This weekend was "Survival Saturday" as some of teams fell, but we saw two of the best teams in the Country survive. Indiana was able to overcome a serious upset scare from Penn State with an incredible two-minute drill from Fernando Mendoza with a ton of help from Omar Cooper Jr who made the catch of the year. Oregon was able to hold off Iowa with an impressive drive from Dante Moore playing without most of his key weapons.
While winning is the most important, at this time of year, it's also about how you look as the committee takes everything into account. The good news for Oregon and Indiana is that the committee couldn't truly punish them for their struggles.
Oregon and Indiana get the benefit of the doubt from the Playoff committee
When the College Football Playoff committee unveiled its latest Top 25 rankings, it wasn't the punishment that the Ducks and Hoosiers could've been served. The Hoosiers had the more interesting case as the 2nd-ranked team in the Country, but Oregon had more wiggle room.
Rather than falling, standing pat, or even being jumped, the Oregon Ducks moved up 1 place from 9th to 8th. It turns out that the close game may have helped Oregon, as Iowa stayed in the Top 25 at 21st, giving Oregon a ranked win. The Ducks were the benefactor of BYU's loss as it allowed them to build more of a bubble around them.
The Indiana Hoosiers were in a big debate with Texas A&M, as either team could've been ranked 2nd or 3rd in the latest poll. After Texas A&M blew out a team that was in the Top 25 in Missouri, it seemed as if the Aggies could've moved up to the 2nd seed.
The big takeaway for Indiana should be the fact that the Top 3 may be seen as more of a Top 2 with Ohio State and Indiana far ahead of the Aggies if there wasn't a shift.