How Indiana HC Curt Cignetti plans to prepare for Alabama, Oklahoma in Rose Bowl

Nov 9, 2024; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Indiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti reacts in the second half against the Michigan Wolverines at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

Indiana has a lot of time on its hands to prepare for Oklahoma or Alabama in a potential Rose Bowl matchup.

The Hoosiers are the No. 1 team in the 2025 College Football Playoff. They will take on the winner of the No. 9 Alabama vs. No. 8 Oklahoma matchup in the quarterfinals of the playoff in the Rose Bowl. The Sooners and the Crimson Tide will square off on Dec. 19 at 7 p.m. CST.

Indiana will meet the winner of the game on Thursday, Jan 1 in the Rose Bowl in Pasedena, California. Indiana’s head football coach Curt Cignetti says the Hoosiers will treat their time off like a normal off week until the Sooners and the Tide square off.

“We’ll treat it like a normal off week up until we find out who our opponent’s gonna be, and then we’ll rev it up a couple notches,” Cignetti said. “We’ll have 11 days really to prepare and be ready to play. I think 90 percent of it we’ve got on paper and it’s common sense stuff, and we’ve got a few little details in terms of the final three days we’ve gotta work through.”

Oklahoma beat Alabama 23-21 in Tuscaloosa earlier this season. Kalen DeBoer has lost to the Sooners twice as the Tide’s head coach.