College Football Live - CFB Live - The CFP Championship is Here!!!

Episode Date: January 19, 2026

Join our crew Kevin Negandhi, Sam Acho, Tim Tebow, EJ Manuel and Roddy Jones for College Football Live. The wait is over, the CFP championship game between Miami and Indiana will be played this evening at 7:30 PM EST. The guys will detail key things to watch for from both teams along with a one on one sit down with Miami's quarterback Carson Beck. We'll also hear from both head coaches ahead of the matchup and the guys will pick who they think will walk away national champions tonight. All that and more on CFB Live now! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to College Football Live, built by the Home Depot. 18 miles north of the Miami Coastline is Hard Rock Stadium, the site of tonight's 2026 college football national championship, a place that has hosted five title games in the past, but nothing quite like this, as we are under six minutes or six hours away from kickoff. The home team will be on the visitor's sideline as the Miami Hurricanes, by a return to glory. Standing in their way could be the final chapter ready to be written in one of the greatest stories ever told in sports.

Hollywood, they had their own version of the Hoosiers, but a script cannot touch what this Indiana team is doing on the field. We're four quarters away from history. This is a tremendous institution that time has come to make some noise. The White team here, we got gold, man. We're on the clock,

This is one of those games, man. You got to want this one in there. Sees this opportunity. Everything a chance you get. Three days after the playoff bracket was released, we have the favorite, and we had the last team to make the field of 12 still standing and ready to face off here in Miami Gardens. Beautiful, sunny skies. A fantastic day for some football here.

Kevin Agondi, alongside Sam Acho, Tim Tebow, E.J. Manuel and Roddy Jones for the next hour to get you ready for the matchup on both sides here. But right now, let's talk about temperature and how we're feeling before the game. Two guys that have played in the national championship. Tim, twice for you, once for you, Sam. What was going through your mind a few hours before kickoff, Tim? It's different. It's different nerves.

It's a different environment. And everybody, you know, will coach you to say it's just another game. No, it's not. It is a different game. But one of the areas that you really have to focus is and really believe is, I don't have to do anything different just because it's a different stage. I don't have to be different just because it's a different stage. I don't believe it for a lot of kids that even though many coaches will say,

oh, just play like it's no different, play like there's no pressure, play free. No, that's not true. I don't believe it's a reality. Your brain doesn't even let you go through the motions in that. But I do think if you can play free and play without regret, that is the key. So how can we play a relentless effort and focus four to six seconds every play? and how can we show up at the end of the night exhausted with no regret? Because regardless, now if you can do that, you can walk off the field with your head held high.

And that was always an encouragement to me as, hey, I don't know what's going to happen in this game. But if we can walk off this field with no regrets, for every single play, it was a relentless effort and focus of four to six seconds, no questions asked, then whatever the outcome was, we could be proud of that. And that also helps you handle pressure. It helps you say, okay. Like, yes, there is a lot of weight. There's a lot of pressure. You know, we're playing in Florida.

I'm from Florida. Fernando Mendoza from Florida. Carson Beck from Jacksonville. If you can handle that, it can allow you to play free. And that's, I believe, a key in this game. And so much for me was the preparation beforehand. I understand that it's a bigger game, but you still want to have the mindset,

hey, we are going to be calm as we can be and not extend and spend so much energy before the game even starts. I remember right now we're about five, five hours before kickoff. And I'm going back. I was looking at some pictures when we play the National Championship. And yes, you do all the fun things

throughout the week, but it's still the same mode of operation, right? I know I'm good enough. I'm confident enough. And I know that if I do my assignment, I'll be able to come out victorious. It sounds like the recipe that we've seen all season for Kurt Signetti.

Just do your job, figure it out. We'll find a way. Let's take a closer look at how these two teams got here, of course. And let's start with the number one team in the country, Indiana, knocking off Ohio State to win its first big 10 titles since 1916. It was the Hoosiers first win over the Buckeyes in nearly 40 years, first ever win over the AP number one team.

Indiana has not trailed in this playoff so far. The Hoosiers are the first team in playoff history with multiple 30-point wins in a single playoff. Meanwhile, Miami, they opened up the season 5 and 0, dropped two of its next three games. The Hurricanes won their final four regular season games and then jumped their end aim for the final at-large spot in the playoff. In the first round, Miami, they went to college station, upset Texas A&M. In the semis, the Cains pulled off another upset to knock off the defending champs in Ohio State. Miami found more magic against Ole Miss scoring the go-head,

touchdown with 18 seconds to go. So they are riding the role of the underdog, and they are feeling really good to get you ready for how these teams are feeling heading into the game. We've got reporters with both teams. Holly Rose is with Indiana. Molly McGrath is with Miami. Let's start with Molly and the Cains.

