ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit: Indiana “wasn’t a team that should have been on that field” against Notre Dame
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ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit: Indiana “wasn’t a team that should have been on that field” against Notre Dame

Posted on by Amelia Pressman

The second test of Indiana’s playoff participation has already begun.

The No. 10 Hoosiers lost 27-17 at No. 7 Notre Dame in the first round of the College Football Playoff on Friday night. The result wasn’t that close. Notre Dame dominated the game, leading 27-3 before the Hoosiers scored two late touchdowns to make it a two-score game.

On Saturday morning’s edition of “College GameDay,” ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit said Indiana shouldn’t have played Notre Dame.

“I’m not going to sit here and say why Indiana was there, but Indiana with what you guys like to talk about, they have 11 wins, they have to be one of the best teams,” Herbstreit said. “Indiana was outclassed in that game…It wasn’t a team that should have been on that field considering other teams could have been there. This isn’t a knock on Indiana, they had a great year. But we have to move forward with the playoffs and hope the committee does a better job of weighing who the top 12 are and who deserves it the most, because damn it, they have 11 wins, they haven’t beaten anyone, but they have 11 wins. That’s a load of nonsense. We have to find the best teams. And last night it was incredibly obvious just standing on the field and watching the game the way it was going.”

Indiana went 11-1 in the regular season. The Hoosiers’ only loss in the regular season was a 28-15 loss to No. 8 Ohio State. Yes, it’s fair to say Indiana had a schedule that didn’t feature many top teams, but the Hoosiers didn’t have an easy schedule when this was announced. In addition to Ohio State, Indiana also played (and beat) the two teams that played for the national title a season ago in Michigan and Washington. Yes, these teams were worse in 2024 than they were in 2023. But that’s not Indiana’s fault.

Indiana may not have been one of the very best teams in college football, but a team that goes 11-1 in a power conference has always been a foregone conclusion to get into the 12-team College Football Playoff. Had Indiana not made the playoffs when the field was selected in early December, the reaction to the Hoosiers’ exclusion would have been loud and led to numerous calls for a playoff overhaul after just one year.

And besides, there’s no good argument for who would have been in the playoffs instead of Indiana. Miami finished 10-2 after blowing a 21-point lead at Syracuse in the final week of the season. The Hurricanes’ defense is anything but title-worthy. Alabama, Ole Miss and South Carolina each suffered three losses.

Those losses also didn’t stop Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin from complaining about Indiana on social media during the game.

But Indiana took care of business against average and bad teams. Alabama and Ole Miss did not. The Crimson Tide lost two games to teams that finished 6-6. One of those losses was a 24-3 loss to Oklahoma. Ole Miss beat Georgia, but the Rebels lost 8-4 at home to a Kentucky team. You can’t credibly claim that you belong in the playoffs when you have three losses and a home loss to a team that doesn’t have bowl eligibility.

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