David Pollack Names Surprising College Football Playoff Team He Says Is Here to Stay originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The 2024 college football season was notable for six teams that made the College Football Playoff for the first time in their program’s history.
This achievement followed the expansion of the playoffs from four teams to twelve. While some of these teams had previously been on the verge of making the playoffs, the new format also allowed for some surprising teams to qualify.
One such team was the Indiana Hoosiers. Before the season began, USA TODAY predicted Indiana would finish third-to-last in the Big Ten. Contrary to expectations, they finished with an impressive record of 11-2 and secured a spot in the College Football Playoff. Their two losses were against the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, who faced each other in the national championship game.
This remarkable season came on the heels of three consecutive seasons in which Indiana won four or fewer games, leading some to label it a fluke. However, David Pollack stated on his podcast, “See Ball Get Ball with David Pollack,” that he doesn’t believe the season was a fluke and anticipates that Indiana will be in the mix to return to the College Football Playoff alongside Ohio State, the Oregon Ducks and the Penn State Nittany Lions in the Big Ten.
“Indiana, to me, feels like the next team,” Pollack said. “I could debate you, but there are a lot of things about that Indiana team that are really, really good, and I don’t think they’re going anywhere.”
ESPN’s Football Power Index (FPI) is a metric designed to gauge team strength and predict future performance for the remainder of the season. The FPI indicates how many points a team is above or below average.
The FPI is not very optimistic about the Indiana Hoosiers this season, ranking them as the 31st-best team in the nation, which places them 8th in the Big Ten. It predicts a decline in their record from 11-2 last season to 7-5 this upcoming one. Additionally, the FPI gives Indiana a mere 0.9% chance of winning the Big Ten and an 8.9% chance of making the College Football Playoff this season.
This prediction may be influenced by Indiana’s prospects for 2025. The Hoosiers are ranked 44th in the country and return 61% of their production. The most significant loss offensively is quarterback Kurtis Rourke, who set the single-season record for passing touchdowns at Indiana in 2024 with 29 and finished ninth in the Heisman Trophy voting.
Rourke will be succeeded by Fernando Mendoza, a transfer from Cal, who completed 68.7% of his passes for 3,004 yards, 16 touchdowns and six interceptions in 2024. On the upside, the Hoosiers will benefit from the return of edge rusher Mikail Kamara, who opted to return for a second season at Indiana. Kamara recorded 10 sacks last season, ranking fourth in the Big Ten and the most among returning players.
The Hoosiers will kick off their season against Old Dominion at 2:30 p.m. ET on Aug. 30.
Related: Paul Finebaum Names College Football Team That Was a ‘Fluke’
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 8, 2025, where it first appeared.
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