RJ Young
FOX Sports National College Football Analyst
Michael Cohen
College Football and College Basketball Writer
Welcome to the College Football Playoff conversation, Indiana.
In his first year as the program’s head coach, Curt Cignetti has helped guide Indiana to a perfect 6-0 record and the No. 16 ranking in the AP Top 25 Poll. Cignetti’s Hoosiers are set to take on Nebraska (5-1) in a Week 8 Big Ten showdown on FOX (Noon ET on FOX and the FOX Sports App).
Indiana currently sits just outside RJ Young’s latest College Football Playoff predictions, but a victory over Dylan Raiola and the Cornhuskers could push this program one step closer to making its first-ever CFP appearance.
There are several other eye-catching matchups across the country in Week 8, including a massive SEC showdown between No. 1 Texas and No. 5 Georgia in Austin, Texas. No. 7 Alabama visits No. 11 Tennessee in another must-see SEC battle, while No. 22. Illinois welcome No. 24 Michigan in a top 25 Big Ten tilt.
FOX Sports college football writers Michael Cohen and RJ Young are here to preview the biggest storylines heading into Week 7.
Indiana, sitting at 6-0, is set to host Nebraska at Noon ET Saturday on FOX. This season has been filled with plenty of great storylines, but where does Indiana rank among the top storylines in college football seven weeks into the season?
Michael Cohen: Given how precipitously the Hoosiers had fallen during the final three years under former head coach Tom Allen — a 2-10 record in 2021; a 4-8 mark in 2022; a 3-9 finish in 2023 — it’s fair to consider Indiana the best team storyline so far this season, an unexpected challenger to an expanded Big Ten hierarchy that now includes Ohio State, Penn State, Oregon and Michigan as the three-time defending conference champion.
Not only is head coach Curt Cignetti the only coach in program history to begin his tenure with six straight wins, but it’s also just the second time IU has ever started a season 6-0, joining the 1967 squad that was selected for the Rose Bowl and finished 9-2 overall under John Pont. With six straight wins by double figures, Cignetti’s group has set a new school record for most consecutive victories by 10-plus points, eclipsing the previous mark of five that spanned the 1905-06 campaigns. The Hoosiers are one of only two teams that have yet to trail in a game this season. And quarterback Kurtis Rourke, a transfer from Ohio, is the first IU player to throw at least three touchdown passes in three Big Ten games since Harry Gonso accomplished that feat in ’67.
So, while it’s true that the caliber of Indiana’s opponents has left plenty to be desired thus far — the Hoosiers’ strength of schedule through Week 7 ranks 108th nationally and second-to-last in the Big Ten, according to Pro Football Focus — the comprehensive nature of Cignetti’s victories shouldn’t be overlooked ahead of Saturday’s date with Nebraska.
RJ Young: Like Army, Navy, Iowa State and BYU, Indiana has emerged as one of the most surprising and exciting teams in the country with this wildly unexpected hot start to the season. At 6-0, the Hoosiers have matched their best start to any season since 1967, and they’ve done it in style.
Curt Cignetti garnered attention last December when he left no doubt about who he is and what he expected to do as head coach at Indiana.
“I win,” he said. “Google me.”
Google, we did. Cignetti has never coached a losing season as head coach. He is 125-35 all time, and he hasn’t lost more than three games in a season since back in 2018. He has since cooled on the rhetoric, though.
“You know, I made a couple comments when I first got hired,” Cignetti said ahead of IU’s game against Nebraska. “I was out there on a limb a little bit, felt like that’s what I needed to do. I think it’s more of a reflection on how the team has played and the success that they’ve had on the field that’s gotten people excited, and this is just a byproduct of that.”
On the other hand, Dylan Raiola was one of the top stories in college football through the first three weeks of the season before the Cornhuskers fell to Illinois in overtime in a Week 4 thriller. Raiola and the Huskers have quietly won back-to-back games since then and sit at 5-1 heading into this showdown against Indiana. Would a win over the undefeated Hoosiers put Raiola and the Huskers back in the national spotlight?
RJ: Almost certainly. Nebraska played in prime time before earning a top 25 ranking, and, prior to its loss to a top 25-ranked Illinois team, the Cornhuskers were enjoying even more attention than Indiana is now. With Raiola at QB, the Huskers have a player under center who gives them a chance to win nearly every game they play. He’s helped by a defense that has shown itself to be more than capable of playing winning football.
Nebraska ranks 13th among FBS teams in total defense, 18th in TFLs and 26th in takeaways. The Huskers have recorded seven interceptions in six games and give up just 11 points per game. They’ll need to play great football against any team coached by Cignetti, who is 4-1 after bye weeks, excluding the 2020 season.
Michael: Without question. The Cornhuskers climbed into the AP Top 25 after their resounding 28-10 win over Colorado in Week 2 to avenge a nationally televised loss from the 2023 season. By then, head coach Matt Rhule’s team was 3-0 overall with an average margin of victory north of 27 points per game. Nebraska checked in at No. 22 ahead of its high-profile Friday night game against then-No. 24 Illinois, a matchup the Cornhuskers ultimately lost in overtime. Their stay in the national rankings proved to be little more than a one-week cameo.
But back-to-back wins over Purdue (away) and Rutgers (home) gave way to a bye on Oct. 12 that extended Nebraska’s unbeaten streak to three calendar weeks at a time when ranked teams were losing at a torrid pace, including four last Saturday alone. All of which meant that the Cornhuskers kept climbing behind the scenes, and they’ll enter this weekend’s game against Indiana having received the second-most votes of anyone outside the Top 25, which effectively ranks them No. 27 overall. If Rhule & Co. can become the first team to corral an explosive Indiana offense and topple the 16th-ranked Hoosiers away from home, there’s little question that Nebraska will be back in the national rankings next week ahead of a mammoth showdown with No. 4 Ohio State on Oct. 26.
