LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥� Nick Saban coached his final game for Alabama just two years ago in the Rose Bowl. Although the sport didn’t know it at the time, an era ended for the 21st century鈥檚 most dominant program to date when in overtime by Michigan.
Two years can be a blink and an eternity in college football. The Crimson Tide (No. 11 AP, No. 9 CFP) are returning to the Rose Bowl’s storied turf on Thursday, but they’re underdogs against unbeaten Indiana (No. 1 AP, No. 1 CFP), which has improbably constructed a burgeoning superpower from the ground up during those two short years.
Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson sounded a bit like so many opponents of the Crimson Tide (11-3) over the past two decades Tuesday when he described the challenge of facing the Hoosiers (13-0) in a College Football Playoff quarterfinal doubling as the 112th edition of the Granddaddy of Them All.
鈥淭hey’re the No. 1 team for a reason, and we know it,鈥� Simpson said. 鈥淎s a coach’s son, I know that to get that program to where it is in that time frame is just super-impressive. It’s going to be a tough challenge, but that’s what we live for.鈥�
Alabama reached six Playoff finals and won three titles under Saban during the postseason format’s first decade. Two years into the nearly impossible task of following Saban, coach Kalen DeBoer has had significant success 鈥� just not to the level expected at this program.
After going 9-4 last year, the Tide began this season with , and they in the SEC title game.
Alabama still made the CFP for the first time under DeBoer, who realizes he won’t win over his new fan base without a strong national title run. The Tide’s in the first round suggested they have the potential to ruin the Hoosiers’ perfect season, yet DeBoer understands the enormity of the task facing his team.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e undefeated for a reason,鈥� DeBoer said. 鈥淭hey鈥檝e got a very good football team. They play well. From our standpoint, there鈥檚 a belief in who we are. And that鈥檚 what you really you鈥檝e got to focus on is, who are we? What we鈥檝e been through, and how we鈥檝e overcome, is what we鈥檙e proud of.鈥�
It’s a decade too soon to know whether Curt Cignetti is building the sport’s next titan, but there’s no denying his first two seasons have been more impressive than Saban’s start at Alabama 鈥� when Cignetti was a Tide assistant.
Indiana is the CFP鈥檚 top seed and the Big Ten champion after its spectacular regular season culminated with a in the conference title game. The Hoosiers are in the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1968, and they’re the AP’s No. 1 team for the first time 鈥� a distinction Alabama has held 141 times.
The Hoosiers made the Playoff last season, but the Rose Bowl is the CFP debut for , the California transfer who has taken Indiana鈥檚 offense to an elite level.
鈥淲e want to win the national championship, but playing in the Rose Bowl, getting a chance to play a historic team like Alabama, it’s something that’s really important to appreciate,鈥� Mendoza said. 鈥淭he Big Ten championship was sweet, and it left a good taste in our mouth, but we’ve had a month for Coach Cignetti to light a fire under us and remind us we need to win the Rose Bowl. If we don’t, this season was great, but it isn’t what we want it to be.鈥�
Too much rest?
The Hoosiers beat the Buckeyes on Dec. 6, but Mendoza believes they can benefit from a 25-day layoff without succumbing to the rustiness that likely played a role in last year’s Playoff, when .
鈥淚 think having the month off is also a plus, although it was a negative for some teams last year,” Mendoza said. 鈥淚 just gave myself time to reflect on the Big Ten championship, the Heisman, all those other great things, let them sink in in a way where 鈥� ‘OK, that鈥檚 cool. Boom. Now we’ve got the new season.’鈥�
Trophy hunting
Mendoza is Indiana鈥檚 first Heisman winner. Alabama has four Heismans on its shelves, and some of the current Crimson Tide are using their memory of the most recent trophy winner as motivation.
鈥淚f you鈥檙e a true competitor, you want to play against the best,鈥� Alabama linebacker Deontae Lawson said. 鈥淚 remember my first year when Bryce Young was the Heisman winner. Going against him in practice every day, you just wanted to get a pick on him, to make a play. You always want to go against the Heisman winner, and we get that chance now.鈥�
Saban’s legacy
Alabama’s former coach was at the Rose Bowl in spirit when Indiana linebacker Aiden Fisher employed one of Saban’s most famous similes to describe the Hoosiers’ avoidance of outside praise or criticism.
鈥淔or us, we don’t want to get wrapped up, tied up in the things that can be like rat poison, in a way,鈥� Fisher said.
First time
These schools have been playing football since the 19th century, but they’ve never played each other.
Next time
The winner faces either Oregon or Texas Tech next week in the Peach Bowl for a spot in the national championship game.
___
AP college football:
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
