Indiana Dominates Alabama in Rose Bowl in 38-3 Victory

Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza threw three touchdown passes as Indiana took another step toward solidifying its place among college football’s elite with a 38-3 victory over Alabama in the 112th Rose Bowl Thursday.

The victory in a College Football Playoff quarterfinal advances the top-seeded and undefeated Hoosiers into the Jan. 9 semifinal at Peach Bowl against fifth-seeded Oregon, a 23-0 winner over fourth-seeded Texas Tech in the Orange Bowl earlier Thursday.

The Peach Bowl winner will advance to the national championship game, which will be played Jan. 19 in Miami Gardens, Florida.

Mendoza completed 14 of 16 passes for 192 yards as Indiana (14-0) won its first Rose Bowl. It lost to USC, 14-3, on Jan. 1, 1968, in its only previous Rose Bowl appearance.

The Hoosiers outgained the Crimson Tide, 407 yards to 143, led 22-11 in first downs and 34:21-25:39 in time of possession in front of a crowd announced at 90,278.

Indiana opened the scoring on its second possession, with Nicolas Radicic kicking a 31-yard field goal with 14 minutes, 57 seconds left in the second quarter to culminate a 16-play, 84-yard drive that consumed 8:55.

Mendoza threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Charlie Becker on the Hoosiers’ next possession, five plays after Alabama turned the ball over on downs when Germie Bernard was stopped for no gain after catching a pass from running back Daniel Hill on a fouth-and-1 from the Crimson Tide’s 34-yard line.

Indiana increased its lead to 17-0 with 17 seconds to go before halftime on Mendoza’s 1-yard touchdown pass to Omar Cooper Jr., 11 plays after linebacker Isaiah Jones recovered a fumble by Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson at the Hoosiers’ 42-yard line.

Mendoza threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Sarratt on Indiana’s first possession of the second half.

Austin Mack replaced Simpson at quarterback for the Crimson Tide on the ensuing possession and guided Alabama on its only scoring drive, getting a first-and-goal from the Hoosiers’ 9-yard line, then settling for Connor Talty’s 28-yard field goal, cutting the deficit to 24-3.

Kaelon Black ran 25 yards and Roman Hemby 18 for fourth-quarter touchdowns for Indiana.

Simpson completed 12 of 16 passes for 67 yards and Mack 11 for 16 for 103 yards for the Crimson Tide (11-4).

Hoosiers offensive lineman Pat Coogan was selected the Offensive Player of the Game and Indiana defensive back D’Angleo Ponds the Defensive Player of the Game.

The game matched one of college football’s least distinguished programs of all time and one of the best.

The Hoosiers’ 715 losses in their 138 seasons were the most among Football Bowl Subdivision teams until Nov. 29, when Northwestern lost to Illinois, 20-13, for its 716th loss in 138 seasons.

Indiana’s .429 winning percentage entering the game matched Florida Atlantic for 11th-lowest all-time.

The Crimson Tide’s .734 winning percentage entering the game is second- highest behind Ohio State’s .737, and its 985 victories were third behind Michigan (1,022) and Ohio State (990).

Indiana’s rise to being among college football’s elite coincides with the hiring of Curt Cignetti as coach on Nov. 30, 2023, to replace Tom Allen, who was fired after posting a 33-49 record in seven full seasons and the 2016 Foster Farms Bowl, including a 3-9 mark in 2023.

The Hoosiers won their first 10 games of the 2024 season, the best start in their history at that time. They finished the season with a school- record 11 victories, ending the campaign 11-2 following a 27-17 loss to Notre Dame in a College Football Playoff first-round game.

With Mendoza transferring from California, Indiana was even better in 2025.

The Hoosiers earned the top ranking in both the College Football Playoff and Associated Press polls for the first time in school history and earned their second Rose Bowl berth with a 13-0 record, including a 13-10 victory over previously undefeated, top-ranked and defending national champion Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship Game on Dec. 6.

The Big Ten championship was the first outright conference championship for Indiana since 1945. It shared the conference championship in 1967 with Minnesota and Purdue with 6-1 records, but Indiana got the Rose Bowl berth on a vote of the conference’s athletic directors over Minnesota because it had never previously appeared in the Rose Bowl.

Purdue was ineligible for the Rose Bowl berth under the Big Ten Conference’s “no repeat” rule then in effect. The Boilermakers defeated USC, 14-13, in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 2, 1967.

The Crimson Tide were making their third Rose Bowl appearance in six seasons, and first since a 27-20 loss to eventual national champion Michigan on New Year’s Day 2024 in Nick Saban’s final game as Alabama’s coach.

The Crimson Tide are 5-3-1 in the Rose Bowl.

This was the first meeting between the teams.