COLUMBUS, Ohio (WDRB) — Turn up the volume. The serious hollering is about to begin.
If you were in the camp arguing that a favorable schedule was the primary reason the Indiana University football team rolled to a 10-0 record and the No. 5 ranking in the College Football Playoff poll, you saw enough flaws in the Hoosiers’ 38-15 loss at No. 2 Ohio State Saturday to make you scream “I Told You So!” even louder.
The Hoosiers essentially moved the ball on two offensive series. Their first and their last.
Other than that, they were overwhelmed across their offensive front, limited to 151 yards. Their punt team should have stayed in Bloomington. They got swallowed by the moment, gift-wrapping two touchdowns to the Buckeyes, on a fumbled snap and long return.
Toss in a hugs-and-kisses rushing touchdown directed by coach Ryan Day with Ohio State up by 16 with 35 seconds to play, and the Hoosiers lost by more than double than the 10 1/2 points the point spread projected.
The Buckeyes had fun with this one. Day said his team scored the final touchdown because they wanted everybody to know "this is the Ohio State Buckeyes."
OSU quarterback Will Howard was shown stomping out an imaginary Cig-arette (as in Cignetti) on the sidelines. Hey, the IU coach did famously say something like "Ohio State stinks," last winter.
But this debate is not over. Knocking the Hoosiers from No. 5 to No. 13 or lower would be a steep fall.
They did not lose to Vanderbilt (like Alabama), Arkansas (Tennessee), Northern Illinois (Notre Dame) or Georgia Tech (Miami). They lost on the road to a team that many believe is the most talented team in America.
Hold all tickets. There is a lot of football left to play. We'll discover how the committee views IU and the other contenders Tuesday night.
Especially with No. 9 Ole Miss taking its third loss at unranked Florida Saturday afternoon, No. 7 Alabama taking a 3-touchdown spanking from unranked Oklahoma Saturday night and, finally, No. 15 Texas A&M stumbling against unranked Auburn even later Saturday night.
Losses Saturday by Colorado and Brigham Young hurt their shots at advancing without winning the Big 12 title.
Expect more stumbles over the next week. It's that time of year.
The Hoosiers played the kind of defense that a formidable team is supposed to play, limiting Ohio State’s talented offense to less than 300 yards until the Buckeyes’ final drive.
If the Hoosiers do what they are supposed to do and flatten Purdue in the Old Oaken Bucket game next Saturday in Bloomington, then they’re 11-1 and a participant in the 12-team field based upon their full season body of work, correct?
“One-hundred percent,” IU linebacker Aidan Fisher said.
“Is that a serious question?” IU coach Curt Cignetti asked.
Is there any other kind of question when we’re talking about the hissing contest that is guaranteed to be part of the selection process?
“I’m not even going to answer that,” Cignetti said. “The answer is so obvious.”
So count the Hoosiers in?
Cignetti winked, got up and walked back to the Hoosiers’ locker room. Google it.
My take: Obvious is not the word that I would use. Likely fits better.
The Hoosiers lost by 23 to a team that might win the national title and is certain to be part of the playoff field while earning a bye and an opening game at home. Through 11 games Ohio State’s only loss was by one point at unbeaten and top-ranked Oregon.
The gap between Ohio State and Indiana was impossible to ignore, especially across Indiana’s offensive front. After the first series, the Hoosiers could not block the Buckeyes. Credit Ohio State with five sacks and eight tackles for loss. Quarterback Kurtis Rourke was fortunate to leave without a cast.
“They were just teeing off on us,” Cignetti said. “We couldn’t protect the quarterback … we didn’t get anything going on offense …
“… They deserved the win. They’re a terrific football team.”
A terrific football team playing in an environment where Ohio State rarely loses.
But Ohio State vs. Indiana will not be the debate that will rage between today and Dec. 8 when the 12-team playoff field is released.
The debate will be between IU and three-loss Ole Miss, three-loss Alabama, two-loss Tennessee, one-loss (to Northern Illinois) Notre Dame and other programs that will clamor for attention.
Indiana should not suffer because it is Indiana, a brand not commonly associated with football glory.
Until Saturday, the Hoosiers checked every box they needed to check, leveling their first seven Big Ten opponents by an average margin of 23.6 points, with a half dozen of those wins by two touchdowns or more.
Michigan slowed the Hoosiers’ march to glory in a 5-point IU win. Some red lights flashed. Ohio State showed the Hoosiers they’re not ready to win a Big Ten title.
But we’re not talking about being the best team in the Big Ten. We’re talking about being one of the 12 playoff teams.
“I feel like it shouldn’t (hurt IU’s chances) but who knows?” IU halfback Ty Son Lawton said. “It’s politics, I guess.”
One loss should not dim the spotlight on the remarkable season that Cignetti and his team have produced.
And that should not eliminate the Hoosiers from playoff consideration, especially if they dispatch a struggling one-win Purdue team with authority next Saturday.
The Hoosiers weren’t ready for Ohio State, but that’s not a worse defeat than the other playoff contenders will bring to the discussion.
Turn up the volume. The debate is only beginning.
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