Well, Kevin, you mentioned Miami are underdogs heading into the game. this game, but you know what? Their head coach Mario Cristobal has injected confidence into his team with their preparation. Their practices were full speed and physical all week long. Starters were going at it like it was week one of fall camp and Cristobal pulled his quarterback Carson Beck aside for a meeting at the end of this week and told him you're an elite human being. You're an elite competitor and you're the most experienced player in this college football playoff. And Beck told us that he really draws a lot of confidence from all of his experiences saying when you've been through what I've been through, people's doubt doesn't phase

you. It energizes you. People didn't even think that we should make it into this college football playoff. So why not prove them wrong just one more time? And something worth noting Kevin Beck is 5 and 0 as an underdog in his career. Now let's go to Holly Roe. Well, thank you so much, Molly. You know, it's interesting. We talk about Fernando Mendoza being from this area. He really did grow up just less than two miles away from the University of Miami campus. He showed it to me on a Google map. And with that comes a lot of family. He has a huge extended Cuban-American family. He said when they get together for their family reunions, there's over 800 people in the family photo. It's impressive. But so how does he get here to Miami his hometown and block out all of the

distractions? Or as he called it, externalities. First, they got the tickets taken care of. 18 tickets were secured. They asked some of their teammates to pitch in and get tickets for their family members. So he and Alberto will be well represented. But he said, it would be selfish of me to let what I'm doing and my story and my family take away from my team and what we want to accomplish. I refuse to be selfish. And while he has blocked out those externalities as he called them, he has sought out some advice, some from really prominent guys. He talked to Riley Leonard, the quarterback for Notre Dame, who played in this game a year ago to ask him how he handled all of the pressure, all of the noise. And most notably last night, he checked in with our

Tim Tebow, Tim Tebow told him to be himself. It can't be bigger than the moment. But really trust your eyes. Trust and go, I-H-O. That means if he's open, let it rip. So Tim Tebow, giving our quarterback a little good advice here before the game. He's motivating all of us here. Holly on the set, of course, with that fame, Holly Road.

Thank you so much. And Holly mentioned ticket prices. According to Vivid seats, the average ticket sold for this game is currently $4,378. That would be the most. expensive ticket to a college football game on record, which goes back to 2009. And back here with our guys. And let's talk of football a little bit here. This crowd's ready to go.

Oh, yeah. What's the biggest thing you're watching here, Tim, heading into the matchup? The playoff of what Holly said, I really believe for any quarterback going up against this Miami defense, it is handling the pressure and it is handling the difference, the different schemes that they throw at you. Go back to the first round of playoffs. Marcel Reed, he was very confused. Julian Sayan was very confused.

The first half, Trinidad was very confused. Because they bring a lot of different, unique looks to you. They bring their main coverages are a three-fire zone, a six-fire zone, and then they give you a two-invert, and they mix some two-in-man in there. But their two-invert is not sound. And if you're Fernando Mendoza, who loves to know where all 22 are, and he's not exactly where he's supposed to be, that can throw you off as a quarterback.

So he really does have to be patient, trust what his eyes are telling him and let it rip. I think that has been very hard for these quarterbacks that have faced this Miami defense because you're like, no, he's there and he's supposed to be there. And sometimes actually being a little unsound has been one of the best things for this Miami defense. Look, this game is going to be won and loss in the trenches. Which offensive line can protect? We looked at Miami's defensive line, one of the best in the country, 47 sacks on the season,

but also Indiana's defensive line, they got 45, right? So both can bring pressure. But I look at the way Miami's won these games. games. Mark Fletcher's been fantastic. 172 yards against A&M, 133 yards last week against Ole Miss. Can they run the ball? That's Miami's bread and butter. Then you can bring in the play action passing and start hitting the second and third levels. Which team can protect and certainly run the ball and set the tone up there.

See, I'll go to the inverse of that. Tim mentioned some of the guys that Miami has played that looked a little confused. A lot of that was because of the pressure. They got after Marcel Reed. They got after Julian Sane. And even got after Trinidad Chamblis despite not being able to get him on the ground a lot. He was on the move of tons. So you look at Miami, Ruben Bain and Akeemezador up front, have to have big games.

Conversely, Indiana leads the country and tackles for Lars. Loss. Mark Fletcher is one of the best in the country at not taking negative rushes or even zero yard rushes. So who on the defensive lines wins that battle? I'm most excited to see how the game starts. This is a home game for Miami, right? Like we understand it's a home game for them. It's going to be excitement.

Ray Lewis is going to be on sideline. Ed Reed might be there. Michael Irvin might be there. All of those guys are going to be there. You know Michael Irvin is going to be out of there. He's going to lead him out of the tunnel, I think. He's already stretching. He might be in shoulder the pads already.

