Miami, underdog through CFP, embraces role again vs. Indiana - ESPN

MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — No. 10 Miami will face No. 1 Indiana for the national championship on Monday night in its home stadium, yet the Hurricanes are an 8.5-point underdog — a role defensive lineman Rueben Bain Jr. said has been Miami's «story the whole playoffs.»

He's right.

Miami entered the season 25-1 to win the national championship and was 100-1 on the morning of the College Football Playoff bracket reveal, as the Hurricanes were underdogs to even make the playoff. Now, ESPN Analytics gives the Hoosiers a 68.3% chance to win at Hard Rock Stadium, where Miami will become the first team to play for a national title at its home stadium since championship games became an annual occurrence in 1998 with the start of the BCS.

«I feel like that's been our whole journey, our whole story the whole playoffs,» Bain said. «We like when nobody believes in us.»

The Hurricanes are 13-1 in the past two seasons at Hard Rock Stadium, the only loss coming to Louisville this season. Following a Nov. 1 loss at SMU, Miami was ranked 18th in the initial CFP rankings. That would be the lowest a national champion has been in the initial CFP rankings.

Defensive end Akheem Mesidor said the only goal is to prove Miami is the best team in the country.

«I've been an underdog my whole life, so being an underdog in this last game — being an underdog in every game we played in the playoffs — really doesn't mean anything to me,» Mesidor said. «It might fuel me a little bit, but at the end of the day, I just want to play football and show that we are the best team in the nation.»

Quarterback Carson Beck agreed and said «none of that matters.»

«This whole season, all we've really talked about is the people in this locker room is what matters,» he said.