Why Indiana is ahead of Ohio State in my Big Ten/SEC top 25 | Adams
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I won’t be swayed by the College Football Playoff first reveal, which ranked Ohio State No. 1. The Buckeyes might score slightly higher than Indiana on the eye test, but the Hoosiers have the best win — on the road against Oregon.
And after Indiana’s last-minute victory over Penn State, it also has the best drive: 10 plays for 73 yards without a timeout.
1. Indiana: Hoosiers coach Curt Cignetti rarely comes across as humble, but he used the words “grateful” and “lucky” after the dramatic comeback win at Penn State. The word “clutch” summed up the play of quarterback Fernando Mendoza after he completed five passes — mostly under duress — on the game-winning drive.
2. Ohio State: The Buckeyes can’t match the Hoosiers in scoring or drama. But their defense makes you forget this is supposed to be an offensive era in college football.
Ohio State hasn’t given up more than 16 points in a game and just 65 points in nine games. To put that in perspective: The Buckeyes scored 70 points in their second game.
3. Texas A&M: There are plenty of things to like about the unbeaten Aggies, but a veteran offensive line is at the heart of their success. Texas A&M returned all five starters from last season, and the experience has been apparent in both pass protection and run blocking.
4. Alabama: The Tide’s paltry rushing attack managed only 56 yards against LSU. But Alabama held LSU to 232 yards, and quarterback Ty Simpson passed for 277 yards against one of the SEC’s top secondaries.
5. Georgia: If you ever wondered what the notoriously slow-starting Bulldogs could do with a good first half, you got your answer against Mississippi State when they took a 24-7 halftime lead.
What oddsmakers predicted would be a close game was over late in the third quarter after Georgia built a 31-point lead.
6. Oregon: Ducks coach Dan Lanning after an 18-16 win over Iowa: “That looked like an old Big Ten game today, didn’t it?”
Most Big Ten games involving Iowa look like an old Big Ten game.
7. Ole Miss: The Rebels (9-1) will be favored in their last two games (Florida and Mississippi State), which means they’re a good bet to make the playoffs. But they looked like a good bet to make the playoffs last season when they lost as a favorite at Florida.
8. Texas: Even when winning, the Longhorns (7-2) seldom have reminded you of a playoff team. Nonetheless, the playoffs remain a possibility.
But they will have to beat two top five teams, Georgia and Texas A&M. Texas lost two games to Georgia last season but have won 10 of their last 13 games against the Aggies.
9. Oklahoma: The Sooners (7-2) have a challenging final three games (Alabama, Missouri and LSU) in their quest for a playoff spot. But those games aren’t as challenging since LSU unplugged and Missouri lost quarterback Beau Pribula to injury.
10. Vanderbilt: The Commodores owe much of their success the past two seasons to a ball-control offense. But they’ve picked up the tempo the past two weeks in a fierce comeback against Texas that fell three points short and in an overtime victory against Auburn when they rallied from a 14-point deficit.
11. Southern California: The two-loss Trojans still have a path to the playoffs, but it’s not an easy one. Two of their last three games are against Iowa and Oregon. And the Oregon game is on the road.
12. Michigan: The Wolverines (7-2) have another efficient running game, which might be enough to beat Northwestern and Maryland. But freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood must deliver more in the passing game to have a chance against Ohio State’s defense.
13. Tennessee: A turnover-filled, home-field loss to Oklahoma knocked the Vols out of the playoffs. Coach Josh Heupel needs to win his last two games — against Florida and Vanderbilt — to lower the rising temperature from an increasingly disgruntled fan base.
14. Iowa: If the Hawkeyes had just a little more offense, they could have beaten Oregon and Indiana. Of course, you could have said the same thing after almost any Iowa loss in the past 15 years.
The Hawkeyes totaled only 523 yards combined in the losses to Indiana (20-15) and Oregon (18-16).
15.Missouri: Tigers coach Eliah Drinkwitz delivered the strangest quote of the weekend after his team was drubbed on its home field by Texas A&M. The loss ended Missouri’s playoff chances.
“The season starts today,” he said.
Whatever you say, Coach.
16. Washington: Isn’t Jedd Fisch supposed to be an offensive coach?
You might want to rethink that after his team’s 13-10 loss to Wisconsin, which snapped a six-game losing streak.
17. Minnesota: The Gophers need to put some offense in that boat P. J. Fleck has them rowing. They have averaged only 16 points in their past five games.
18. Nebraska: Injured Cornhuskers Dylan Raiola wasn’t missed against UCLA — thanks to true freshman quarterback T. J. Lateef, who completed 13 of 15 passes in his first college start.
19. Illinois: The Illini should be optimistic about their remaining schedule. Maryland, Wisconsin and Northwestern have won only five Big Ten games combined.
20. LSU: Too bad, the Tigers fired coach Brian Kelly so soon. Otherwise, they could have blamed him for the Alabama loss.
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry should have fired interim coach Frank Wilson immediately after the game. LSU’s imitation of an offense was that bad.
21. Northwestern: The Wildcats (5-4) are just one win short of bowl eligibility. But the way their offense is sputtering that might be too much to ask.
They have averaged only 314 yards in their last four games.
22. Rutgers: How do you give up 305 yards rushing and win a game?
Answer: Play Maryland.
The Terrapins averaged 10.5 yards per rush against Rutgers but lost by 15 points.
23. Mississippi State: The Bulldogs are assured of a bowl game even though they have only five wins with two games remaining.
Their last regular-season game against Ole Miss is the Egg Bowl.
24. Kentucky: The Wildcats spent much of the season looking like the worst team in the SEC. They didn’t give up, though – which is more than you can say for Florida.
A week after upsetting Auburn, Kentucky routed Florida, 38-7.
25. Auburn: As you might have noticed, I’ve lowered the standards for my top 25 in the last month of the season. I wanted to reward teams who haven’t quit.
Other teams considered: Penn State, Maryland, and South Carolina.
Teams not considered: Florida, UCLA, Arkansas, Michigan State, Purdue and Wisconsin.
John Adams is a senior columnist. He may be reached at 865-342-6284 or john.adams@knoxnews.com.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Why Indiana is ahead of Ohio State in Big Ten/SEC football top 25
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