Indiana spent Saturday night doing what good teams are supposed to do: taking care of business and putting Rutgers away early. The Hoosiers rolled out to a 37-0 lead midway through the fourth quarter before easing off the gas, then walked out with a 47-15 win that pushed them to 5-0.
And yet, by Sunday, the respect level had already dipped.
Less than nine full months after Indiana beat Miami to finish a 16-0 season and win a national championship in football, the Hoosiers found themselves sliding from No. 6 to No. 7 in the latest AP Poll. That’s despite the fact that Indiana has now won 27 of its last 29 games.
Alabama jumped from No. 7 to No. 6 after its road rout of Mississippi State, and there’s no question that was a strong result. But the Crimson Tide’s first ranked win of the season was enough for AP voter Jon Wilner of the San Jose Mercury News to slot Alabama all the way up at No.
- He also had Indiana at No. 12, behind Utah, BYU, Ole Miss, Oregon, and LSU.
That kind of ballot matters in a tight race, even if flipping those two teams on Wilner’s card alone wouldn’t have completely reversed Indiana and Alabama in the overall poll. It still says plenty about how the Hoosiers are being viewed.
Indiana wasn’t the only Big Ten team to get the cold shoulder this week, either. Nebraska, still undefeated at 5-0, checked in with the 31st-most voting points.
Wisconsin, now 4-1 with its lone loss coming against a Notre Dame team viewed as a national championship contender, landed outside the top 25 at No. 28.
Northwestern, which had been criticized for struggling against Indiana, bounced Penn State and improved to 3-1, yet came in at No. 30.
The AP Poll doesn’t decide anything on its own anymore, of course. It’s mostly a number attached to a name for TV graphics and conversation. The real judgment is supposed to come later from the College Football Playoff committee, though that process has its own issues and won’t arrive until November.
Still, the way Indiana is being ranked feels connected to more than just this season’s résumé. Curt Cignetti has been blunt about the Hoosiers’ schedule since arriving, and he’s made no secret of lining up what are basically preseason games.
That approach is allowed, and it has helped Indiana in his first two seasons. But it also seems to have irritated the old guard, and polls like this are the one place they can make their displeasure known.
None of it changes the larger picture for Indiana. The Hoosiers still have everything they want sitting right in front of them, no matter what number is sitting next to their name this week.
In Other News...
Indiana Will Help Reveal What Nebraskas Hot Start Really Means
Nebraskas unbeaten start has turned heads, but the next stretch of Big Ten play should tell a lot more about what this team actually is. The Huskers are 5-0 and have already shown some grit, including in a recent win over Maryland, yet there is still plenty of uncertainty about how steady they are on both sides of the ball as the schedule gets tougher.
Indiana is part of the test now, and that matters because conference games tend to strip away the early-season noise. Nebraska has looked capable enough to keep winning, and Anthony Colandrea has been among the players drawing attention for his role in that run, but the Hoosiers are one of the teams that can help show whether this hot start is a true sign of progress or just a strong opening month waiting for a reality check. [Read more 🡒]
Indianas Biggest Test Just Got Even Bigger Before Ohio State Visit
Indianas trip to Ohio State was already shaping up as one of the biggest games on the schedule, and the Buckeyes only added to the sense of urgency with what they did in Week 5. After beating Iowa 31-14, Ohio State moved to the top of ESPNs FPI rankings, a reminder of how complete and dangerous this roster looks heading into a matchup that will carry real weight for Indiana.
Jeremiah Smith was a major part of that surge, setting program records for receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns in the win. Elsewhere in the rankings shakeup, Missouris 45-17 win over Florida sent the Gators tumbling five spots, but for Indiana the focus is squarely on what awaits in Columbus and how high the ceiling is for the opponent standing in the way. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Just Became Nebraskas Biggest Unbeaten Test Yet
Nebraska is rolling into a marquee Big Ten matchup with real momentum after handling Maryland 48-23 to stay unbeaten at 5-0, even if the start was not nearly as clean as the final score suggested. The Huskers have now put themselves in the thick of the conference conversation, and the stakes only get bigger with Indiana waiting next, another undefeated team at 5-0.
For Nebraska, this is the kind of game that can say a lot about where a season is headed, especially with other league contenders like Ohio State and Wisconsin also adding wins and the College Football Playoff picture beginning to take shape. Indiana has its own perfect record and plenty to protect, which makes this one of those early-season tests that can change the tone for both programs long before November arrives. [Read more 🡒]