In the first reveal of the College Football Playoff rankings — the Indiana Hoosiers debut at No. 8 overall in the country.
The Hoosiers come in at No. 8 in the first @CFBPlayoff ranking of the year. pic.twitter.com/nlLL4olUK1
— Indiana Football (@IndianaFootball) November 6, 2024
Revealed during the committee’s initial top 25, the Hoosiers landed in the top 12 that would, if the season ended today, qualify them for the College Football Playoff.
The first bracket revealed that Indiana is the ninth seed in the field, despite landing No. 8 overall. That's because the top four seeds (each of which comes with a first-round bye) go to the four highest-rated conference champions.
Indiana is just ahead the BYU Cougars at No. 9, followed by No. 10 Notre Dame and No. 11 Alabama, Boise State drew the No. 12 overall ranking, the highest-rated Group of Five program that is currently on pace to win the Mountain West.
College Football Playoff Committee Chairman Warde Manuel, the athletic director at Michigan, commented on Indiana’s case during the ESPN broadcast when the rankings were revealed.
Indiana, their strength of schedule is not as strong as BYU, but what Indiana has done on the field, when we look at those games, they’re winning by double-digits. They’re averaging 33 points a game more than their opponents. They’re solid on both sides – offensively and defensively. They’re just a really great team,” Manuel said.
Other B1G teams ranked in the top 12 were No. 1. Oregon, No. 2 Ohio State and No. 6 Penn State,
Indiana will take on Michigan on Saturday at 3:30pm ET.
The first ever 12-team CFB Playoff bracket is here and it’s beautiful @UnnecRoughness pic.twitter.com/1e1J5yWUcK
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) November 6, 2024
Here is a look at the first set of CFP rankings for the 2024 college football season:
Here is a look at the first set of CFP rankings for the 2024 college football season: