 6-5-1 in 1973, 7-4 in 1974, and 8-4 in 1975, gaining momentum heading into 1976 with late-season wins over Notre Dame and the Sun. Beat Kansas in the bowl. Like Newton at Auburn in 2010, the 1976 Panthers were led by Heisman winner running back Tony Dorsett, who rushed for 1,948 yards during the regular season and another 202 in the Sugar Bowl win over Georgia.
1965 Michigan State University
The Spartans were 35-2 from 1950-53 and top-three in 1955 and 1957, but then fell down the Big Ten ladder, going 36-24-3 overall and 23-17-2 in conference play from 1958-64. But coach Duffy Dougherty and Michigan State ushered in a new era in college football by integrating black rosters in the early 1960s, building a team that went from 4-5 in 1964 to 19-1-2 the next two seasons. The 1965 team finished first in the National LBM Coaches Poll and shared the title, despite losing to UCLA in the Rose Bowl.
1962 Southern California
One of the dominant programs in the 1920s and 1930s, USC struggled after the war, with one 10-win season and four losing seasons from 1946 to 1961. However, the Trojans’ fortunes began to change with the arrival of future Hall of Fame coach John McKay in 1960. After going a combined 8-11-1 in their first two seasons, the 1962 team opened the year unranked, moved up in the polls after being picked by Duke in the opener, and then faced Wisconsin in the high-scoring Rose Bowl, winning the program’s first title since 1939.
When is the CFP National Championship Game? Indiana vs. Miami start time
- time: 7:30pm (Eastern Standard Time)
- date: January 19th (Monday)
- position:Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Gardens, Florida)
The CFP National Championship game between Indiana and Miami will kick off at 7:30 pm ET on Monday at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.
