Fernando Mendoza (5 TDs), No. 1 Indiana stomp No. 5 Oregon in CFP semi
ATLANTA -- Fernando Mendoza completed 17 of 20 passes for 177 yards and five touchdowns, helping No. 1 Indiana post a 56-22 romp of No. 5 Oregon in a College Football Playoff semifinal game in the Peach Bowl on Friday night.
Indiana (15-0) scored 21 points off three Oregon turnovers, advancing to the CFP national championship game against No. 10 Miami on Jan. 19.
Elijah Sarratt had seven receptions for 75 yards and two touchdowns for Indiana, which has won its two playoff games by a combined 69 points.
Dante Moore threw for 285 yards and two touchdowns for Oregon (13-2), which outgained Indiana 378-362 despite being outmatched throughout the lopsided affair.
Leading 35-7 at halftime, Indiana tacked on with Mendoza's 13-yard touchdown pass to E.J. Williams with 8:52 left in the third quarter. After Dierre Hill Jr.'s 71-yard rush, Oregon stopped the bleeding with Jay Harris' 2-yard rushing score and Moore's two-point conversion pass to Jamari Johnson to make it 42-15.
Less than two minutes into the fourth quarter, Indiana blocked a punt and three plays later Mendoza threw his fifth touchdown pass, this time a 3-yarder to Sarratt with 11:36 remaining in the game. Kaelon Black then scampered for a 23-yard rushing score to extend the lead to 41 on the Hoosiers' next drive.
Moore's 1-yard touchdown pass to Roger Saleapaga with 22 seconds left finished the game's scoring.
After Oregon returned the opening kick to its 20-yard line, D'Angelo Ponds picked off Moore and returned it 25 yards for a touchdown on the first play from scrimmage, giving the Hoosiers a 7-0 lead just 11 seconds in.
The Ducks answered with a 14-play, 75-yard scoring drive, stamped with Moore's game-tying 19-yard scoring pass to Johnson at the 7:11 mark of the first quarter.
On Indiana's first offensive possession, Mendoza completed each of his four passes for 41 yards, including an 8-yard touchdown pass to Omar Cooper Jr. with 40 seconds left in the first.
After the teams traded punts, Moore committed his second turnover as he had the ball knocked out of his hands inadvertently by Hill. Indiana's Mario Landino recovered the fumble at Oregon's 3-yard line, leading to Black's 1-yard rushing score with 8:17 remaining in the first half to make it 21-7.
Moore took sacks on second and third down of Oregon's ensuing drive, leading to another Ducks punt. Four plays later, Mendoza connected with Charlie Becker for a 36-yard touchdown strike to extend the lead to 28-7. Moore's nightmarish first half continued on the next drive, as Daniel Ndukwe's strip sack was recovered by Landino at the 21.
The Hoosiers took a 28-point lead on Mendoza's 2-yard touchdown pass to Sarratt with 59 seconds left before halftime. Oregon's Atticus Sappington came up short on a 56-yard field goal attempt on the final play of the first half.