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College Football Playoff Committee Chair Warde Manuel explained why Indiana football stayed in the top 10 after its ugly loss to Ohio State. The Hoosiers came into Columbus as the No. 5 team in the country for the nationally hyped matchup. Unfortunately for head coach Curt Cignetti's team, the second-highest scoring offense in the country, led by star quarterback Kurtis Rourke, was shut down Saturday. However, despite this result, the Hoosiers grabbed the No. 10 spot in Tuesday's College Football Playoff rankings.
College Football Senior Writer for ESPN Peter Thamel posted on X the explanation Warde Manuel gave Rece Davis on how Indiana football still presumably controls its destiny.
“We were impressed with some of the things Indiana did (against Ohio State). They dropped five (spots). We felt their body of work was strong enough to remain in the top 10.”
A win on Senior Day and the Indiana Hoosiers should be in
In his first year in Bloomington, Curt Cignetti is having a historic season with Indiana football. The Hoosiers started with ten straight wins for the first time in school history. This stunning success story has resulted in Cignetti signing an extension with the nationally emerging program.
Despite having only the 51st-strongest schedule in the country, Indiana football has looked dominant in most of its games. Standout performances include a 56-7 blowout of Nebraska at home and a 47-10 victory at Michigan State. Aside from last Saturday's game, the Hoosiers have looked like a playoff team.
This success is largely due to Indiana's offense behind grad transfer quarterback Kurtis Rourke. Despite a rough performance in Columbus, the former Ohio University QB has thrown for 21 touchdowns and four interceptions while posting the third-best QBR in the country. While there is bound to be an uproar about the Hoosiers' ranking, their resume is as good, if not better, than a few teams in the top 10.
The Miami Hurricanes, for example, were sixth in the rankings this Tuesday. Head coach Mario Cristobal's program has a weaker strength of schedule than Indiana's and has not beaten a team in the top 25. The Hurricanes additionally have a much worse loss than the Hoosiers against unranked Georgia Tech.
Notre Dame, the no. 5 team, also has a way worse strength of schedule than the Hoosiers at 78. The Fighting Irish additionally do not hold a win against a current top-25 team and have a worse loss to Northern Illinois.
Why are those teams ranked significantly higher than the Hoosiers? Notre Dame's loss was way earlier in the season, but Miami's upset was only a few weeks ago. Is there brand bias at play? Would these teams do any better at No. 2 Ohio State?
Ultimately, these are all fair questions to ask about the College Football Playoff Selection Committee. However, the point is that Indiana football is getting the bare minimum when it comes to respect. But the minimum should be enough to put the Hoosiers into the playoff with a Senior Day win against Purdue.