But remember how Indiana started their game last week versus Oregon? Not the pick six. I'm talking about that kickoff, that first kickoff, huge hit that set the tone. I mean, that was outstanding. That's what you want to do when you play special teams to start the game. And then after that, the very next play of pick six, once that happened, you knew it was over. And so if this happens again against this Miami team and they're down early, it could be a long, long game for Mambi.

They don't want to be in a situation. where they have to drop back and pass the ball. So I want to see who starts faster, even if Michael Irvin is coming out the tunnel with the team. And we talked about this as a theme, handling the emotions, right? Especially early on, right? When you look at the legends on the sideline

and the crowd and your family's around, we'll see how that elevates here, of course, on ESPN and ABC. Let's talk about the quarterbacks as we continue our conversation and get you ready. Carson Beck looks to wrap up his college career. We go one-on-one with the Miami quarterback

who came to South Florida to win it all. Did you guys know that the Canes have a capital Cafesito coordinator during this playoff run, cannot wait for some of that. For a forward. Unacolade, a little coffee with leech, for a quote. Cuban rocket fuel.

As young Cuban Americans, you are, since you're four or five on your way to kindergarten, it's part of your breakfast. If you go visit someone and someone offers your Cuban coffee and they can't get it to foam up like that, you got to call them out on it. I'll get it every morning, the full practice, helps me get through my die pretty good.

Cafesito really is just like a one sip and you get all the energy you really need. from it. You gotta come see me here in Miami, and I'll put you on the right spot. I'm not much of a coffee guy, but we did start a tradition, so I have to keep the role of that. We've started drinking it on game day just before we run out of the tunnel. We went against A&M, which I didn't drink coffee that game, and I'll be honest, it was little tough challenges for, like, game conditions.

Here's your colada, cheers, bro. Cheers, cheers, and cheers. Salute. Let's go. Once a month. Once a month. What do you doing? I make a espresso at home, guys.

I make my coffee at home. Cheers, cheers, cheers. Cheers. I ain't feel like. College football live is built by the Home Depot. Outdoers get more done. Rock Stadium has had many names through the years, but one thing is constant. Big game moments, including six Super Bowls, the greatest halftime show ever featuring Prince,

and five college football national championships. But in any of those moments, it has never featured the hometown team as the last one standing. Tonight, Carson Beck has a chance to do that. Marty Smith on the field has much more on the quarterback. Marty. Thank you, Kevin. Good afternoon. Carson Beck's journey to the grand stage tonight could have broken him.

Yes, he was a member of two national championship teams at Georgia, albeit as a backup. And then last season suffered a career threatening elbow injury. So he hopped in the portal, transferred down here to Miami. And he told me this week, along the way, he believes he's proven a lot of people wrong. Carson Beck is now in Coral Gables. Sometimes a fresh start. It's just what a quarterback might need. Having this opportunity to kind of reshape myself, not only as a quarterback,

but as a person as well. I feel like there's a lot of things that are misunderstood about me. What's been misrepresented? A, my love for the game, and B, that I can't lead a team, and that I can be selfish at times. And I feel like that's totally the opposite of who I am and how I was raised and what I've always stood for. Carson Beck also has the motivation being discarded from Georgia,

him and his teammates are trying to prove something. How has this season impacted your perspective of the game of football? Man, obviously the season hasn't been perfect. That loss of Louisville is a tough one. And it's going to end the undefeated season for Miami. Probably the worst game I've ever played in my life. Picked off at the two! Two weeks later, we drop one to SMU.

SMU wins! Certain outcomes you just sometimes can't control, but there are a lot of things you also can control. control. Carson back. Perfect pass. Perfect execution. Control your attitude towards each and every day.

Control your reactions to, you know, certain things. Great protection from back. Why right now are you best equipped to lead the Miami Hurricanes to a national championship? Every single time I walk out on the field, there's 10 other guys on the offense that have my back, I have their back, and we're all playing together as one. Here comes the big moment, the biggest moment perhaps, in the last 23 years. Look, watch the throw. You got it, you got it! You got it!

Corson Beck! Corsenbeck is your Hurricanes hero, and the Hurricanes will play for the National Championship. How is this national championship game the sum of all the parts of your journey? It's been my dream to win a national championship, and... and I've been a part of two. But even after those, I always said that I wanted to win my own. And I mean, how awesome would that feeling be? If you asked me six years ago that this is how, you know,

everything was going to shape out and then, I'd say you're crazy. But man, what an ending to the story this would be. This stage, he's seen firsthand what it takes to win a game of this magnitude, and tonight here at home, he looks to be the guy to return the national championship to the U. Kev. Marty, thank you so much. Let's take a look at today's proven performance

brought to you by Goodyear. Both these quarterbacks have been good during the college football playoff. Beck has limited turnovers as of late. Just one during this run in the postseason on the other side. I mean, Fernando Mendozao, the Heisman winner on fire. How about more touchdown passes than incompletions? That is an 8 to 5 ratio unheard of as we take a look

a closer conversation with the quarterbacks, EJ here. When you look at specifically Beck, he's been a different quarterback since that lost to SMU. And it really stood out against Ole Miss when they needed him to step up. What did you notice on film? Well, the biggest thing I want to say about Carson Beck is he's been fantastic the entire year. And everybody's been harping all these interceptions. Look, every quarterback throws picks.

