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Joey Galloway addresses viral comments regarding benching Kurtis Rourke

On3 imageby:Dan Morrison11/21/24

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Indiana QB Kurtis Rourke
(Jacob Musselman | Imagn Images)

After the weekly College Football Playoff selection committee rankings are revealed, ESPN takes a deep dive into them among its analysts. That recently included comments from Joey Galloway that went viral where he claimed that Indiana should bench quarterback Kurtis Rourke against Ohio State.

Galloway expanded on those thoughts during a recent appearance on the College GameDay Podcast with Rece Davis. There, he defended his position and pointed at the recent history of the selection committee as to why Indiana should at least consider benching Rourke.

“Let me give you a little history because I’ve evolved,” Joey Galloway said. “I was the guy that would argue when guys would sit out for bowl games, not play in their bowl games because they’re trying not to get hurt, I was the guy, ‘Like, man, I can’t believe that guys would do that.’ I would never want to sit out a game that I could play in college with my buddies wearing the Ohio State University jersey and helmet. I’ve evolved now.”

Last season, under the four-team Playoff format, Florida State was left out despite being an unbeaten power conference champion. The logic behind that was that with quarterback Jordan Travis injured, the Seminoles weren’t as good a team as they had been with him.

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“After watching what happened to Florida State last year, with Jordan Travis, a team that absolutely was about to be in the Playoff. There was no doubt they were in,” Galloway said. “Their quarterback gets hurt at the end of the season and now they’re out of the Playoff… So, when I look at this now with a whole different perspective, I’m being 100 percent serious. If I’m Indiana, I am considering not playing Kurtis Rourke.”

Rourke has, naturally, been vital to Indiana’s success this season. After spending five seasons at Ohio, he transferred in ahead of this season and in nine games he’s completed 71.8 percent of his passes for 2,410 yards and 21 touchdowns. He’s also rushed for two touchdowns.

Notably, injuries aren’t something that Rourke is unfamiliar with. Earlier this season, he needed to have surgery on his thumb and missed time.

“I don’t have to make that decision. So, it’s much easier from behind a desk to say, ‘Don’t do it.’ I still feel that, if you do play him, I would be super — put him in a glass bottle and roll him out there,” Galloway said. “If you’re Indiana, which one is more important to you, beating Ohio State or going to the Playoff? Obviously, they would love both. That’s not part of the equation here. If you could pick one if you had to prioritize one over the other, which one would you say is a higher priority?”

At that point, Davis, emphasizing the struggles that Indiana football has had in its history, said he believes that beating Ohio State is more important. On top of that, a win there would likely clinch a Playoff spot in his mind.

“Then you’ve got to play Rourke,” Galloway said.

Ohio State and Indiana will kickoff at 12:00 p.m. EST on Saturday, November 23rd in a game with massive Big Ten Championship Game implications.