College Football Championship Bracket 2026 Odds, Top Matchups in Miami vs. Indiana
The 2026 College Football Playoff national championship may pit the No. 10 seed against the No. 1 seed on paper, but you could argue that the two best teams in the country are facing off for the title.
The Miami Hurricanes played as well as any team in November and followed that up with three impressive wins to reach the final inside their home venue, Hard Rock Stadium.
Curt Cignetti's top-ranked Indiana Hoosiers have been the best team in the FBS all season long. Indiana put itself one win away from going down as one of the best teams in college football history.
Both teams possess incredible defenses, but there will be some gaps the respective offenses will try to exploit with their best skill position players to capture the national championship.
National Championship Game Odds
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Spread: Indiana (-8.5)
Over/Under: 47.5
Money Line: Indiana (-310; bet $310 to win $100); Miami (+250; bet $100 to win $250)
Indiana's Wide Receivers vs. Miami's Secondary
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Indiana features a trio of wide receivers that thrived over the last three games.
Charlie Becker, Elijah Sarratt and Omar Cooper Jr. all had at least 40 receiving yards in the quarterfinal win over the Alabama Crimson Tide.
Sarratt led the Hoosiers with 75 yards and two touchdowns against the Oregon Ducks in the semifinal round. Becker and Cooper each caught a touchdown pass.
Miami's defense has been vulnerable to some decent passing performances during the playoff.
Julian Sayin passed for 287 yards in the quarterfinal round against Miami and Trinidad Chambliss had 277 yards through the air in the semifinals.
Fernando Mendoza can achieve a similar level of success against the Miami secondary, especially if he gets all three of his top pass-catchers involved on Monday night.
Mark Fletcher vs. Indiana's Rushing Defense
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Mark Fletcher has arguably been the best offensive player through three rounds of the CFB Playoff.
Fletcher produced a pair of 100-yard games against Texas A&M and Ole Miss and ran for 90 yards against Ohio State.
Fletcher has been the tone-setter for the Hurricanes offense, and without him, Miami might not be in the position it's in right now.
Indiana held Oregon to 91 rushing yards, a total that would've been much lower if Dierre Hill didn't break off a 71-yard run. The Hoosiers limited Alabama to 23 total rushing yards.
If Indiana's rushing defense is that effective again, it will force Miami to win the game through the air with Carson Beck.
Miami is certainly capable of doing that, but losing Fletcher's impact on the ground would be a severe blow to their chances of winning.
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