I personally think we're exactly where we should be. The number of teams below us that would "definitely" beat us head to head has dropped significantly. I'd only say Auburn and maybe TCU as those teams.
Week 5 Polls - Illinois #23 in AP Poll
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You may not think we looked good, but don't think we should actively hope to not be ranked. Whether its 63-10 or 13-10, the result is one tally in the loss column.
USC is a culture game - if we don't deserve the #, it'll go in a heartbeat anyways.
USC is a culture game - if we don't deserve the #, it'll go in a heartbeat anyways.
Goillinikobd
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I think there should be a third column in the standings - Wins, Losses, and WTF.
A 53 point beat down for a “top10” team is more than just a loss.
We are 2-0-1
On the one hand yes, it's only one game.
On the other hand, historically how many teams have both been good enough to end the season ranked and bad enough to lose a game by over 50 points? The only recent example I've been able to find is 2014 Wisconsin, and their lopsided loss was in the Big Ten Championship game, not early in the season.
That's probably not the metric though?
The more indicative question is, who would be favored on a neutral field? I think a good number of those other teams getting votes would be. USC is just two spots ahead of us and is almost a touchdown favorite against us in Champaign. Normally in a matchup like that the home team is going to be favored. I think this is a case where we are benefitting from rankings inertia more than we should. This is really no different than 0-2 ND staying in the poll last week.
Too many none game week things went on last week.
Gies donation.
Luke dropping his merch line.
Podcast everyday.
This week will be different and we will see a re-focused team. Rather not talk about what happens if we lose this week. Focus on 1-0 and move forward.
Gies donation.
Luke dropping his merch line.
Podcast everyday.
This week will be different and we will see a re-focused team. Rather not talk about what happens if we lose this week. Focus on 1-0 and move forward.
Hope so.
Anyone complaining about Pete Yanity not ranking us last week still complaining or getting any I told you so emails back from Pete?
you are correct but only because 2021 Michigan State lost to Ohio State by a mere 49.
that MSU team was a house of cards with a suspect offensive line that was totally patched up by a true demon at RB. walker not getting invited to new york is one of the most shambolic things i've ever seen.
Fair enough! I do still think it's significant that the loss happened at the end of the season though, similar to the 2014 Wisconsin example. I think suffering a loss like that after you've already won 9 games has a much different psychological effect than suffering a loss like that in your first conference game. Also a much different rankings impact to be expected at that point in the season as well (to stay on topic).
Pretty certain Iowa had some ugly losses to OSU/Michigan/PSU and still won 8-10 games annually.
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Not too often really, just a couple times, and never by 50+ type margins. Usually in their good seasons Iowa managed to play them close. The closest example points wise was in 2021 when they lost to Michigan by 39 in the Big Ten Championship game. Again, end of the season, they'd already won 10 games before they played that one.
The closest Iowa example to our current situation would have been their 31-0 loss to Penn St. in 2023, in their 4th game of the season. Not nearly as bad as what happened to us in Bloomington, but still pretty bad. They ended up winning 10 games. There are some crucial differences though. That Iowa team responded by rattling off 3 wins in a row against bad Big Ten teams: two straight home games against a MSU team that went 4-8 and a Purdue team that also went 4-8, then an away game against a Wisconsin team that went 7-6. We don't have the luxury of two easy games at home followed by a very winnable away game. By the way that Iowa team ended up ranked #24, just barely still in the rankings.
That's why this USC game is crucial. I highly doubt we can win our next 3, given that one of those 3 is OSU, but if we can win our next 2 and be at least somewhat competitive vs. OSU, that's how we can hope to re-create what 2023 Iowa did after a disappointing and ugly early season loss.
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