Soak it up, Cyclone Nation.
Check this out: The Cyclones are No. 4 in ESPN’s initial Football Power Index ratings for the upcoming season. Iowa State lands behind Alabama, Oklahoma and Clemson, but AHEAD OF Ohio State.
The Football Power Index on ESPN is defined as “a measure of team strength that is meant to be the best predictor of a team’s performance going forward for the rest of the season. FPI represents how many points above or below average a team is.”
So basically, based on nothing except what’s coming back and schedule projections, this specific index has Iowa State as a College Football Playoff team.
The model specifically gives Iowa State a 40.6 percent chance to make the Playoff next season, along with a 9.4 percent chance at winning the national title.
