The CFP Semifinalists All Have 1 Thing in Common

The College Football Playoff semifinals are set, and the gridiron version of the final four teams all have one thing in common. 

Blue blood programs? Negative. Oregon and Indiana are looking for their first national championships.

Recruiting juggernauts? Also no when it comes to the Hoosiers, who are an underdog story if ever there was one.

Are they all Nike schools? No. While Oregon and Mississippi swear the swoosh, Indiana and Miami (Fla.) represent adidas.

But these schools getting this far might not be a coincidence if you’re familiar with the recent history of CFB. 

It's not a matter of fashion or tradition so much as leadership, and all four programs are led by men who once had the same boss.

The Nick Saban Connection 

All four 2025 CFP semifinalists are led by a coach who once worked for Nick Saban at Alabama. 

Miami head coach Mario Cristobal spent four seasons in Tuscaloosa (2013-16), where he was the offensive line coach, recruiting coordinator and assistant head coach. He has a national championship ring from his time with the Tide (2015) and also won two titles as an offensive lineman for the Hurricanes in 1989 and ’91. 

Mississippi’s head coach is Pete Golding, who was the defensive coordinator at Alabama from 2018-22. He won a national title (2020) and three SEC championships in that time. 

In another twist, Golding took over as coach of the Rebels in place of Lane Kiffin, who was also an assistant at Alabama. Kiffin gave up his post as Mississippi head coach to take over at LSU instead last month.

Second-year Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti was the receivers coach and recruiting coordinator at Alabama from 2007-10, a time that saw the Crimson Tide win one national championship (2009) and two SEC titles (’08 and ’09). 

Oregon head coach Dan Lanning had the briefest stint with Alabama. He was a graduate assistant handling outside linebackers for the Tide in 2015, sharing time with Cristobal as Alabama won it all that season. Lanning then spent two seasons at Memphis before hooking up with Kirby Smart, another Saban protege, at Georgia. He has been the head coach of the Ducks since 2022, when he replaced Cristobal. 

READ MORE: American Beer Trends for 2026

Who is Nick Saban? 

Saban producing lots of successful head coaches shouldn’t come as a surprise.
He retired two years ago as arguably the best coach in college football history. 

The West Virginia native won six national championships as the head coach at Alabama and another leading LSU. 

Now he is a college football commentator for ESPN. 

When are the CFP semifinals? 

The Rebels and Hurricanes are set to play Jan. 8 in the Fiesta Bowl in Arizona while the Ducks and Hoosiers will square off (for the second time this season) in the Peach Bowl in Georgia one night later. 

The winners will play for the national title Jan. 19 in Miami at the home of the Hurricanes, Hard Rock Stadium.