Indiana And Army Play For A Shot At The College Football Playoffs

When the College Football Playoff Selection Committee discussed expanding the CFP bracket from 4 to 12 teams, they probably didn’t expect the Army Black Knights and Indiana Hoosiers to be part of the championship picture in year one.

Indiana and Army have 23 combined bowl game appearances, but with two weeks remaining in the 2024-25 college football regular season, both have a shot at making the playoffs and competing against the big boys for a natty.

Indiana Hoosiers @ Ohio State Buckeyes Betting Line

• Spread: Hoosiers +13.0 (-105), Buckeyes -13.0 (-115)
• Moneyline: Hoosiers +370, Buckeyes -510
• Over: 51.5 (-110)
• Under: 51.5 (-110)

The undefeated Hoosiers will face the second-ranked Buckeyes this Saturday at noon in Ohio Stadium. The winner will secure a spot in the Big Ten Championship Game against the Oregon Ducks on December 7th.

Online college football betting sites are confidently placing Ohio State as a 13-point favorite against the Hoosiers. Indiana still has a decent shot at making it into the CFP if they can finish the season with one loss. Their final game is against Purdue on November 30th.

Army Black Knights @ Notre Dame Fighting Irish Betting Line

• Spread: Black Knights +14.5 (-110), Irish -14.5 (-110)
• Moneyline: Black Knights +500, Irish -750
• Over: 44.5 (-110)
• Under: 44.5 (-110)

Saturday night at 7:00 PM, The Army Black Knights travel to Fort Bend, Indiana in hopes of beating the sixth-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish in their house. Once again, the point spread is massive, with the Irish favored by over two touchdowns.

The difference here is that the loser will almost certainly be removed from playoff contention. If Notre Dame loses, it will be their second of the season. As an independent, ND doesn’t have a Conference Championship Game they can rely on for a win-and-in scenario.

Win or lose, Army still has to play their AAC Conference Championship Game against the Tulane Green Wave. Even if they beat Notre Dame, their odds for CFP betting still don’t look good because the AAC futures favor Tulane by a large margin.

2024 American Athletic Conference Championship Game Winner

• Tulane (#20) -280
• Army (#19) +220

The beauty of the new CFP format is that these games matter. Sure, both Army and Indiana are massive underdogs with little chance of winning, but whether or not they advance to the playoffs will be settled on the field, not in a committee room.

With BYU’s loss over the weekend, the Big 12 has been downgraded in the latest CFP rankings. This places the Boise State Broncos of the Mountain West Conference among the top four seeds and opens the door for a team like Army to oust the Big 12 Champion from CFP contention.

While these results may be unexpected, NCAA football has become more meaningful in the season’s final weeks, and more fans have reason to stay tuned into December.