Curt Cignetti has Indiana football two wins away from capping off one of the greatest — and likely unthinkable — turnarounds in college football history.
To get to the CFP Championship game at Hard Rock Stadium, the top-seeded Hoosiers first need to defeat No. 5 Oregon on Friday, Jan. 9 in the Peach Bowl CFP semifinal, where there seems to be a large contingent of Hoosiers fans in attendance to watch that game play out.
“It is a sea of Indiana crimson right now,” ESPN’s Rece Davis said on “College GameDay” going into a commercial break live from Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
Indiana’s invasion of Atlanta even includes the appearance of prominent Indiana alum Mark Cuban, who recently made another donation to the Hoosiers’ athletic department.
The Hoosiers became the first team in the 12-team CFP era to win their quarterfinal matchup after earning a first-round bye with their 35-point win over No. 9 Alabama in the CFP Rose Bowl quarterfinal on New Year’s Day. Indiana now looks to break another CFP trend, which is how regular-season rematches in the CFP play out. A win on Friday would make Indiana just the second team to beat the same team in the regular season and in the CFP in the same season.
Given the first-time experience and all that comes with it, Hoosiers fans have received quite the flowers and praise from those within the college football world on their invasion of Atlanta for the Peach Bowl:
College football reacts to Indiana fans invasion of Peach Bowl, Atlanta
Here’s a snippet of reactions from those within the college football world talking about the Hoosiers’ invasion of Atlanta:
I believe the ratio of @IndianaFootball fans to @oregonfootball fans is 1,000,000,000 to 6
— Dana O’Neil (@DanaONeilWriter) January 9, 2026
Judging by downtown foot traffic and MARTA riders, Atlanta might as well be Indianapolis today.
— Pat Forde (@ByPatForde) January 9, 2026
It’s early but judging from the concourse it’s 75/25 IU easy
— Assembly Call (⚪,🔴) (@AssemblyCall) January 9, 2026
Bloomington must be deserted, because Atlanta is a sea of Crimson & Cream.
— Scott Van Pelt (@notthefakeSVP) January 9, 2026
One of the coolest parts of this job is when you see a fan base that hasn’t had success in a long time get to go to a big game.
There’s so much joy and excitement and “can you believe this?!” from Indiana fans in Atlanta right now.
— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) January 9, 2026
This is Indianta right now 😂😂 #CollegeGameDaypic.twitter.com/0vcXS2vyKo
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) January 9, 2026
Bloomington South pic.twitter.com/ArwFNJH5u2
— James Crepea (@JamesCrepea) January 10, 2026
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Indiana fans vastly outnumber Oregon fans at Peach Bowl CFP semifinal
