Indiana’s defense will face an elite cast of skilled athletes and extraordinarily large humans when they take on Alabama at The Rose Bowl on Thursday.
What are the keys to watch for when the Crimson Tide has the football?
Nationally, Alabama ranks No. 33 in scoring offense at 31.4 points per game, while IU ranks No. 2 in scoring defense at 10.8 points allowed per contest. If you take out Alabama’s two games against non-Power 4 opponents, the Tide averaged just 22.2 points per contest. Indiana, on the other hand, still only allowed 11.8 points per game to Power 4 opponents.
Alabama has emphasized the passing game by a wide margin, running 590 passing plays and 386 plays on the ground. That’s a 60/40 split in favor of the pass, and that’s despite running 52.2% of the time in their two non-Power-4 games.
The Crimson Tide have not turned the ball over much this year. They have given it away just 12 times in 14 games, tied for the 18th fewest turnovers lost in the nation. Indiana is tied for the eight-most takeaways with 25.
Here’s more on Alabama’s offense and how they match up with the Hoosiers.
THE RUNNING GAME
This seems like a mismatch on paper.
Alabama ranks No. 120 in the nation, averaging 109.9 rushing yards per game, and that includes just 88.17 against Power 4 schools. They’ve rushed for a total of just 25 yards combined over their last two games, including sack yards. The Tide have been held under 100 yards rushing in half of their games.
Indiana is No. 3 in the nation, allowing just 77.3 yards per game on the ground. Power 4 schools have only rushed for an average of 66.3 yards per game against IU. Only two teams — Old Dominion and Penn State — have gone over 100 yards against the Hoosiers. 153 of the 1,009 (15.2%) rushing yards IU gave up all season came on two plays in week one vs. ODU.
THE PASSING GAME
Alabama is much more dangerous in the passing game.
The Crimson Tide average 270.2 yards per game through the air, good for No. 23 in the country. In four games they went over 300 yards through the air. Alabama has 32 touchdown passes and just five interceptions for the season. The Tide really spread the ball around. Five different players have at least 33 receptions, and 10 different players have at least 11. Two tight ends and three running backs are part of that group of 10 with at least 11 receptions. 11 different pass-catchers have secured at least one touchdown reception over Alabama’s first 14 games.
Indiana’s passing defense ranks No. 18, allowing 179.5 yards per game. The Hoosiers haven’t allowed a 300-yard passing game all season, and only more than 200 yards in five games. Some of the games when they’ve allowed the most yards the Hoosiers had big second half leads and opponents largely abandoned the run (e.g. Michigan State, Maryland, Purdue). The Hoosiers have 17 interceptions vs. seven touchdowns allowed on the season.
Alabama ranks No. 99 nationally, allowing 29 sacks this season. Indiana’s defense is tied for No. 6 with 39 sacks.
Teams have had modest success against IU utilizing the short passing game to sustain long drives. That could be Alabama’s preferred approach in this game. But a potentially rainy day Thursday could also be a factor.
QUARTERBACK
Along with Dante Moore and Julian Sayin, Alabama’s Ty Simpson will be among the best quarterbacks IU has faced this season. A redshirt junior, Simpson has seen the field each of the last four seasons, but this is his first year as the full-time starter.
Simpson has completed 293 of 457 passes (64.1%) for 3,500 yards. He has 28 touchdowns and just five interceptions. Excluding sack yards, he has rushed for 298 yards on 58 attempts (3.9 per carry). His long run is 26 yards, and he had added two scores on the ground.
The key to slowing down Simpson appears to be pressure. He has been sacked 29 times, which suggests he holds the ball too long. Pressure is the strength of Indiana’s defense. The Hoosiers got pressure on the QB 251 times in 2025. But the Hoosiers will be without key edge pass rushers Stephen Daley and Kellan Wyatt — and Alabama’s pass blocking weakness appears to be on the edge.
RUNNING BACKS
Senior Jam Miller (5-foot-10, 221 pounds) has been the primary back for Alabama for most of the season. He has carried the ball 130 times for 504 yards (3.9 per carry) with three touchdowns.
Sophomore Daniel Hill and freshman Kevin Riley were next in the pecking order, with both averaging just over five carries a game but also both under four yards per carry. Riley has been injured of late.
Hill is massive at 6-foot-1 and 244 pounds. He got more carries than Miller in Alabama’s first round CFP win at Oklahoma, and he averaged 4.8 per chance.
Alabama’s backs are a threat in the passing game. Hill has 21 receptions for 198 yards. With his size he’s a major problem when catching the ball in the open field. Miller has 18 receptions for 108 yards.
WIDE RECEIVERS
Drops have been a major issue in the passing game. The Tide have dropped 31 passes this season, with Ryan Williams the worst offender with 10.
6-foot-1 and 204 pound Germie Bernard leads the way with 60 catches for 802 yards and seven scores. He also led the team in receptions a year ago.
Depth is a strength of this unit. Simpson spreads the ball to four primary receivers, who all have at least 32 receptions and 441 yards. Those four come in all sizes, from 5-foot-9 slot receiver Lotzeir Brooks, to 6-foot-4 Isaiah Horton.
TIGHT ENDS
6-foot-3 and 256-pound Josh Cuevas is a major threat as a receiver. He has 33 catches for 376 yards and four scores in 11 games. 6-foot-6 freshman Kaleb Edwards is also a factor with 11 catches for 150 yards and a score.
The tight ends grade similar to the offensive line at PFF, with better blocking marks in the pass game compared to the run.
OFFENSIVE LINE
Left tackle Kadyn Proctor was named a consensus first team All-American. He has the top run blocking and pass blocking grade at PFF among the starters. But the 6-foot-7 and 366-pounder isn’t bulletproof. He co-led the team with 20 pressures allowed. Right tackle Wilkin Formby has allowed 20 more pressures off the other edge.
Center Parker Brailsford is a highly regarded veteran who came to Alabama with head coach Kalen DeBoer from Washington.
Despite allowing 29 sacks on the season, the Alabama offensive line ranks fifth at PFF in pass blocking, which again speaks somewhat to the quarterback holding the ball too long. The Tide are just No. 43 at PFF in run blocking.
No. 1 Indiana (13-0) faces No. 9 Alabama (11-3) on Jan. 1 in the CFP Quarterfinals at the Rose Bowl (4 p.m. ET, ESPN).
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