What do the first College Football Playoff rankings mean for Indiana's CFP chances?

No team has been a more pleasant surprise to see in the College Football Playoff picture this season, than Curt Cignetti's Indiana Hoosiers. IU is 9-0 on the season and is one step closer to making the playoff for the first time in school history with each passing week. This was a team that could not score offensive touchdowns under Tom Allen. Now Indiana is completely boat racing the opposition.

Admittedly, Indiana has played by far and away the softest schedule of any team in the playoff field at this time, or just outside of it. The good news for them is they will have two signature games to be played the rest of the regular season. The bad news is they could lose one of both of them. It all comes down to how well they play Michigan and Ohio State, assuming a drubbing of rival Purdue.

Before I get into what the first rankings mean for Indiana, these are the top 25 teams for this week.

1. Oregon Ducks
2. Ohio State Buckeyes
3. Georgia Bulldogs
4. Miami Hurricanes
5. Texas Longhorns
6. Penn State Nittany Lions
7. Tennessee Volunteers
8. Indiana Hoosiers
9. BYU Cougars
10. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
11. Alabama Crimson Tide
12. Boise State Broncos
13. SMU Mustangs
14. Texas A&M Aggies
15. LSU Tigers
16. Ole Miss Rebels
17. Iowa State Cyclones
18. Pittsburgh Panthers
19. Kansas State Wildcats
20. Colorado Buffaloes
21. Washington State Cougars
22. Louisville Cardinals
23. Clemson Tigers
24. Missouri Tigers
25. Army Black Knights

As you can see, No. 8 Indiana is seeded a spot lower because No. 9 BYU has to go to the No. 4 seed.

1. Oregon Ducks (Projected Big Ten champion)
2. Georgia Bulldogs (Projected SEC champion)
3. Miami Hurricanes (Projected ACC champion)
4. BYU Cougars (Projected Big 12 champion)
5. Ohio State Buckeyes (Projected Big Ten runner-up)
6. Texas Longhorns (Projected SEC runner-up)
7. Penn State Nittany Lions (Projected Big Ten at-large)
8. Tennessee Volunteers (Projected SEC at-large)
9. Indiana Hoosiers (Projected Big Ten at-large)
10. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (Projected national Independent at-large)
11. Alabama Crimson Tide (Projected SEC at-large)
12. Boise State Broncos (Projected Mountain West/Group of Five champion)

And for those who want an even bigger picture, these would be the first four teams out of it this week.

• 13. SMU Mustangs (Projected ACC runner-up)
• 14. Texas A&M Aggies (SEC)
• 15. LSU Tigers (SEC)
• 16. Ole Miss Rebels (SEC)

Let me know unpack why Indiana fans should be pleased with their team's ranking and nothing more.

What Indiana Hoosiers need to do to make the College Football Playoff

At No. 8 in the initial rankings, Indiana is in a fantastic spot to get into the playoff as either the Big Ten champion or as one of the league's two-to-three at-large bids. No other Big Ten team ranked after Indiana has any shot of making the expanded playoff. It will be three or four of the following teams, and that is it: Indiana, Ohio State, Oregon or Penn State. All of them have easy paths into the playoff.

Oregon is essentially a lock to get in at this point because the Ducks are also 9-0, but have a breezy schedule the rest of the way. They will be favored over Maryland, Wisconsin and Washington, as well as whoever they face between Indiana, Ohio State or Penn State in the Big Ten Championship. Penn State needs to win out, as going 10-2 may put the vulnerable Nittany Lions on the cutting room floor.

Indiana and Ohio State not only have to play Michigan, but they must play each other. If Ohio State wins out, the Buckeyes are going to Indianapolis to face almost certainly Oregon in a regular-season rematch, as they own would own the head-to-head tiebreaker over both Indiana and Penn State. They could get in with a loss to either Indiana or Michigan, but not both. Ryan Day would be out of a job.

As far as Indiana is concerned, the Hoosiers are in if they go 12-0, regardless of what happens in Indianapolis. A win over presumably Oregon would get them the No. 1 seed. A loss would probably have them as the No. 5 to No. 7 seed. Should they get to Indianapolis at 11-1 (8-1) but lose, I think it would matter a ton who the first loss was to. Would a bad Michigan loss outweigh an Ohio State win?

And I think right there that is the quandary I cannot wrap my head around. In truth, I don't think either is bad. On one hand, you beat Ohio State. On the other, it is not a bad loss in the slightest. To me, all Indiana needs to do get in is have 11 regular-season wins on the resume. The Hoosiers must beat laughable Purdue and split the Michigan and Ohio State games. The eye test is their best attribute.

So to bring it all back home, this is where Indiana should be ranked. At 9-0, the Hoosiers should be comfortably in the playoff field, which is what a No. 8 ranking would indicate. Anything higher than that feels a bit much, given how weak of a schedule Indiana has played up to this point. Anything lower than a No. 10 ranking would be too harsh because at least Indiana has crushed it opponents.

The only thing keeping Indiana out of the playoff now would be two losses in their final three games.