That's a part of the game. But the thing that I've loved from Carson is that he's persevered through all of that. Like you said, after that SMU lost, he's done nothing but played great. And again, keep this in mind. 15 games he's played coming off of the injury of last year. But third and five is going to be a big down for Carson against Indiana's defense. They're number one in the country, excuse me, number three in the country of stopping teams on third down. You're going to get a five-man rush right here with a spy.

But Carson does a great job of moving and pressing the line of scrimmage once you break that pocket. He has a two-way go here. He can throw this ball out in the flat to Malacottoni. He's covered. Use him as a blocker and use that speed. Now, one thing, cover that ball up. I don't like the cute stuff on the sideline. You got to be protected with that.

You can't miss layups against Indiana's defense. When you get these opportunities in a clean pocket here from the offensive line, the safety is doing exactly what you want with a post call. He's taking the wheel route on the tight end. It's quarters wide open. You've got to give Keel and Mary an opportunity to make a big play right here. He sure hops it for whatever reason to try to throw it on the line. Put it out there so Mary can run under it.

It could potentially be a touchdown. Now, third and ten, another situation. A minute left in his ball game. He's going to bring his time in motion. Nobody's moving. It's zone coverage. Watch Carson be cool under pressure. Stay relaxed in this moment.

He's going to use Malacotoni on that interior whip route on the slot. What does that do? It opens up the second hole right here to the dig route behind the two linebackers. He throws away accuracy, excellent timing right there on the face mask. First down and later on he runs in for a touchdown to win that game against Ole Miss. If he can do that same thing tonight, I like Miami to get a good chance to win. That final drive, the biggest moment of Carson Beck's Miami career for Fernando Mendoza. We haven't had any big moments in the playoffs because they haven't needed it.

But when they needed it most, he stepped up and gave us a Heisman moment. when you saw what he did against Penn State. Yeah, it was unbelievable. The go-ahead drive was really incredible for so many reasons. But when we really look at the tape, it's incredible. Not for the reasons everybody talks about, the anticipation, the accuracy. That's awesome. But in my opinion, his clutch jeans starts with his decision-making

and his toughness and his athleticism. People don't give him enough credit. Watch this. I'm buying time. I'm jumping while two dudes are hitting me. And I'm going to show that accuracy. That's the difference with this young man. People don't realize what a good athlete.

They're just saying, oh, he can kind of run a little bit with the football. No, this is a dude that has clocked 19.5 miles an hour with his legs this year. That's fast. Yeah. Like, he's a young man that was breaking tackles last week against Oregon over and over again. And people don't give him enough credit for that. Yes, he's got the accuracy, the anticipation, the decision making. But also, that athleticism and that toughness to go take on some of those hits,

just like Ohio State. First play of the game, he got torched and came right back in the game. That's a difference with this. young man. By the way, 12 months ago, this portal and the idea of players moving around, keep in mind when Beck decided to part ways with Georgia and come to Miami, guess we went to Athens on a visit. Fernando Mendoza. He was actually considering going to Georgia, and then now they get the chance to face off in the national championship as we are just over five hours away from kickoff here in Miami Gardens. ESPN and the College Football

Playo Foundation support education through sports investing over $4 million in schools since 2014. This postseason, we're donating $1,000 for every touchdown scored to support teachers and coaches leading health, sports, and fitness projects. Learn more at CFP-Foundation.org. Our aerial coverage brought to you by Goodyear, tried, tested, proven, legendary. Ahead here on college football live, we'll take a closer look at the two head coaches. Mario Cristobal can become the first person to win national titles as a player and coach from the same school while Kurt Zignetti has done the unthinkable made Indiana a football school I would describe coaches facial expressions during a game is just not a lot of joy or happiness when he's on the sideline It's all business sometimes he has that blank little deaf stare and you don't know if you want to go up to him

He's intense on game day. He's intense all the time He was like this on the sideline trying to inspect something and it's a lot of means going around The best one is from this last game with his eyebrow up. The eyebrow raised, I can't really raise my eyebrow. Just a blank stare when we're up, 34-0, and he's still staring at you. Like, you haven't caught a single pass in a single game. Ball start. Offense, number 62.

