The Indiana Hoosiers are set to welcome the New Year by taking on the Alabama Crimson Tide in the Rose Bowl. For Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti, it remains business as usual.
Cignetti does not dictate the rules of the College Football Playoff; he simply adheres to them. The Hoosiers secured the No. 1 seed in the 12-team playoff bracket after their victory over the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Big Ten Championship on December 6 in Indianapolis. This win ensured that the defending national champions would not conclude the season undefeated, regardless of future outcomes.
Given the Hoosiers” recent history in football, a bye week presents a new experience for Cignetti. However, he expressed confidence in his team”s ability to adapt during a press conference on Monday. “Would I prefer to play earlier? Yeah, I probably would, to be quite honest with you. But that”s not the case, so,” Cignetti stated. “We”re excited about playing. We”re off to a good start. And it”ll be a tremendous challenge.”
Following the Crimson Tide“s victory against the Oklahoma Sooners last Friday, Cignetti indicated that Indiana felt no need to ease their momentum, despite the uncertainty surrounding the game”s outcome, which was a hard-fought 34-24 win for Alabama. “Well, you know, it is what it is, so you make the most of it,” he remarked. “The way we approached it until we knew the opponent? We treated it like two bye weeks, and now we have almost two weeks to prepare for the opponent.”
The upcoming matchup is expected to hinge on the performance of the quarterbacks, Fernando Mendoza for Indiana and Ty Simpson for Alabama, promising a thrilling contest in Pasadena, California. Kickoff is scheduled for 4 PM ET, and the victor will extend their season.
