After beating Oklahoma on the road in the opening round of the College Football Playoff, Alabama earned a spot in the quarterfinals at the Rose Bowl against No. 1 Indiana.
Alabama enters the Rose Bowl at 11-3, but are significant underdogs against top-ranked and 13-0 Indiana.
Many aren't giving Alabama much of a chance, but this Crimson Tide team is as battle-tested as it gets. Alabama went through the gauntlet in the regular season, and nothing it will see against the Hoosiers will be all that surprising.
It will take a monumental effort for Alabama to pull the upset, however. Curt Cignetti's Hoosiers are well-coached and rarely make mistakes. Led by Heisman Trophy-winning QB Fernando Mendoza and a salty defense, the Big Ten champions look every bit like a legitimate threat to win the whole thing. And what better way to completely flip the narrative of Indiana as a new college football power than to take down the sport's bluest of blue bloods.
Alabama will need to be prepared for a bare-knuckle brawl at the Grandaddy of them all. And Kalen DeBoer's team will have to play mistake-free football against a team that patently refuses to beat itself.
How to watch No. 9 Alabama at No. 1 Indiana in CFP
- Date: Thursday, January 1st
- Time: 3:00 pm C.T.
- Venue: Rose Bowl
- How to Watch (TV): ESPN
- Streaming: fubo TV
- Alabama record: 11-3
- Indiana record: 13-0
What are the betting odds for Alabama vs. Indiana?
Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook
Spread: Alabama +6.5
Over/Under: 48.5
Moneyline: Alabama +205/Indiana -255
Injury reports for Alabama and Indiana
Alabama:
Will be updated when the initial availability reports release this week
- LB Jah-Marien Latham: OUT
- DL Jeremiah Beaman: OUT
- DB Dre Kirkpatrick Jr.: OUT
Indiana:
TBD when the Rose Bowl availability report is released.
Who are the announcers for Alabama vs. Indiana?
It will be ESPN's A-Team on the call for the Rose Bowl. Chris Fowler (play-by-play) and Kirk Hebrstreit (analyst) will be on the call with both Kris Budden and Holly Rowe serving as the sideline reporters. Fowler and Herbstreit were on the call for Alabama's opening round playoff win over Oklahoma, too.
What will the weather be like for the Rose Bowl?
According to Alabama's favorite weatherman, James Spann, the current forecast calls for cloudy skies with the likelihood of showers throughout the game. It's not exactly looking to be the picture-perfect weather day you think of when dreaming about the Rose Bowl. Spann says that temps will be in the upper 50s at kickoff and settle into the 60s throughout the afternoon.
Alabama vs. Indiana series history
This will be the first meeting on the gridiron between Alabama and Indiana.