Indiana’s CFP takeover exhibits why extra playoff video games must be on campus

ATLANTA — They got here from Bloomington sporting their crimson, and from Indianapolis and Evansville, too. Heck, if anybody from French Lick or Toad Hop or Slabtown attended the University of Indiana, they have been most likely at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Friday evening too, reveling within the program-defining beatdown that was the 2026 Peach Bowl.

The introduced attendance at Indiana’s 56-22 victory over Oregon on Friday evening was 75,604, and it certain appeared like at the very least 74,000 of them have been cheering for the Hoosiers. Aside from a skinny wedge close to the tunnel to the Oregon locker room, nearly the whole circumference of the stadium was crimson-clad and becoming a member of in deafening “Hoo-hoo-hoo-Hoosiers!” chants all evening lengthy.

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“I thought it was just the red seats,” Oregon quarterback Dante Moore sighed after the game, “but it was Indiana fans.”

He wasn’t incorrect. Indiana followers lined Atlanta in a crimson tide — the opposite college that employs that time period misplaced using it final week in Pasadena — and the end result was superb to behold. From the airport to the stadium, in Waffle Houses and alongside Peachtree, Indiana followers swarmed over the town, delirious on the prospect of cheering their crew on to a nationwide championship berth.

Mercedes-Benz Stadium has hosted a Super Bowl, nationwide championship video games and a Metallica live performance, however Friday evening may need topped all of them decibel-wise. The assembled crowd was already at jet-engine quantity to start out the sport, after which D’Angelo Ponds’ pick-6 on the sport’s very first play practically blew the retractable roof off the joint.

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“The crowd had a fantastic impact,” Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza stated. “Shout-out to Hoosier Nation for being here.”

He then recounted the sooner highway matchup between these two groups. “We played at Autzen Stadium Week 5. I believe I probably had five or six pre-snap penalties [due to the crowd noise].”

“Seven,” Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti interjected.

“Seven pre-snap penalties,” Mendoza stated with amusing. “That’s huge. Especially, that’s one of the ways that you’re able to lose a game. Not having to go on silent count because of Hoosier Nation being here — and making them go on silent count — is a huge aspect of the game and the offensive operation that’s not talked about enough.” Earlier, Moore had famous that the Ducks needed to abandon their verbal indicators due to the noise within the stadium.

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“Making the other team go on silent count,” Mendoza stated, “I mean, that might as well account for some points.” Heck, every part else did for Indiana.

The evening was, for Indiana, a spectacular setting — Bloomington South, Hoosier meets Chattahoochee. And that’s certainly on account of the truth that up till just a few months in the past, nobody in human historical past had ever positively linked the phrases “Indiana football” and “national championship” in the identical sentence. Indiana followers will journey for the extent of this yr’s playoff, sure, however what number of extra seasons will they do that?

Want proof? Remember that little sliver of inexperienced and yellow? Oregon hasn’t received a nationwide championship but, true, however its followers have grown accustomed to postseason appearances. Had the Ducks reached the title sport, it’s doubtless the Oregon devoted would have made up a bigger proportion of the viewers … however then, that’s actually the issue right here, isn’t it? Forcing a crew’s followers to journey to a few, and even 4 impartial website video games in the midst of one playoff is an terrible lot to ask of a fan base.

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Friday evening’s sport supplied but another excuse why as many playoff video games as doable must be on campus, not in NFL stadiums. The vibe at MBS was dramatically completely different from any NFL sport — as much as and together with the Super Bowl — that’s been held there, nevertheless it’s customary quantity, depth and juice for a Power Four faculty soccer dwelling sport. And in case you don’t suppose the heartbeat of a stadium has an impression on the house viewing expertise too, nicely, you’ve clearly forgotten what it was like to look at empty-stadium video games within the COVID period.

Opinions solicited from a variety of giddy post-victory Indiana followers have been break up on whether or not a semifinal sport must be at a impartial — or, on this case, “neutral” — website. “I don’t know, it’s fun to travel,” stated IU alum Karen Smith of Cincinnati as she waited for Mendoza to stroll shut by for an ESPN look.

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“Bloomington is just special,” countered Sally Berghoff of Chicago, who was attending the sport with practically a dozen fellow relations, all IU alumni. “Memorial Stadium needs a little work, but we would sell it out.”

Money guidelines all in faculty soccer, in fact, and cash dictates that the video games must go to the nation’s premier sporting cathedrals. But on the very least, each larger seed deserves one dwelling playoff sport, and two could be even higher. Give the sponsors their airtime, the convention fats cats their suites, and the alumni their dwelling sport, and everybody goes away happier. Well, until you’re Oregon on this situation.

The Indiana expertise in Atlanta was exceptional in its depth and enthusiasm on Friday evening. That must be the usual at each doable playoff sport from right here on out.