James Brockermeyer has been in the College Football Playoff before. That’s part of the experience that has made him so valuable to Miami this season as a redshirt senior.
The Hurricanes’ center has been twice, though neither time contributing like he does for his current squad. Back in 2021 and 2023, he was a reserve for Alabama, for Nick Saban’s final two appearances in the CFP.
Those teams might not have won a championship, but Brockermeyer still learned a lot. On Saturday, he was asked what he took away from those experiences that might help him and Miami now.
“I think the biggest thing is being able to handle external factors and distractions,” Brockermeyer said. “There is just so much more attention that comes with big playoff games like this. I think the teams that handle all those distractions and external factors are the teams that typically have the most success.”
In 2021, Brockermeyer didn’t see the field at Alabama, preserving his redshirt. By 2023, he was contributing, playing in all 14 games for the Crimson Tide, but mostly on special teams.
The 2021 squad made it all the way to the national championship game, winning an SEC title along the way, but a rematch with Georgia in the final game went the other way. The 2023 squad also won the SEC title, but fell to Michigan in overtime in the Rose Bowl semifinal, which wound up as Nick Saban’s final game as head coach.
Brockermeyer hit the portal in the spring window following Kalen DeBoer’s hire. He spent 2024 at TCU in his hometown of Fort Worth, then headed to Miami for a final season of eligibility.
The Hurricanes will play the championship game on their home field, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. Brockermeyer was asked whether that could be a distraction for his team.
“I mean, there is both to it,” Brockermeyer said of whether the location was an advantage or disadvantage for UM.”A lot more distractions I would say when you’re playing at home, so that’s a big challenge for us to deal with. It’s going to be really special being able to play in Hard Rock in front of our fans and just all the people that have supported us throughout this year, throughout the peaks and valleys of the season.”
Distractions or not, the Hurricanes are more than a touchdown underdog depending on the book. Its opponent, Indiana, is the No. 1 team in the country for a reason and has thoroughly dispatched its prior playoff opponents, including Alabama in the Rose Bowl.
Entering his final college game, Brockermeyer said Miami was keeping it simple.
“Yeah, we just got to go execute and do our job, not make it bigger than it is,” Brockermeyer said. “At the end of the day we’re playing a football game and there will be a lot of distractions and external factors that go into this game, and we just need to play Miami Hurricanes football and we’ll be confident to be able to do that.”
Miami and Indiana are scheduled to kick off at 6:30 p.m. CT Monday. The national championship game will be aired on ESPN.