Indiana Hoosiers Defeat Miami Hurricanes in Epic CFP Final

Indiana University's Hoosiers defeated the University of Miami's Hurricanes in an exciting finale to the college football season last night.

Indiana was set for a historic season when they won the Big Ten conference championship against Ohio State, 13-10, in December, having never won the CFP.

In American college football, colleges are split up between divisions, with smaller universities typically ending up in lower divisions like Division II and Division III. Meanwhile, Division I has the highest-tier teams, and is split into the FBS, which has around 130 higher-ranking, stronger teams, and the FCS, which has 120 smaller teams. Within FBS, teams are split into conferences– the Power Four (P4) consist of the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, and ACC, while the Group of Five (G5) includes AAC, Mountain West, Sun Belt, C-USA, and MAC.

Usually, teams that qualify for the CFP are in the P4 conferences, as teams are selected by a committee that decides which are the strongest by considering their record and the difficulty of their opponents. Because G5 teams often face easier teams in their respective conferences, they are rarely picked for the CFP.

By winning the Big Ten, Indiana secured their conference championship and was selected as the #1 seed in the CFP, having gone undefeated (13-0) the entire season. Meanwhile, despite losing out in the ACC conference championship due to tiebreaker rules, Miami made the CFP seeded #10 with a 10-2 record for the season.

Then, the CFP begun, with many fans supporting major teams like Ohio State, Georgia, and Texas Tech– teams historically known for being strong CFP contenders. However, Indiana made its way through the playoff with ease, crushing Alabama 38-3 in the Rose Bowl and following it up with a 56-22 victory over Oregon in the semifinal. Meanwhile, Miami had a longer journey due to its seeding as #10– the team beat Texas A&M in the playoff, secured a strong victory over #2 Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl, and then squeezed out a 31-27 win over Ole Miss in the semifinal to reach the championship game.

Tickets for the final, held at Miami's Hard Rock stadium, quickly sold out, with prices soaring higher than any championship game ever– the average ticket price for the game was around $4,300. Nevertheless, many parents could be seen enjoying the game with their kids, and various celebrities also showed up, including US President Donald Trump, actor Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, and former Shark Tank investor and businessman Mark Cuban.

The game begun with an Indiana field goal in the first quarter, while Miami was left without points on the board after a 50-yard doink off the upright on a field goal attempt. Indiana later extended their lead to 10-0 at halftime after a long drive that culminated in a short rush, with tight end Riley Nowakowski carrying the ball into the end zone for a touchdown.

The third quarter kicked off with an Indiana punt, which Miami capitalized on. Around midfield, running back Mark Fletcher Jr. broke free for a 57-yard rushing touchdown, speeding into the end zone after evading the Indiana defense. However, Indiana followed it up with a defensive touchdown after blocking a punt by the Miami team, ending the third quarter at 17-7.

Miami begun the fourth quarter with another rushing touchdown from Fletcher Jr., bringing the score to 17-14, but Indiana later drove down the field and into the red zone. On a possibly game-deciding 4th & 4 at Miami's 12-yard line, Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza scrambled past several defenders, picking up the first down. However, before stopping, he launched himself into the air. A defender attempted to take him down, resulting in a considerable hit, but Mendoza was able to complete the 12-yard distance into the end zone before going down.

Miami responded with a quick passing touchdown soon after, and Indiana was only able to manage a field goal on the next drive. Nevertheless, they wound the clock down, giving Miami just 1:42 to score a touchdown and win the game. Miami attempted to drive down the field, getting under 1:00, but an Indiana interception from defensive back Jamari Sharpe sealed the game, winning them their first College Football Playoff in the university's history and completing their undefeated season at 16-0.

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Quote of the Day (Gracious Quotes): Love doesn’t make the world go round. Love is what makes the ride worthwhile. (Franklin P. Jones)

Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster): Ephemeral (adj, ih-FEM-uh-rul) - Something described as ephemeral lasts only for a very short time.

In a Sentence: The performance was not recorded, a fact that made its ephemeral nature all the more poignant.

Image credit to AP