BLOOMINGTON — IU football will face Alabama at the Rose Bowl in the College Football Playoff, marking the program’s first appearance in the iconic bowl game in 58 years.
As the Hoosiers return to Pasadena, members of the 1968 IU team, the first in school history to play in the Rose Bowl, are reflecting on their own journey to the “Granddaddy of Them All.”
“To be picked to go to the Granddaddy of Them All, the Rose Bowl, is unbelievable,” said Harold Mauro, the center on the 1967 team.
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The accomplishment was even more remarkable given where the team began.
“We were 2-8 our sophomore year, 1-8-1 our junior year,” said Doug Cruzan, a defensive tackle on the '68 Rose Bowl team.
Indiana finished the season 9-1, surviving several close calls along the way.
“And people were going, 'Oh, they’re giving us a heart attack,' and that’s where we got the nickname of the cardiac kids,” said Mauro.
“I really think what set the tempo for the rest of the season was our first Big Ten game was at Illinois, and we won, and people are going, 'How did that happen?' and from there every week got better and better and better,” said EG White, an offensive guard on the 1967 team.
The season culminated with a trip to Pasadena and a matchup against a powerful USC team.
“It was just special and an awe taking moment, and all of a sudden we had a lot of interviews, and had to get new blazers and gray khakis, just the whole bit to get ready and go play a very, very good USC team,” said White.
Indiana ultimately lost the game, but the experience left a lasting impression.
“It’s a magical place, and the beauty of it. It’s a real grass field, mountains, sunshine, they got it all," said White.
“I wore high tops my whole career, and I said I’m going to wear low cuts in the Rose Bowl because I’m going to be on TV, so I did, and hurt my ankle in the third quarter. At the end of the game, I had fractured my ankle, but played with it because it hurt, but I wanted to play in the game,” said Mauro.
Now, the 1967 Hoosiers will watch as another Indiana team takes the Rose Bowl field, hoping for a different outcome but cherishing the shared connection.
“I was proud to be the captain of that team, but I didn’t want to be the only one, so I’m proud of the school and what they've accomplished now in going back, winning the Big Ten, going back to the Rose Bowl, and I hope the players really enjoy this,” said Cruzan.
