ATLANTA — No. 1 seed Indiana took control with an interception return for a touchdown on the first play from scrimmage and never let go for a 56-22 rout of No. 5 Oregon in the College Football Playoff semifinals at the Peach Bowl.
The pick-six by D’Angelo Ponds sparked the latest jaw-dropping victory for a team that stands one win away from the most unexpected national championship in Bowl Subdivision history. Indiana will face No. 10 Miami in the title game on Monday, Jan. 19, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.
The Peach Bowl was a rematch of the Hoosiers’ 30-20 win at Autzen Stadium in October. Indiana becomes just the second team to beat an opponent in the regular season and then again in the playoff since the format debuted in 2014.
Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza was nearly perfect, completing 17 of 20 throws for 177 yards and finishing with more touchdowns, five, than incompletions. Wide receiver Elijah Surrat had 75 yards receiving and two touchdowns. Kaelon Black led the running game with a team-high 63 yards on 12 carries and two scores.
Donte Moore completed 24 of 38 passes for Oregon for 285 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Dierre Hill Jr. led the Ducks with 85 rushing yards, 71 coming on one long run, and Jay Harris added 35 yards on 16 carries.
A junior who had only 26 carries on the year heading into Friday night, Harris was thrust into a bigger role because of injuries to leading rusher Noah Whittington and top backup Jordon Davison.
It took the Hoosiers only 11 seconds to get on the board. After a short kickoff return placed Oregon at its 20-yard line, Moore threw an out route to the left sideline that Ponds jumped and ran back 25 yards for a 7-0 lead, delighting a Mercedes-Benz Stadium crowd that leaned heavily toward Indiana.
Oregon’s offense settled down to even the score on the ensuing possession, converting three third downs as part of a 14-play, nearly eight-minute drive capped by Moore’s 19-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jamari Johnson with 7:11 remaining in the first quarter.
Indiana’s offense responded on its first drive. Mendoza completed all four of his attempts for 41 yards, including an 8-yard score to receiver Omar Cooper Jr., as part of a 75-yard drive that put the Hoosiers back in front 14-7 with 40 seconds left in the opening frame.
After punting on the next possession, the Ducks stopped a promising Indiana drive by stripping and sacking Mendoza on third down and took over at their 13-yard line.
But Moore fumbled on the next play for his second costly turnover. Winding up to deliver a screen to his left, the sophomore’s hand hit Hill on the shoulder and bounced away before being recovered by IU at the 3-yard line.
Black then punched it from a yard out to put Indiana up 21-7 with 8:17 left in the half.
The lead would mushroom by the end of the half to put the Ducks in an insurmountable hole.
First, another Oregon punt led to a 61-yard touchdown drive ending with Mendoza finding receiver Charlie Becker on a perfectly thrown 36-yard heave, pushing IU ahead 28-7 with 3:13 to go.
Then Moore was sacked and fumbled again, setting up the Hoosiers on the lip of the red zone. Six plays later, Mendoza hit Sarratt from 2 yards to make it 35-7 with 59 seconds left before the break.
Both teams exchanged scores coming out of the locker room, with the Ducks converting the two-point try after a short Harris touchdown run to make it 42-15 midway through the third quarter. Oregon looked to make it a three-touchdown game late in the quarter but was stopped on fourth-and-short at the Indiana 31-yard line.
The Hoosiers’ exclamation point came after an Oregon punt near its own goal line was blocked with just 13:04 to play. Under two minutes later, Mendoza hit Sarratt from 3 yards out on third-and-goal to make it 49-15.
But the Hoosiers weren’t done yet. After forcing a turnover on downs, IU ran five times for 65 yards, ending with Black’s 23-yard score, to go ahead 52-15 with 5:13 remaining.
A Moore touchdown pass to Roger Saleapaga with 22 seconds completed the scoring and helped the Ducks avoid the biggest loss in Peach Bowl history.
With a win against Miami, the Hoosiers would become the first 16-0 national champion since Yale in 1894. Prior to hiring coach Curt Cignetti, Indiana had won 16 games in a two-year span just once (1987-88) in program history.