Georgia travels to Austin to battle No. 1-ranked Texas this weekend in one of the most anticipated matchups of the season. Georgia has been up and down this year, while Texas has been steadily dominant through the first seven weeks of the season. What do you expect to see in this top-five SEC showdown?
Michael: Coming into the season, one of the biggest questions surrounding Texas was how well the offense could replace a handful of playmakers who departed for the NFL. The Longhorns bid farewell to their top running back (Jonathan Brooks: 1,139 yards and 10 TDs) and their five leading receivers (Xavier Worthy: 1,014 yards and 5 TDs; Adonai Mitchell: 845 yards and 11 TDs; Ja’Tavion Sanders: 682 yards and 2 TDs; Jordan Whittington: 505 yards and 1 TD; Brooks: 286 yards and 1 TD) from a 2023 squad that fell a play or two short of reaching the national championship. And while it’s true that head coach Steve Sarkisian and his staff did an excellent job replacing them in the transfer portal and through the high school ranks — with players like former Alabama wideout Isaiah Bond, former Houston wideout Matthew Golden and five-star freshman receiver Ryan Wingo — it was unclear how much time the new pieces would need to jell.
But after six games and six blowout victories, it’s quite clear that the Longhorns, who rank seventh nationally in scoring offense (43.2 points per game) and seventh nationally in total offense (495.7 yards per game), don’t have much to worry about on that side of the ball, even though they missed starting quarterback Quinn Ewers for multiple games.
This week’s matchup with Georgia offers the first real test for Texas’ defense, which is among the more interesting storylines to watch. A closer look at the numbers confirms the Longhorns have hardly been tested in that regard at the midway point of the season. Consider the offensive rankings of Texas’ six opponents thus far:
Colorado State — 86th in total offense; 107th in scoring offense
Michigan — 119th in total offense; 102nd in scoring offense
UTSA — 67th in total offense; t-105th in scoring offense
UL Monroe — 128th in total offense; t-105th in scoring offense
Mississippi State — 78th in total offense; t-71st in scoring offense
Oklahoma — 126th in total offense; t-96th in scoring offense
The Bulldogs will present a much more thorough challenge this weekend on the shoulders of quarterback Carson Beck, a likely first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft and a player who ranks ninth nationally in passing yards with 1,818. Georgia ranks among the top 30 in total offense (452 yards per game) and the top 35 in scoring offense (33.5 points per game), despite facing a schedule that is No. 24th in difficulty, according to Pro Football Focus. This game will offer plenty of insight about whether Texas’ defense is for real.
RJ: I expect to see Georgia play a complete game of football for the first time all year. In every game it has played against FBS opponents so far, either the offense or the defense has underwhelmed us. And that underwhelming performance by the defense against Alabama cost them dearly. They didn’t look much better against Mississippi State last weekend, which is worrisome. Kirby Smart knows better than most that Georgia doesn’t need to play its best game on Saturday, but it does need to show itself to be one of the 12 best teams in the sport.
Meanwhile, Texas hasn’t faced an elite offensive opponent all year. Michigan ranks 110th in the country in yards per play, and Oklahoma ranks 127th. And those are the Longhorns‘ two best wins. Couple that with the knowledge that Georgia ranks No. 17 in the country in yards per play.
The Bulldogs have scored at least 31 points in each of their last three games. If Georgia’s defense can stand up against a still maturing Texas offense, there’s no reason to believe the Dawgs can’t leave Austin with the best win in college football this season — a defeat of a No. 1-ranked opponent on the road.
“I want to see them play their best game against Texas,” Smart said. “I mean, simply stated, we have not played our best game. We have not put a complete game together, and that’s what every coach’s goal is, right? To play your best game moving forward. That’s what’s going to be needed to go on the road at Texas. We got to play better and that’s the only goal I’m thinking about right now.”
There are 11 remaining undefeated teams in the FBS right now, including Indiana and Texas. Make your case for which team has the best chance to finish the season with an undefeated record?
RJ: Army. The Black Knights haven’t just been winning games. They’ve been hurting people. They’re mauling opponents for a nation-leading 369 rushing yards per game, while also possessing the nation’s fifth-best scoring offense. They are whooping their competition by an average of 30 points per game. There are only two teams left who might be favored against Army this season: undefeated Navy and a Notre Dame team that already showed itself capable of losing to a directional Illinois program.
Michael: Liberty. This selection is neither an endorsement of the Flames as an elite team nor a knock to any of the other 10 undefeated programs, all of whom would likely be favored in a head-to-head matchup with Liberty. Rather, it’s a reflection of just how weak the teams in Conference USA really are this season, which means head coach Jamey Chadwell and his players might have the cleanest path toward an unblemished record. Thus far, Liberty’s strength of schedule ranks 129th, according to Pro Football Focus. And Liberty’s remaining schedule, which includes games against Kennesaw State, Jacksonville State, Middle Tennessee State, UMass, Western Kentucky and Sam Houston, ranks 128th in difficulty. The only teams in the country with easier run-ins are Western Kentucky, Louisiana Tech and Florida International.
So, even if Liberty finishes undefeated for a second consecutive season, it still might not be viewed as an impressive accomplishment by the College Football Playoff Selection Committee. Especially after the Flames were pummeled, 45-6, by Oregon in the Fiesta Bowl last year.
RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the podcast “The Number One College Football Show.” Follow him at @RJ_Young.
Michael Cohen covers college football and basketball for FOX Sports with an emphasis on the Big Ten. Follow him at @Michael_Cohen13.
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