{"id":116572,"date":"2026-01-10T15:52:45","date_gmt":"2026-01-10T20:52:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/espn-stars-past-indiana-criticism-back-in-spotlight-as-hoosier-surges-to-cfp-national-title-game-116572"},"modified":"2026-01-10T15:52:45","modified_gmt":"2026-01-10T20:52:45","slug":"espn-stars-past-indiana-criticism-back-in-spotlight-as-hoosier-surges-to-cfp-national-title-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/espn-stars-past-indiana-criticism-back-in-spotlight-as-hoosier-surges-to-cfp-national-title-game-116572","title":{"rendered":"ESPN star’s past Indiana criticism back in spotlight as Hoosier surges to CFP national title game"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Kirk Herbstreit has spent the last three decades analyzing college football teams and games. He was not on hand for Friday\u2019s Peach Bowl broadcast, but Indiana\u2019s dominant College Football Playoff<\/a> run still put him back in the spotlight.<\/p>\n

Last season, Indiana qualified for the CFP for the first time in program history. Notre Dame<\/a> ultimately defeated the Hoosiers in the first round. Indiana earning one of the coveted 12 spots in the playoff was met with some criticism, with Herbstreit among those who questioned the selection committee after Indiana’s early postseason exit.<\/p>\n

“I hope next that the committee won\u2019t get caught up in what social media and a lot of fringe fans get caught up in \u2026 which is wins,” Herbstreit said in December 2024 when asked to share his takeaway from the first-round games.<\/p>\n

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

“‘They had 11 wins, they must be good.’ Who did they beat, I think is much more important than how many wins you have. That’s [an] old school way of approaching it. Indiana having 11 wins and beating nobody, that doesn’t mean they’re one of the 12 best teams. Remember\u2026 there’s a big difference between ‘deserving’ and ‘best.’ What this is all about is giving us the best 12 teams.”<\/p>\n

The Hoosiers<\/a> have had little trouble getting past either of the two opponents they\u2019ve faced in the 2025 CFP.<\/p>\n

INDIANA COACH CURT CIGNETTI WANTED ONE THING AFTER HISTORIC VICTORY OVER OREGON<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza completed 17 of 20 passes and threw five touchdown passes en route to Indiana\u2019s 56-22 victory over Oregon in the semifinal. After the game, Herbstreit\u2019s past critique of the last Big Ten team standing in the current playoff drew renewed scrutiny.<\/p>\n

One social media user asserted that Herbstreit is “insufferable,” while another suggested the former Ohio State quarterback\u2019s criteria was inconsistent. Others defended Herbstreit, with one X account writing, “He\u2019s not wrong overall.”<\/p>\n

Shortly after Miami outlasted Ole Miss<\/a> in Thursday\u2019s Fiesta Bowl, Herbstreit delivered a blunt recruiting message to the sport\u2019s other coaches.<\/p>\n

“One thing that I think we\u2019ve been able to witness first hand, if you\u2019re a coach watching this or GM watching this, while you\u2019re chasing five-stars and agents, free agents, and everything you\u2019re dealing with, this is still a team sport, and it\u2019s about winning games.”<\/p>\n

“Indiana, they don\u2019t got a lot of five stars. You know what they’ve got? They’ve got a team,” he told On3.<\/a><\/p>\n

“If you don\u2019t build that and you just chase five stars, you\u2019re never gonna be here on that stage. You better stop chasing just this craziness, and you better step back and say, \u2018If those are your demands, get outta here. We’re gonna go find guys that want to be a part of this,'” Herbstreit concluded.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Alabama and Oregon \u2014 Indiana\u2019s two opponents in this year\u2019s CFP \u2014 have been outscored by a combined 69 points. The Hoosiers will meet Miami in the national title game on Jan. 19.<\/p>\n

Follow Fox News Digital\u2019s<\/strong><\/i> sports coverage on X<\/a>, and subscribe to<\/strong><\/i> the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter<\/a>.<\/strong><\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source – https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/sports\/espn-stars-past-indiana-criticism-back-spotlight-hoosier-surges-cfp-national-title-game <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kirk Herbstreit has spent the last three decades analyzing college football teams and games. He was not on hand for Friday\u2019s Peach Bowl broadcast, but […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"twitter_2902945987_2902945987":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[16563],"tags":[],"stock_ticker":[],"class_list":["post-116572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-market-news","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nESPN star's past Indiana criticism back in spotlight as Hoosier surges to CFP national title game - Wall Street PR<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/espn-stars-past-indiana-criticism-back-in-spotlight-as-hoosier-surges-to-cfp-national-title-game-116572\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"ESPN star's past Indiana criticism back in spotlight as Hoosier surges to CFP national title game - Wall Street PR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Kirk Herbstreit has spent the last three decades analyzing college football teams and games. 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