Indiana’s second drive of the Rose Bowl College Football Playoff semifinal against Alabama on New Year’s Day was cooking. The Hoosiers drove the ball 84 yards from their own three-yard line to set up third-and-9 from the Alabama 12. However, rather than cashing it in for a touchdown, the Hoosiers stalled and were forced to settle for a field goal.
Alabama’s defense deserved credit for the stop, but the Crimson Tide also caught a big break from a malfunction in Fernando Mendoza’s in-helmet communication system. Mendoza was seen gesturing to the sideline to relay the play-call before Indiana hurried to the line of scrimmage late in the play clock and unexpectedly handed the ball off to Roman Hemby, which was stopped for a one-yard loss.
So what went wrong that forced the Heisman Trophy winner to hand the ball off, all but forgoing a chance to score a touchdown early in the second quarter? ESPN sideline reporter Holly Rowe explained.
“They’ve got all hands on deck trying to work on it,” Rowe told Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit. “Right now, from what I can see, they’ve got the helmet working, they can hear all the commands, but they don’t think something is working in the booth upstairs (where Indiana offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan calls plays). They’ve sent some technicians up there to find out what’s happening.”
Even better for Alabama is that Indiana’s technical issues didn’t affect Alabama’s ability to use the in-helmet communication system between Ryan Grubb and Ty Simpson.
“This is not like the rule where if the coach’s headsets go out, the other side has to turn off theirs, so Ty Simpson still has his helmet communication right now,” Rowe said early in the second quarter.
Fernando Mendoza’s in-helmet communication system went haywire in the red zone
Alabama may have gotten a third-and-9 stop regardless of the play-call that Shanahan sent in had Indiana's communcation been working. Still, it's obvious that the Hoosiers were out of sync offensively, and rather than call a timeout, Indiana essentially decided to settle for a field goal by running the ball. That four point difference could be significant with a spot in the CFP semifinal on the line.
Unfortunately for the Tide, Mendoza’s communication system appeared to be repaired when he returned to the field later in the second quarter after the Alabama offense was stuffed on a fourth-and-1 from its own territory to set the Hoosiers up in great field position. Indiana cashed that drive in for a touchdown and a 10-point lead.