I'm guessing Kurt Signetti will give us the face. There it is. Right on cue. How do we feel about this? I know that guy. Is that somebody you'd like to play for? I don't know. I'd have to see how he is the other hour of the day.

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The healthier you means more moments to cherish. Take control of your well-being and book an assessment today. Medcan, live well for life. Visit medcan.com slash moments to get started. Welcome back to college football live, built by the Home Depot. Inside Hard Rock Stadium as we get you ready, Miami Gardens, Miami versus Indiana. You know, eight days ago they ripped out the sod, brought in the new side on Tuesday. It looks fantastic.

That Bermuda grass at championship tailgate fans are stepping up to throwing a chance. challenge for the chance to design and personalize their own football using the new XPS from Dell Technologies. You know, culture in the era of NIL and transfer portal, you know, one thing is so important that is buying. It is critical for survival. You know, for Kurt Zignetti, he asks his incoming players one quick question. How much do you love football?

That is it. If he gets the answer he likes and you could play, you're coming to Indiana. Mario Cristobal, his love for his family and this entire area has brought him back home with the goal of restoring a certain culture, a culture that he was familiar with with championships at the U. Reese Davis sat down with both coaches. I understand that you guys have never met before this weekend, first meeting. So from watching each other's teams on film preparation for the game, Kurt, what do you think you learned about Mario from watching his team? Tough guy, tenacious. Persistent.

Yeah. Ball coach. Mario, what do you think you've learned about Kirk from watching his team? Same self, smart, tough discipline, relentless football team. What do you think the demeanors that each of you have on the sideline say about you? Because it's a contrast. I know you've seen the pictures. First down looks the same as touchdown.

Looks the same as turnover. If you convert fourth and two behind the right guard, there's a fist pump coming. What does that say to your team when it's an authentic reaction to who you are? How does it help your team? You know, I stated earlier, I've learned as much from this football team and these players as I feel like I've been able to teach them. And they let me be me. I think that's why it works and that's why it's helped us get better and better. We are very just tightly bound and wired a certain way.

And I think we're a reflection of each other. How much did you have to try? train yourself not to react, good or bad in big moments? Yeah, it's hard. And my main thing is if I'm going to ask the team to play 1 to 150, the same like 0-0 game on the line regardless of competitive circumstances, right, fast, physical, relentless, smart discipline, pull, he's not affected by success, failure, never satisfied, then I've got to be that way.

I can't be a cheerleader on sideline, et cetera. I'm trying to think ahead, critical moments, anticipate, so I can make good game day decisions that give us the best chance to be successful, whether you use a timeout, not use a timeout, two minute before the half, et cetera. So it is what it is. It has developed, certainly. It's cutting some people's attention. But more important, we play well. You're obviously familiar with his quarterback. As you've watched Fernando this year and known his father, high school teammates with his father. What's been your impression from afar? What he's accomplished and how he's developed.

Precision, deadly accurate, tremendous leader. Galvanizes an organization. Plays his best when everything's on the line. Not phase. See him get hit, get up, hit, get up. There's no tap button to him. And I think the entire team

feeds off of him. It's where they get their energy. He grew up here. Grew up Keynes fan, grew up close to the stadium. How is he handled this week? Well, I think we're going to find out tomorrow night, but up to this point I would say really well. And that's the one thing I would say about Fernando is since he won the Hizmann, he's actually played better. And so this is another unique kind of challenge, and I think he's done a great job preparing. And we've got to protect him and give him a chance to stay on his feet and throw the ball on rhythm.

This time a year ago, Mario, your quarterback was in a very difficult spot. And now Carson Beck has a chance to lead his team to a national team. championship. What have you seen from him? I think we've witnessed his true DNA and the type of competitor that he is. And I think what he quickly demonstrated to his teammates was that he was coming here to Miami. Yeah, of course he wanted to better his situation, but he was all in on team and that the team goals and being a great teammate superseded anything else. So he gained their respect right away and he's playing his best football down the stretch now. When you look at this chance to bring another one home to Miami,

What do you think when you see this trophy? That represents 1-0. Got to find a way to get it done. Tomorrow we get a chance to find out. We've been adding a lot of first. It'd be a nice addition. Reese, thank you. I can only imagine what their pregame speeches are going to be like,

considering what they're like there the day before kick here. Roddy, when you see these two coaches, what stands out? Well, I think both of their tremendous commitment to the process stands out first and foremost. The organization with which they run their different programs, But each of them has brought this team through some really formative times this season. For Indiana, I think it was that Oregon game. I'm not sure that they believed that they were one of the elites of college football until they went to Austin and beat Oregon by double digits,

especially because Fernando Mendoza threw a pick six in that game in the fourth quarter to make it a tie ball game. But then they go and win. And for Mario Cristobal, I had that SMU game. That was the low point of the season. They came together and in the second half of the Syracuse game, they really turned it around. They dominated NC State the next week.

