Miami, Indiana Set for Surprising College Football Finale/ Newslooks/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ Morning Edition/ Indiana and Miami will face off in a College Football Playoff national championship game that few saw coming. Top-seeded, undefeated Indiana dominated Oregon, while 10th-seeded Miami upset Mississippi to earn their spot. The Jan. 19 matchup marks a historic and improbable rise for both programs.
CFP Title Game Preview Quick Looks
- Indiana (15-0) to face Miami (13-2) on Jan. 19
- Game set at Hard Rock Stadium, Miami’s home field
- Hoosiers routed Oregon 56-22 in Peach Bowl semifinal
- Miami edged Ole Miss 31-27 in Fiesta Bowl semifinal
- Fernando Mendoza (Indiana) vs. Carson Beck (Miami) in QB duel
- Mendoza is a Miami native and Heisman Trophy winner
- Indiana seeks its first national football championship
- Miami chasing its sixth national title, first since 2001
- Curt Cignetti led historic turnaround at Indiana
- Mario Cristobal revived ‘The U’ with help from transfer portal
Indiana, Miami Set for Surprising College Football Finale
Deep Look
Just a few months ago, a national championship matchup between Indiana and Miami would’ve sounded far-fetched. Two years ago, it would’ve been unthinkable. Yet, here they are—two programs that defied expectations, doubters, and College Football Playoff odds—set to battle for the national title on Jan. 19 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.
Indiana enters the title game with a pristine 15-0 record, top-seeded in the 12-team CFP format, fresh off a commanding 56-22 win over Oregon in the Peach Bowl semifinal. Miami, the 10th seed and final at-large team to make the bracket, upset Mississippi 31-27 in the Fiesta Bowl to complete its improbable climb to the final.
The Hoosiers opened as a 7.5-point favorite according to BetMGM, but the stakes go far beyond the spread. This matchup not only features two resurging programs, but also a compelling quarterback showdown between Miami native Fernando Mendoza and Georgia transfer Carson Beck.
For Mendoza, this championship game is more than a title shot—it’s a homecoming. The Heisman Trophy winner grew up just blocks from the University of Miami campus and will now return to his hometown as Indiana’s centerpiece. “It means a little bit more to me,” Mendoza admitted.
Mendoza’s journey to this moment has been nothing short of cinematic. After transferring from Cal—where he faced Miami in a dramatic 39-38 loss in 2024—he chose Indiana over other Power Five suitors, including the Hurricanes. In just one season, he’s transformed the Hoosiers into an offensive powerhouse, thrown himself into top NFL Draft projections, and become the symbol of Indiana’s football rebirth.
That rebirth can be credited to head coach Curt Cignetti, who arrived from James Madison University in late 2023 and boldly declared, “I win. Google me.” Since then, he’s delivered—building a 15-0 team that dismantled Alabama in the Rose Bowl quarterfinal and Oregon in the Peach Bowl. If Indiana wins it all, it will mark the program’s first national football title and bring echoes of Bob Knight’s 1976 basketball team—the last Hoosier squad to finish a season undefeated.
“It’s been a long road,” said Cignetti. “But this team believes, and now we’re one win away.”
On the other sideline is Miami, a program long known as “The U,” now rekindling the swagger and success that made it a college football dynasty in the ‘80s and ‘90s. The Hurricanes have five national titles to their name, the last coming in 2001. For the past two decades, however, the program has been mired in inconsistency.
Enter Mario Cristobal, a former Miami offensive lineman turned head coach. Four years into his tenure, Cristobal has delivered on his mission to revive the brand. His biggest off-season victory came when he landed quarterback Carson Beck, a Georgia transfer eager to prove himself after an elbow injury cut short his 2025 season.
Beck has been sensational down the stretch. Since Nov. 8, he’s led the Hurricanes on a seven-game winning streak, throwing for 15 touchdowns and just two interceptions. His latest performance—268 passing yards and a game-winning rushing touchdown against Ole Miss—showed both poise and grit.
“He’s hungry, he’s driven, he’s a great human being,” Cristobal said. “All he wants to do is see his teammates succeed.”
Miami’s rise hasn’t been without challenges. The Hurricanes were ranked 18th in the first CFP standings on Nov. 4, behind a Notre Dame team they had already beaten. After a second loss, this time to SMU, few believed they’d be in contention. But they never lost again. Their late surge, powered by Beck and an aggressive defense, pushed them into the playoff—and now to the biggest stage.
The irony of this matchup runs deep. Mendoza and Cristobal went to the same high school in Miami. The Hoosiers and Hurricanes haven’t met on the field since the 1960s. And both quarterbacks landed at their current schools through the transfer portal, illustrating how modern college football is reshaped by mobility and opportunity.
Financially, both schools stand to gain. The College Football Playoff will distribute $20 million to both the Big Ten and ACC for their championship representatives. However, under a new “success initiative” program, Miami will retain all of its CFP revenue instead of sharing it with the conference. Indiana, meanwhile, will split its earnings with the other 17 Big Ten members.
With storylines surrounding legacy, redemption, and reinvention, this championship game may be one of the most unexpected—but compelling—finals in recent history.
Two programs—one steeped in historical dominance, the other rewriting its identity—collide under the lights of Hard Rock Stadium. At stake: a national title, and for Indiana, a chance to cap a dream season with perfection.
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