Indiana’s Joyful Title, Miami’s Near Miss: 5 CFP Championship Thoughts
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After a dud of a first half, all of a sudden, the College Football Playoff National Championship turned into something special.
No one was talking about the NFL for a brief moment. College football took center stage with amazing theater, and a game and story that will live forever.
Here are five takeaways from the fantastic end to a wild college football season.
Miami Let a National Championship Slip Away
They had it.
The Hurricanes were hit with knockout blow after knockout blow, and yet they wouldn’t go away. They showed true toughness and character to answer every big Indiana moment by simply staying alive.
No one survived Indiana this year when Cignetti’s bunch forced mistakes like a punt block for a score, or did something amazing like the Fernando Mendoza rushing touchdown, or hit the seemingly back-breaking back-shoulder throw to Charlie Becker.
But there Miami was. It only ran 21 times, but it was effective. It didn’t control the clock or the tempo, but the defense held up. Carson Beck didn’t have any open receivers, but he hit 19-of-32 passes and cranked up 46 more yards than Mendoza.
Indiana went full Indiana, and Miami wouldn’t go away.
And then, like the Texas A&M game, and after the drive to put away Ohio State, and the final moments of the Ole Miss win, everything was set up to pull off another fantastic win.
There was still plenty of time left. Beck didn’t have to force that throw that led to Indiana’s National Championship-sealing pick, but he went for it. After a flawless CFP run, the one time he and the offense tried to go for something big, it all went wrong. And now …
– Running commentary on the CFP National Championship
Indiana’s National Title is Pure Joy for College Football
Unless you’re a Miami fan, there’s nothing about this Indiana win that wasn’t happy.
The Fernando Mendoza story is amazing, considering how big a Miami football fan he was growing up. Every disrespected player on the Hoosiers has some sort of crazy backstory. Everyone seems to know someone who went to Indiana and is right now through the moon.
And remember, the idea of IU ripping off 16 straight wins and a national championship was a relatively insane concept just four months ago. It’s all wonderful.
Oh sure, this will get ruined fast. The massive alumni base will get all puffy-chested, the Mark Cuban types will make this the rich big boy program, and this unbelievable zero-to-hero story will turn the other way.
But for now, this – unrealistically – gives everyone hope. Maybe with the right breaks, your program can also get hot and not just play with the big boys, but beat them all.
What Curt Cignetti did was impossible. It’s easily the most amazing story in the long history of college football. This was an easy one to root for.
Indiana Wasn’t Perfect, But it Was Good Enough
Indiana was outgained by the Hurricanes.
There weren’t any IU turnovers, but the five penalties all seemed to be killers coming at the exact wrong times, and the run defense allowed over five yards per carry.
The Hoosiers got a double-thud punt block for a score. It had the ball for almost 13 minutes longer than Miami, was wonderful on third downs, and yet, it took an underthrown pass by Carson Beck for the Hoosiers to get out alive.
No, it wasn’t Indiana’s best performance of the season, but who cares? Any landing you can walk away from is a good one.
The Stars Came Out For Miami
Fernando Mendoza was great, and the receivers were out of this world, but the original thought that Miami might have had more high-end, next-level talent showed through.
Carson Beck didn’t outplay Mendoza, but he threw for 232 yards and made more big pass plays down the field. Malachi Toney showed why he’ll be one of the stars of 2026 with ten catches for 122 yards and a score.
Mark Fletcher is back after his 17-carry, 112-yard, two-touchdown day, and Rueben Bain and the pass rushers beat up Mendoza all night.
Give Indiana credit. It won, and Miami was as good as advertised. And now …
Can Indiana Really Do THIS Again?
Let’s be honest – probably not.
Oh sure, Curt Cignetti can do no wrong, and doubt him at your own risk – Google Me joke cheerfully blown off – but there was a lightning-in-a-bottle aspect to this.
Can TCU transfer quarterback Josh Hoover be Fernando Mendoza? That’s asking for too much.
Can the pieces put together have the same magic and the same crazy blend of positives? That’s asking for even more.
That’s not to say that Indiana won’t keep being great at college football, but 16-0? That will be hard for anyone to do.
It’s not like everyone else will sit idly by and let the Hoosiers own college football now. But get used to Indiana being a thorn in everyone’s side for a very, very long time.
Related: Indiana vs Miami CFP National Championship Live Updates
This story was originally published by College Football News on Jan 20, 2026, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add College Football News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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