Indiana
What Are The Scenarios After Indiana Dropped In The College Football Rankings?
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana’s football rise into the national elite has been such a dizzying, intoxicating ride that it felt like it might never end.
Alas, No. 2 Ohio State dealt the Hoosiers a reality check with a dominant 38-15 victory Saturday at Ohio Stadium.
Most Indiana observers understood that a splash of water in the metaphorical face of Indiana football was likely when the College Football Playoff rankings came out.
Once revealed? It was a pretty cold splash that hit the Hoosiers late Tuesday night.
Indiana (10-1) fell to the No. 10 spot in the rankings. Six one-loss teams (Ohio State, Texas, Penn State, Notre Dame, Miami, SMU) and two two-loss teams (Georgia, Tennessee) are ahead of the Hoosiers. Indiana is rated the worst of the one-loss Power Four conference teams.
Because of the way the College Football Playoff bracket is constructed, Indiana is the last team in the 12-team field. Two teams ranked lower than Indiana would make the field as projected conference champions.
It’s a precarious position for Indiana as its margin for error has been exhausted. Still, there are plenty of happy and heartbreaking outcomes to consider as the college football season gets closer to its pre-Playoff climax.
Here’s a few scenarios to consider after the College Football Playoff committee set the latest pecking order Tuesday.
The best-case scenario
• If Indiana wants to go for the glory? Apart from the obvious win Indiana needs over Purdue, Hoosiers fans can hope for a Michigan win over Ohio State and a Maryland victory at Penn State. That would put Indiana into the Big Ten championship game against Oregon. A win in that game would give Indiana a bye into the College Football Playoff quarterfinals.
However, the risk in that is that if the Hoosiers were to lose, they could be out of the CFP field altogether depending on what happens elsewhere. High reward, but high risk, too.
For Indiana to get back into the playoff hosting picture? The Hoosiers probably need at least two of the following results: Georgia loses at home to Georgia Tech on Friday night, Tennessee loses at Vanderbilt, Miami loses at Syracuse, SMU loses to California at home or Notre Dame loses at Southern California on Saturday.
After the upsets that took place in Week 13? Stranger things have happened.
The most realistic good scenario
• If your best-case scenario is to beat Purdue, but lose the risk of incurring a second loss by missing the Big Ten championship game? It’s as simple as beating the Boilermakers on Saturday night. Given that Indiana are currently 28.5 point favorites, that is a solid probability.
However, Indiana is looking over its shoulder, too. No. 12-ranked Clemson lurks behind the Hoosiers and has a chance at a quality win when the Tigers host rival South Carolina Saturday. Though the Gamecocks are also lurking in the No. 15 spot, it would do Indiana a world of good to have South Carolina get Clemson off Indiana’s rear bumper.
The worst-case scenario
• This is simple: Indiana loses to Purdue. Barring a litany of upsets elsewhere, a loss to the Boilermakers would be a mortal blow to the Hoosiers’ CFP hopes.
Another worst-case scenario would be if Indiana beat Purdue, but Texas A&M beat Texas to make it to the SEC championship game and then pulled a major upset in that contest against Georgia.
That would put the Aggies in the CFP field as a bid-stealer and knock every other team down a notch. If Indiana was still on the bubble, this would cause it to burst.
The most realistic bad scenario
• Indiana beats Purdue, but not convincingly. A two-touchdown win or less is going to reflect poorly on the Hoosiers. Like it or not, style points matter.
If Indiana squeaked by the Boilermakers, in combination with a Clemson win over South Carolina and no upsets in front of them, it would be high time for Hoosiers fans to start to sweat.
Add in an Alabama win over Auburn and/or an Ole Miss victory over Mississippi State? The Hoosiers might survive it all, but the conference championship games and the reveal of final rankings on Dec. 8 would be a white-knuckle experience for Indiana.
The most ambiguous scenario
• Indiana beats Purdue, but once again, not convincingly. However, some of the teams ahead of Indiana also lose.
Any loss by either Georgia or Tennessee would be trouble for either team as it would be their third defeat. SMU has had a great season, but the Mustangs would take a hit if they lost at home to California. Similarly, Miami has just one loss, but the Hurricanes have won their share of close shootouts during the season.
Add in wins by Clemson, Alabama and Ole Miss? Perhaps toss in a Texas A&M victory over Texas that would put the potential bid-stealing Aggies in the SEC championship game? The CFP committee would have one heckuva Gordian knot to untangle going into the conference championship games.
FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) — More than 50 Indiana law enforcement agencies are taking to the roof to help local athletes.
Police and safety officers will be stationed around various Dunkin’ Donuts, taking up donations for the Special Olympics. People who monetarily donate will receive a coupon for a free donut. Those who donate $10 or more will receive a coupon for a free medium hot coffee.
“Supporting the Special Olympics isn’t just an event for us — it’s a commitment to people who inspire us every day,” Sergeant Wes Rowlader said. “These athletes show what determination, courage, and community truly look like. Every dollar we raise helps transform that spirit into training, competition, and lifelong confidence.”
More than 20,000 Hoosier athletes train and compete for free within the Special Olympics. To date, Cop on a Rooftop has raised more than $125,000 for Special Olympics Indiana.
The Indiana State Police will be at the Dunkin’ Donuts at 9821 Lima Road in Fort Wayne from 5 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Friday.
A man’s family is demanding answers after he was shot by a security guard inside a hospital emergency room waiting area on Tuesday night in Gary, Indiana.
Methodist Northlake Hospital officials said, around midnight Tuesday night, its security staff responded quickly after a patient took out a gun. The hospital said he’d threatened to shoot himself or others.
The hospital commended the security guard who shot the man for “neutralizing the threat and helping ensure the safety of our patients and employees.”
Family members identified the man who was shot as Otis Brown. They said he is a kind father to a 12-year-old boy.
“Just a great person, a happy-go-lucky, always out there trying to do the right thing,” said his fiancée, Stacey Taylor.
Taylor said she was on a business trip when she got a call that Brown had been shot multiple times.
“Scared, uncertainty; you know, what story is right? You know, what happened?” she said.
After he was shot, Brown was taken to University of Chicago Medical Center for treatment.
Taylor said she had no idea why Brown went to Methodist Northlake Hospital in the first place. His family said he was trying to leave the hospital when the shooting happened, claiming that the hospital gave him his gun back after he was cleared to leave.
“We just want to get answers, just want to know what happened, particularly when people are defaming his name,” Taylor said.
She and Brown’s family hope the hospital has surveillance video footage that can help provide answers.
Gary police have not provided any details on the shooting. The Lake County Sheriff’s Department said it is investigating the shooting at the request of Gary police, but did not provide any further information.
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (WSBT) — The Indiana Attorney General has finished its investigation into Karl King Tower and issued a compliance order.
This is coming after a months-long investigation into the unsafe living conditions for residents at the apartments.
From December 2025 to January 2026, there were prolonged failures with the heating and a lack of heat for residents during winter conditions at Karl King.
The property owner provided a 20% rent credit for affected tenants and documentation related to health and safety issues.
Below is the agreement from the Attorney General:
- The owner must complete boiler and heating system improvements by September 30.
- The property is subject to a monitoring period for multiple years.
- The owner needs to provide on-site security, including cameras in common areas and monthly incident reports.
- The building needs an on-site property manager to address resident concerns.
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The Attorney General has the authority to inspect the property and enforce compliance if commitments aren’t met.
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