How a CFP rule change would impact Indiana football in playoff. See where IU ranks
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BLOOMINGTON — Indiana football debuted at No. 2 in the first set of College Football Playoff rankings released Tuesday night.
The No. 2 ranking would give the Hoosiers (9-0, 6-0 Big Ten) the two seed in this year’s playoff bracket thanks to a tweak in the rules. Last year, the top four seeds went to the four highest-rated conference champions, but that’s no longer the case.
The four highest-ranked schools in 2025 will be seeded one through four and receive first-round byes. The 12-team field will still include the five highest-ranked conference champions and the next seven highest-ranked schools.
Indiana was in the top four on Tuesday alongside No. 1 Ohio State (8-0), No. 3 Texas A&M (8-0) and No. 4 Alabama (7-1).
The Hoosiers are one of four remaining unbeaten teams left in the country and have a chance to match their best start in program history with a win over Wisconsin this weekend at Memorial Stadium.
They have been one of the best teams in the country since Curt Cignetti was hired ahead of the 2024 season.
Indiana’s 20 wins since the start of last year are the most in any two-year span in program history and tied for second-most victories in the FBS during that span. They also currently have the second-longest home winning streak in the country at 14 games.
They have been ranked in the national polls for 23 straight weeks, a program record that’s also the ninth longest active streak in the country.
Cignetti has the third-highest winning percentage (.844) among active FBS head coaches. He’s only behind Ohio State’s Ryan Day (.892) and Oregon’s Dan Lanning (.857).
Indiana finished at No. 8 in the College Football Playoff rankings last year and lost to Notre Dame in the first round as the No. 10 seed. They ranked as high as No. 5 after improving to 10-0 with a win over Michigan.
CFP first top 25 rankings
1. Ohio State 8-0
2. Indiana 9-0
3. Texas A&M 8-0
4. Alabama 7-1
5. Georgia 7-1
6. Ole Miss 8-1
7. BYU 8-0
8. Texas Tech 8-1
9. Oregon 7-1
10. Notre Dame 6-2
11. Texas 7-2
12. Oklahoma 7-2
13. Utah 7-2
14. Virginia 8-1
15. Louisville 7-1
16. Vanderbilt 7-2
17. Georgia Tech 8-1
18. Miami 6-2
19. USC 6-2
20. Iowa 6-2
21. Michigan 7-2
22. Missouri 6-2
23. Washington 6-2
24. Pittsburgh 7-2
25. Tennessee 6-3
How does the College Football Playoff work?
The 12-team field features the five highest-ranked conference champions, plus the next seven highest-ranked schools. The four highest-ranked schools are seeded one through four and receive a first-round bye.
The remaining schools will be seeded 5-12 based on their final ranking. If any of the five highest-ranked conference champions are outside the top 12, they will be seeded at the bottom of the bracket.
Those eight schools will play in the CFP First Round with the higher seeds hosting the lower seeds on campus (or a designated site picked by the higher-seeded team). The committee doesn’t modify the bracket to avoid rematches and there is no re-seeding.
The top four seeds will be assigned to the quarterfinals hosted by the bowls, in accordance with historic bowl relationships. The Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Cotton Bowl and Orange Bowl are hosting the quarterfinals this season.
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana football in CFP rankings tonight, where does IU rank in playoff?
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