College Football Playoff Committee Chairman Hunter Yurachek doesn’t provide a lot of insightful information when he takes questions from the media each week following the release of the updated CFP rankings.
Yurachek knows he’s in an anything you say can and will be used against you situation.
But Indiana and Ohio State fans want to know the spectrum of what’s possible for the loser of their Big Ten Championship matchup Saturday night in Indianapolis.
With Ohio State No. 1 in the CFP rankings and the Hoosiers No. 2, it’s rather obvious the Big Ten winner will be the overall No. 1 seed in the CFP.
But what happens to the loser?
Yurachek did say enough Tuesday evening to help frame the factors that could impact the loser the most.
One thing we know, the loser of the game needs to come away from the contest healthy. If Indiana or Ohio State would lose a key player in the championship game — and you know by that we really mean the quarterback — it could give the Committee ammo to drop that team in the rankings.
Florida State was controversially dropped from the four-team playoff field in 2023 despite an undefeated season, largely due to the season-ending injury suffered by starting quarterback Jordan Travis.
Yurachek said Tuesday “One of the principles in our selection protocols is the availability of coach and players.”
No one wants to see Fernando Mendoza or Julian Sayin get injured on Saturday night as they make their final push for the Heisman Trophy. But if it happens, it could matter.
Another key consideration for Indiana and Ohio State — don’t get blown out.
Yurachek implied a team suffering “a significant loss in a title game” could have a negative impact as well.
He also said each of the championship games will provide another datapoint to evaluate the teams that participate in those championship games, again suggesting a team’s resume can be harmed.
Looking at the penultimate CFP rankings, IU and Ohio State are the only undefeated teams remaining. Here is the current top-10:
| RANK | TEAM | OVERALL RECORD |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ohio State | 12-0 |
| 2 | Indiana | 12-0 |
| 3 | Georgia | 11-1 |
| 4 | Texas Tech | 11-1 |
| 5 | Oregon | 11-1 |
| 6 | Ole Miss | 11-1 |
| 7 | Texas A&M | 11-1 |
| 8 | Oklahoma | 10-2 |
| 9 | Alabama | 10-2 |
| 10 | Notre Dame | 10-2 |
The conference championship games relevant to this conversation are as follows:
- BYU vs. Texas Tech (Big 12 Championship Game in Arlington, Texas), 12 p.m. on ABC
- Georgia vs. Alabama (SEC Championship Game in Atlanta), 4 p.m. on ABC
- Ohio State vs. Indiana (Big Ten Championship Game in Indianapolis), 8 p.m. on FOX
If Georgia wins their SEC title game against Alabama, it should come as a surprise to no one if the Committee bumps the Bulldogs ahead of the Big Ten loser. That’s not necessarily an observation regarding Georgia’s true worthiness, but you know the drill when it comes to the SEC. In theory the Committee could also move a victorious Texas Tech above the Big Ten loser, although that seems less certain.
Even if both Georgia and Texas Tech moved above the Big Ten loser, they’d still be in the No. 4 spot and get the last bye.
The next three one-loss teams are all idle this weekend, and the next team, No. 5 Oregon, finished behind IU and Ohio State in the Big Ten standings. So a drop below No. 4 seems highly unlikely for the loser of the Big Ten championship. And that’s especially the case for Indiana, which already owns a road win over Oregon.
But the Hoosiers and Buckeyes can make things much easier on themselves by playing a close game on Saturday, and staying healthy along the way. In that case, the No. 1 and No. 2 spots just might remain with the Big Ten.
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