and it's propelled them. How they guided their teams through those times have really formed who these teams are now, but I think both of them being process-oriented really stands out. And I've been impressed by the different ways in which Miami's been able to win. I think it's been their defense for the most part, but last week, the defense kind of struggled. They gave up more points than you would have expected. The run game stepped up, right? There's been times where Carson Beck has struggled throughout the season,

and the defense stepped up, so they've found different ways to win. For Kurt Signetti in Indiana, it really started before Indiana. I got a chance to interview him when he was at J.N. AMU. And it was that same sense of confidence, not cockiness, but this idea of, hey, I know exactly who we are. I know exactly where we're going. And all of our players believe.

And so that's been the interesting part for me. As a player whose watch coach has been around coaches, both of these coaches have a sense of authenticity to them. I think it comes out in the players. Both coaches have done a great job, one of retaining the talent that they had in the 2024 season. Indiana was really good last year. They go to a college ball playoff.

Miami was really good, too. They had a number one overall draft pick. He goes on to the NFL. But the other part, too, the coordinator. You look at Indiana. They've kept their offensive and defensive coordinators for years on end. They've been with Coach Sig for a long time. The messaging for a lot of these young men is really important.

You think about you hear the message four or five times in your fourth or fifth year. You got it. And I think that's really why Indiana is so good. You could say, hey, the talent, the four and the five stars. That doesn't matter. When you have guys who believe in what the project is, believe in who they are also. There's no lack of identity with this football team. And I think it's the same thing for Miami as well.

I think what's interesting to me is you listen and get to know both. these coaches and how much their personal identity reflects their teams. I mean, Mario, such a tough dude. Look at the way their teams play. It is fast and it is physical. We want to turn this football game into a fist fight, right? That's where they're comfortable. And then with Kurt Signetti, look at poise, decision-making, fundamentals, process-oriented.

Their teams take on the identity of their coaches and they do it at a very high level. And it starts with their quarterback, right? Oh, yeah. And then Mendoza checks all those boxes. especially that poise and the processing. And ahead here as we continue college football live, we'll take a closer look at Fernando Mendoza and potentially the matchups on the other side,

how Miami's defense can pose a challenge against the Heisman winner as we continue here for Miami Gardens. Also, don't miss the new movie, send help only in theaters. January 3rd, you can catch a special look at the movie tonight during the college football playoff national championship. And now, let's take a look back to Saturday night in Miami, where Calvin Harris performed Feel So Close at AT&T's Playoff Playlist Live. Miami, is there anybody here tonight who knows the word

to a song called Feel So Close? I mean, hear you sing this. I feel so close to you right now. It's a waterfall. There's no stopping us right now. Feel so close. Indiana star wide receiver Elijah Serrat leads the FBS with 15 touchdown catches.

Both stars kind enough to allow us on the inside as they got ready for the national championship. They are wild. Let's get it. A little 1% today, baby, a little 1%. Let's get it, let's get it. All the way out, baby, you're doing good. You're doing good.

Yes, yes, yes. Be careful. Let's get it. Two times, two times. You're getting two turns. We want to get back, score. Strength on strength. That Indiana offense versus that Miami Deals,

versus that Miami defense here back here with the guys, especially when you look at the playoffs. Miami's their defense. They get pressure on dropbacks. 49% of the time here. Where can they pose a challenge to Fernando Mendoza in this offense? Well, Fernando Mendoza has put the ball on the ground a couple times specifically last week, but it hasn't hurt Indiana. So it's not just the front four. Even if you have seven guys rushing six, you're going to see a time last week, Indiana, Fernando Mendoza drops the ball or gets sacked, right? But even more so, the ball ends up bouncing in his favor. may not happen if you're playing Miami.

If the ball bounces the other way, all of a sudden, Miami can get that ball. This is a play where Pat Coogan, the center runs and chases and falls on the ball. May not always happen. So for me, if that ball is loose or if that ball's on the ground, Miami has a chance to force a turnover, get the ball back into their offensive left to run the ball,

and all of a sudden it could shorten the game. Who are the other weapons here specifically when you look at Indiana's offense that they can break through against this Miami defense? Well, Kevin, listening to the stuff around this game, everybody talks about Fernando Mendoza, everybody talks about the receivers. But as it's typical, nobody talks about the running back.

You got Roman Hemby, who's over 1,000 yards this season. Kalin Black is approaching that as well with 9161. Those two guys fit so well what Indiana does up front. It's one of the best offensive lines in the country. But those two backs are physical and they are no nonsense. Foot in the ground on the back field, up the field, and they finish runs as well as anybody. Kalen Black and Roman Hemby are definitely going to have a big impact in that game.

