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Mar. 13—***
Good-guy Adam Rittenberg (that should be his full name) at came up with an interesting idea: Who might be this year’s Indiana when it comes to the College Football Playoff?
As Rittenberg pointed out in his well-written article, the Hoosiers shocked college football in 2024 with a 10-0 start and a spot in the CFP. It was an other-worldly surprise because of Indiana’s long history of bad football.
There won’t be another Indiana any time soon, but Rittenberg laid out the criteria he wanted met to get close: No CFP appearances, no conference titles in the last 10 years, winning percentage below .550 in the four-team CFP era.
The smart readers of this column already realize where we’re headed. One Big Ten team meets the criteria and made Rittenberg’s cut: Illinois.
Quarterback Luke Altmyer’s return is mentioned prominently. So are the other returnees and the fact that Illinois went 10-3 last season. Bret Bielema’s retention of key players is one of the main reasons Illinois is listed. The team’s precise additions from the transfer portal is noted.
One thing not mentioned is the schedule, which includes visits by Ohio State and Southern California.
Speaking of SC, the other one also made the cut. South Carolina is one of the teams Rittenberg thinks could have a breakthrough season. Allow me to propose a first-round game between Illinois and the Gamecocks in one of the C towns: Champaign or Columbia. They have to get Bielema and Shame Beamer back together again.
The other schools Rittenberg mentioned are Texas Tech, Georgia Tech, Iowa State, Colorado and North Carolina.
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/article/cant-wait-saturday-illinois-cfp-145600609.html
Author : The News-Gazette, Champaign-Urbana, Ill.
Publish date : 2025-03-13 14:56:00
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