The college football national championship game is almost upon us, and for the first time in what seems like forever, we won’t be seeing one of the same five teams take the field on Monday. Instead, we will be treated to a refreshing national championship featuring a team that has not won it since 2001, and a team that has never won it at all. We, of course, are talking about Miami and Indiana.
The last time Miami won a national championship, they were in the Big East. Rutgers fans got to see the might of that team firsthand, as they bested the Scarlet Knights that year, 61-0. This season, the Hurricanes have found themselves in the College Football Playoff for the first time ever despite losing to teams like Louisville and SMU in the regular season. Since getting into the playoffs, Miami has grinded out tough wins against Texas A&M, Ohio State, and Ole Miss to earn their spot in the championship game.
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Indiana’s story is much different. They are not trying to live up to old glory; they are trying to be the new glory themselves and take home a national championship for the first time in program history. Their use of the transfer portal and excellent coaching have become the gold standard that college football programs are trying to live up to in the now radically different world of college athletics.
The fact that puts this all into perspective for Rutgers fans is that they beat both of these schools in 2023. After starting the season 4-1, the Scarlet Knights made a miraculous comeback to take down Michigan State in the rain before demolishing Indiana 31-14 on the back of 143 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns from former RU quarterback Gavin Wimsatt.
Rutgers improved to 6-2 with the win, and although they did not win another regular-season game, they defeated a portal-depleted Hurricanes team 31-24 in a memorable Pinstripe Bowl victory to finish the season 7-6. Kyle Monangai finished with 163 yards on 25 carries, while Timmy Ward recovered a blocked punt by Trevor Yaboa-Kodie for a special teams touchdown to punctuate his collegiate career.
Since then, both teams have turned things around, with Indiana’s rise to the top of college football in just two seasons highly unprecedented, especially for a team that had the most losses in major college football history. The Hurricanes won 10 games last season with Cam Ward at quarterback and took advantage of their playoff inclusion this year as the ten-seed to advance to the national championship game at their home stadium.
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In terms of rooting interest, SBNation Reacts has found that a large majority of the population will be cheering for Indiana to take home their first national championship.
They found that most fans believe that Indiana will cover the 8.5-point spread they have over Miami, according to FanDuel.
Who are you cheering for as a Rutgers fan? Who do you think will win? Will Indiana cover their large spread?
Indiana vs Miami for the national championship will take place on Monday, January 19th at 7:30 pm inside Hard Rock Stadium in Miami. Live coverage will be available on ESPN.