I'll double down on the running backs, and you look at the fact that when you sub one out and then you bring another one in, they're both giving the same kind of production. You really got two running backs that could be number ones. If Hymie was somewhere else, he could be the number one. If Black was somewhere else, he could be the number one. That's going to be tough for Miami, especially if Indiana comes to this game and say,

you know what, we want to own the line of scrimmage and maybe do something Miami's been doing throughout the entire CFP. Well, I think when you look at it and we, this is a copycat league. You go back to last week and you look at what Ole Miss did down the stretch. Dayquan Wright, their tied in was huge and a flood concept. It was the same play three times. They just flipped it to the other time for the go-ahead touchdown. I expect Riley Noakowski the tied in to get some options in this game early because it could be the mismatch with all these different coverages Miami's going to show up with

that maybe that's the comfort zone for Fernanda Mendoza, get it out of his hands and get it going a little bit. Keep an eye on first downs here in this game because Indiana, on average, gain seven yards per first down. Is that good? It's tremendous for second down and short, right? And then you have the conversions, then you have these long drives here. All right.

Let's switch sides of the ball here. Let's take a look at whose game ready brought to you by great clips. The Miami offense has done a good job of avoiding the pressure, not creating many negative plays and dominating time of possession. In the playoff, the Keynes have relied more on the run game and had success. Indiana and that defense, they've created pressure. They've forced opponents into negative plays all season. And the last time we saw this Miami offense,

they possessed the ball for over 41 minutes here, Roddy. That's unbelievable when you're talking about. talk about the idea of keeping away the football when you have a good quarterback. And Trit of that, Chambers, maybe playing a role here. What do you see when you watch Mark Fletcher? First and foremost, you see physicality, not just from Mark Fletcher, not just from the offensive line, from the entire offense in the run game. And it shows up consistently in every single game they play.

This is a snap against Ohio State. Miami is best when they can get to those double teams. Two of those big offensive linemen on a tackle getting up to the next level. But you're going to get a block from the tight end. And how about Malachi Tony getting into the edge of the box and throwing a fantastic block? It opens up a lane for Mark Fletcher. Miami does an excellent job because of those cracks from the receiver, making little guys in the secondary tackle a big guy in Mark Fletcher.

Another snap. Mark Fletcher, his physicality shows up consistently. Three Ohio State guys, Sonny Stiles has not missed the tackle this season until that moment right there. When Mark Fletcher runs through the future first round pick at 230 pounds, he is always dangerous running behind his family. We talk about physicality and want to. They get a little surge to let Mark Fletcher get in there.

He doesn't go down on first contact. And that allows that big offensive line. There's like a thousand pounds of man pushing the pile. Six offensive linemen coming up big to get some extra yardage. They've been clutch as well. First snap on the final drive against Texas A&M. Hats on hats, it's just how you draw it up. Mark Fletcher at 230 pounds, watch him scoot,

runs by the corner. And then Dalton Brooks contacts him. Can't bring him down for another 20. So it's physicality from the offensive line from the receivers and physicality for Mark Fletcher that's going to show up tonight. They're still playing because Fletcher in that game against A&M, right? He just got stronger and stronger as the game went on here. On the other side, Indiana, by the way, they have yet to trail in the playoff. What do you see from this defense on tape?

I don't see size per se. I see skill and I see a sense of confidence and a sense of execution that shows up consistently. There's a couple plays in their game last week where it's like it's not they're doing the big things. They're doing the little things well. Little things done well make big things happen. This is going to be a play, Daniel, Dominic Ratcliffe on the inside. Going to get shot with a, what we call it, a rib shot, right? Left tackle hits him in the ribs.

You think he's down and think he's out. No, he gets back up. Most guys stay down. Everything's covered on the back end. That's a sack in the game. But later on, not just the tenacity, it's also the execution. It's going to be a tech stunt from a one technique. And watch Daniel and Dukeway, the end, set it up.

You're supposed to pick that tackle. You pick him perfectly, not just a sack, sack fumble, and recovery. And so it's not their size or their stars, not a bunch of five stars, but they execute their technique to perfection. That's why there's five different players on this. defense at that five plus sack. It's definitely not a lot of five stars. It's no five stars.

There you go. Yes. And they eat off the turnovers. Plus 21. That leads the entire FBS. It's a huge difference heading into this game when we talk about mismatches and taking advantage of a team making a mistake here. Pregame, all of us like to walk around.

