Maybe Alabama should just stay at home instead of making the long trek to Pasadena for the Rose Bowl to avoid the embarrassment of the inevitable beatdown that Indiana is going to give them.
That certainly seems to be the general consensus among college football experts. Indiana is clearly the superior team, and Alabama doesn't stand a chance.
Being the underdog isn't anything new for the Crimson Tide. They were underdogs against Georgia in the SEC Championship Game and again in the opening round of the College Football Playoff at Oklahoma.
But the Hoosiers are favored by nearly a touchdown, according to FanDuel.
There won't be a shortage of bulletin board material for Kalen DeBoer to use to fire his team up before Thursday afternoon's matchup.
The latest bulletin board material came from former Georgia and NFL linebacker David Pollack, who served it up on a silver platter for the Crimson Tide.
"It's just crazy to think about that we're literally picking this game, and I'm going, clearly the better, more well-rounded, more physical team is Indiana," Pollack said.
David Pollack says Indiana is 'clearly' better than Alabama
Maybe the experts are right. Indiana is favored for a reason. The Hoosiers are undefeated, and they are the darlings of the advanced statistics. They rank No. 2 in Bill Connelly's SP+. Alabama sits at No. 15. Indiana is No. 1 in ESPN's FPI. Alabama is No. 8.
Indiana has the Heisman Trophy winner at QB and the coach of the year on the sideline. It will take a monumental effort for Alabama to spring an upset at the Rose Bowl.
But that's why the games are played.
Alabama is battle-tested. ESPN's FPI has the Crimson Tide having played the sixth-toughest schedule in the country. That included games against Georgia (x2), Vanderbilt, Missouri, Tennessee, and Oklahoma (x2).
And what we learned, again, during last week's CFP game at Oklahoma is that this Alabama team has a championship mentality. Lesser teams would have folded down 17-0 in a hostile environment with all the noise surrounding the program.
Instead, the Crimson Tide came from behind and outscored the Sooners 34-7 from there to advance to this matchup in the Rose Bowl.
It'll be an uphill battle for Alabama to win in Pasadena. But if DeBoer and company can pull it out, then there will be plenty of bookmarks for Crimson Tide fans to revisit and share.
Add Pollack to the list.