Indiana football coach Curt Cignetti was told to look around at the Memorial Stadium crowd, at what he and the Hoosiers had done after they pulled off a 20-15 win over Michigan Saturday. The whole place was going bonkers, but not on the field because this was suddenly, somehow, an expected result.
Indiana beat Michigan just once in football between 1968 and 2020, but the Hoosiers now have two wins over the Wolverines since then. And this latest one could help a so-called basketball Big Ten school make the first 12-team College Football Playoff.
“What are we? 10-0?” Cignetti said into the CBS cameras. “Not bad.”
DOYEL:Perfect 10? It was a little ugly, but just what IU needed.
IU FOOTBALL vs. MICHIGAN GRADES:Hoosiers hold their nerve, pass biggest test this season
Historic, actually: Never before has Indiana football started a season with a 10-0 record. But the Hoosiers jumped out to a lead Saturday and weathered a late push by the defending national champions, getting two touchdown passes from quarterback Kurtis Rourke and a defensive effort that limited Michigan to 3.1 yards per play.
Now, the question is where Indiana, ranked No. 10 in the US LBM coaches poll and No. 8 in the first College Football Playoff rankings, ends up in the polls after an eventful Week 11 throughout college football. Here’s a look at some of the possibilities:
Indiana will certainly remain ranked among the top 10, but how much higher it rises will depend on Saturday night’s results. No. 7 Penn State, No. 8 Notre Dame and No. 9 BYU are all playing late Saturday games.
No. 2 Georgia and No. 4 Miami were each ranked ahead of Indiana and lost. Will Indiana’s undefeated record allow it to jump either or both the Hurricanes and Bulldogs? No. 12 Ole Miss wouldn’t jump Indiana by virtue of knocking off Georgia, right? The Hoosiers have a bye next week ahead of a showdown at No. 3 Ohio State on Nov. 23. There’s a scenario in which Indiana is a top five team by the time it plays again.
Here’s how the rest of the top 25 fared in Week 11:
Rankings reflect the US LBM Coaches Poll released on Nov. 3, 2024
Final ranking prediction: Indiana climbs to No. 9
