(La Porte, IN) - A La Porte man has been an Indiana University football fan since before taken to his first football game at the Bloomington campus by his season ticket holding father.

 

John Howes said the sudden turnaround of the program into a national contender along with yesterday’s blowout victory in the college football playoffs against Alabama feels surreal.  Howes said he never imagined the Hoosiers after decades of losing football “beating teams handily like Alabama.  It’s really quite unbelievable.”

 

In comparison, Howes said the Hoosiers were “crushed” by Michigan in his first game at Memorial Stadium years ago as a teenager.  “It’s definitely not like that now,” he said.

 

Howes, an attorney like his father, Ralph, said he’s even had thoughts about Indiana becoming the next “super power” in college football, but struggles to believe that could actually happen given the team’s mostly losing history.

 

La Porte City Councilman Tim Franke said his voice was a little hoarse after cheering the Hoosiers on to their 38-3 victory Thursday over the Crimson Tide in the basement of his residence.

 

Franke, a longtime fan and Indiana University graduate, said he’s still kind of pinching himself over the success the team has had the past two seasons.  “To play a team like Alabama and then absolutely destroy them was an amazing thing to see for sure,” he said.

 

Former La Porte Chamber of Commerce President Mike Seitz is another longtime Hoosiers football fan basking in what still seems like a dream.  “This is just fantastic,” he said.

 

Seitz, who recently moved to Florida, is considering purchasing tickets to watch the Hoosiers play for the title in Miami if the Hoosiers defeat the Oregon Ducks on January 9.  Indiana defeated Oregon during the regular season.  “It’s amazing,” he said.