Kirk Herbstreit says Alabama hurt its ‘reputation’ with humiliating loss to Indiana
By David Wasson
Published:
The Alabama Crimson Tide endured a humiliating 38-3 loss to Indiana in the Rose Bowl on Thursday, a one-sided beating that left observers scrambling to history books to determine the last time the Tide lost in such lopsided fashion in bowl play.
In an effort to quantify the level of Alabama’s defeat to the top-seeded Hoosiers in the College Football Playoff quarterfinal, ESPN color commentator Kirk Herbstreit said the defeat will resonate beyond just the picturesque settings of the San Gabriel Mountains.
“This is getting tough for Bama,” Herbstreit said on the telecast early in the fourth quarter. “In this subjective world we live in, with teams ‘who should be in, who should be out’ and all that kinda thing. Bama has definitely hurt themselves as far as their reputation on this big stage, not just this year but overall.”
Indiana (14-0) rolled up 407 yards of offense on Alabama, including 215 rushing yards – blasting past Alabama’s total output of 193 yards. Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza ended up with more touchdown passes than incompletions, as he went 14-of-16 for 192 yards and three touchdowns.
Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson finished with just 67 passing yards on 12-of-16 passing and was knocked out of the game due to injury early in the third quarter. Simpson also led the No. 9-seeded Tide (11-4) in rushing with just 17 yards on 3 carries but also coughed up a fumble in the first half that led to an Indiana touchdown.
An APSE national award-winning writer and editor, David Wasson has almost four decades of experience in the print journalism business in Florida and Alabama. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times and several national magazines and websites. He also hosts Gulfshore Sports with David Wasson, weekdays from 3-5 pm across Southwest Florida and on FoxSportsFM.com. His Twitter handle: @JustDWasson.