Some of us are doing shows. There's one guy that's keeping an eye on who's on the field and what they're doing. Let's bring in our insider Pete Famo. What do you got your eye on pregame here, Pete? Kevin, my eyes are going to be on Miami's cornerback. position. Obviously, star corner Xavier Lucas is going to be out for the first half because of a targeting penalty in the last game. Behind him, that position is in flux for Miami. I was told by sources today to Damari Brown, a key corner is going to be a game time decision for the

canes. He's dealing with a left foot injury. He hasn't played since November 29th. His return would be a big boost for Miami, especially in the first half when they don't have Lucas. O.J. Frederique, another corner for Miami who'd been dealing with nagging injuries, only played seven snaps in the last game. Look for Indiana to attack that cornerback position in the first half. Finally, for Indiana guys, they get a key player back today. Long kicker, Brendan Frankie, who's also the kickoff specialist, hasn't played since October 25th. Leads the FBS and touchback percentage, kicked a 58-yard field goal against Oregon. Kurt Signetti told me it's a huge factor in this game that Brendan Frankie will return.

Pete, thank you. Good stuff. Something to keep an eye on, especially if it's a close game. Also, you know, college game day is coming up later here on ESPN. We've got college basketball game day. Hit the road Saturday with a visit to Lubbock as Texas Tech hosts Houston top 20 matchup. Reese, Jay Billis, Andrea Carter, Seth Greenberg, and Jay Williams back and ready to discuss

who has the top conference in basketball, the top freshman in the game, and they'll preview day four ranked. versus ranked matchup. The show starts at 11 a.m. Eastern on ESPN. And our countdown cam presented by AT&T, giving us a look at some of the amazing events that are happening today on this championship Monday. Ahead, our guys make their championship picks as we count down to kick off live from Miami Garden site of the 26 college football national championship. College Football Live is built by the Home Depot. Howdoers. Get more done.

It mean everything to bring a championship back to the U. We're looking forward to opportunity. At the end of the day, we're just going to have to execute. The U is back. I know me and my teammates are going to be ready for the moment, but at the end of the day, the game's played in between the white lines. You have to appreciate the greatness of this Indiana team. Then boys are going to be ready to play.

We're going to be ready to play. It's going to be a great atmosphere out there. I'm excited. It's going to be one of those games where you got to let it all go. You can't leave nothing in the chamber. We've got to let everything go. We've been able to play in those moments and we've always been able to rise to the occasion.

However, I know my team is ready for the challenge. One more, who's your nation? One more. This is what we always talked about, beginning of the season, and now it's time to go get it. It's time to finish it. You know who's ready? Indiana students, they've been camping out all night to get spots in Bloomington

just to get in the bars to watch the national championship game. game. We're not talking about Miami guards and tickets. We're talking about just to watch the game in Bloomington in one of their favorite pubs. All right, here's a look at the show lineup for the rest of the day. Championship Drive is next followed by College Game Day

built by the Home Depot. Then we have the Rams Truck Free Game Show. Then after the game Sports Center with SVPs. Scott Van Pelt hole wrap up everything, all things here from Miami. Let's take a look at the one final team vote. Brought you by Dr. Pepper. The public is over

overwhelmingly in favor of the Hoosiers tonight. They gathered 77% of the vote. Miami hasn't been a home underdog since week one against Notre Dame. The Hurricanes came out with a three-point victory in that one. And that's the difference. That's why they're playing in the playoffs because they beat Notre Dame.

And by the way, ESPN is bringing back its big rings here for the third year in a row at the college football playoff national championship. Check this out, guys. This year's ring pays tribute to the city of, host city of Miami with a design inspired the city's iconic Art Deco architecture. 136 diamonds representing every division 1 FBS

across the college football landscape with that single XL diamond in the center symbolizing the national championship. All right, we're getting ready. Let's go. Time for our picks. I know we're in NIL time now. Who you got tonight? I like Indiana.

It's offense, it's defense, but it's even special teams as well. I think about what they do. Even with that block punt last week, they're hitting on all cylinders. I like the Hoosiers. I think Miami can win. I think they have talent. I think they have ability, but I think Indiana will win.

And I think it's because of what your tape illustrated, it is the little things in this game. Miami has some punches. Indiana has the final punch. Indiana can punch and all that kind of stuff. But fellas, we are in the 305 right now. Miami is 7 and 1 in this stadium, and we are at their home stadium.

Give me the Keyes tonight. They get a dove. I like that, E.J. I think ultimately what wins out is the maturity, the response, and what team has done that consistently over and over and over this year? It's the one led by the Heisman trophy winning quarterback. Fernando Mendoza, I think Indiana gets it done in this storybook season.

Go ahead and start writing the movie right now, if they do and do. One of the all-time, not just great college football stories, the greatest sports story if they can close out 16 and 0 as the only undefeated team, considering where they were just two years ago. All right, we're going to continue to get you ready as championship drive is next, followed by College Game Day on ESPN, live from Miami Gardens. Thanks.