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PASADENA, Calif. -- A heavily pro-Indiana crowd was ready to erupt at any moment Thursday at the Rose Bowl. A rough estimate of the split inside the stadium suggested Indiana fans accounted for at least 70% of the crowd.

And it was easy to understand why they made the trip to Southern California. Indiana's last appearance in the Rose Bowl came in 1968. The program's most recent bowl victory of any kind was in 1991. With no hyperbole, this was the biggest game in Indiana football history -- against an Alabama program widely considered one of the most successful in the sport's history.

That backdrop made the anxiety palpable when Alabama forced a three-and-out on Indiana's opening possession. The Crimson Tide brought pressure twice on the first three plays, giving the impression that "Bad Bad Bama" was ready to play spoiler and crash the party, just as it had last month when Alabama erased a 17-point deficit against Oklahoma in the first round of the CFP. 

Alabama, as a program, had been here before. It had done this countless times. Indiana had not. This was unfamiliar territory -- and an opportunity to erase decades of doubt and show the country what Curt Cignetti's program has been building over the past two years.

Instead, it was Indiana -- the program that represents the opposite end of the historical spectrum -- that looked like the more disciplined and experienced team in a stunning 38-3 College Football Playoff quarterfinal victory. The win sends the Hoosiers to next week's semifinals, where they will face Big Ten foe No. 5 Oregon in the Peach Bowl with a trip to the national championship game on the line.

Indiana delivered death by a thousand cuts. The precision with which the Hoosiers dismantled Alabama was reminiscent of how the Crimson Tide used to overwhelm opponents under Nick Saban. Indiana also became the first team in the 12-team CFP era to win a quarterfinal after receiving a first-round bye. Teams had previously gone 0-6.

"It definitely is a huge struggle," Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza said on the break. "Coach Cignetti did a fantastic job with the trickle-down effect of making sure there was no complacency because you have 26 days off. That's very, very tough. Especially the first drive as an offense. Myself included, we got off to a slow start. ... We overcame that challenge and that showed on the field today."

After losing to Notre Dame in the first round of the CFP last season, Indiana aggressively attacked the transfer portal and landed Mendoza from Cal. That move may go down as one of the most significant portal additions ever, after Mendoza delivered the program its first Heisman Trophy.

Mendoza's numbers against Alabama were not eye-popping, but his efficiency was exactly what Indiana needed. Even if the scoreboard did not reflect a blowout early -- Indiana led 17-0 at halftime -- the outcome felt inevitable.

With the win, Cignetti became just the second FBS coach to win at least 25 games in his first two seasons at a school. Ironically, he joined Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer, who accomplished the feat at Washington before arriving in Tuscaloosa following Saban's retirement.

"My journey has been kind of surreal," Cignetti said. "But I think every move kind of prepared me for this challenge this time with the changing dynamic in college football."

Cignetti, an Alabama assistant from 2007-11 under Saban, appeared to borrow from one of the sport's most influential playbooks: establish the run. Indiana rushed for 215 yards while holding Alabama to just 23.

"Things we used to preach when I was at Alabama about changing the way they think and breaking their will," Cignetti said. "That's the best way to do it, running the football. It takes a while. It doesn't happen in the first or second quarter, it happens in the second half. ... I thought our line did a nice job and our backs did a nice job."

The Hoosiers are now on the verge of playing for a national championship -- an unthinkable feat for the program just two years ago. What Cignetti has accomplished at Indiana stands as one of the most dramatic transformations in college football history.

But don't tell that to the stoic coach. He's already thinking ahead to the next mountain to clim. 

"We will have a very big challenge ahead of us next week," Cignetti said. "It's very hard to beat a really good football team twice. There's no doubt about that."