Motivation was never likely to be an issue heading into the College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl for Alabama, but if, for whatever reason, the Crimson Tide was short on motivation, they've gotten plenty of added fuel for their fire from the national media over the last couple of weeks.
It started with many screaming from the rooftops that Alabama didn't deserve to be in the playoff to begin with. It continued with outright fallacies about Kalen DeBoer's happiness in Tuscaloosa and the comfort level of fans with their head coach. It has continued since Alabama's thrilling comeback win over Oklahoma last Friday night, with pundits all around the country giving the Tide little to no chance of taking down top-ranked Indiana in Pasadena.