The Indiana Hoosiers and the Alabama Crimson Tide will start the year with the Rose Bowl matchup in Pasadena. It’s expected to be a thrilling game between two heavyweights, and Josh Pate has a theory on how it’ll all play out.
Indiana’s defense can’t be praised enough for the dominance they have shown this year. In five out of their last six games, they’ve restricted the opposition to 10 points or under. Only Penn State was able to give them an even matchup.
Pate believes that the Hoosiers have “stunned” oppositions with their defensive prowess, and Alabama is going to be no different. However, it won’t be enough to shock them because the Crimson Tide has faced some incredible defense throughout the season.
“So, Indiana’s defense may have a great day here,” Pate said. “It’ll just be because they’re very, very technically sound and they execute at a high level. It won’t be because it’s a dash of cold water to Bama’s face that stuns them. It won’t be that. It is that for most teams Indiana plays.” (From 0:42)
Pate is confident about his assessment because of the lineup that Alabama has faced on this journey. He referred to Georgia, Atlanta, Auburn, Oklahoma, and Missouri as examples of great defensive teams that Alabama has faced.
So, even though the Hoosiers’ defense won’t be able to restrict them as they’ve done to other teams, Alabama will likely have an effective plan for it because they have thrived this season while playing against tough opponents.
Just Like Josh Pate, Paul Finebaum is Also Confident About Alabama
One would assume that an unbeaten team like Indiana will have unanimous praise going into the game against Alabama. The reality, however, is that many in the college football circle believe that it’s not going to be a difficult outing for Alabama.
Recently, Paul Finebaum shared his thoughts on the Rose Bowl game on McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning. Although Finebaum is not writing off Indiana, he is still underselling one of the most dominant teams this season.
“At this moment, I feel pretty good (about Alabama),” Finebaum said. “I want to think a lot more about it, but, I mean, I think, you know, from a pure matchup standpoint, it’s not great because of how strong and disciplined Indiana is defensively. But I think there’s a lot of pressure on Indiana in this game.” (From 28:49)
As per Finebaum, Indiana will have a lot of pressure because they’ve been sitting around and watching games, while Alabama has a lot of momentum. He believes that the lack of postseason experience will work against Indiana.
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