Who Will Win the Prime-Time Showdown Between the Fighting Illini and the Hoosiers?
On Saturday, the ninth-ranked Illinois Fighting Illini will be making the three-hour trip down to Bloomington, IN, where they’ll take on the dauntless Indiana Hoosiers, who are just 10 spots behind them. This matchup doesn’t just hold a lot of weight in the Big Ten, but also in the AP Poll, as both teams are fighting for a spot in the College Football Playoff. This early matchup will play a pivotal role in who could make the Big Ten Championship Game as well. Let’s dive into this matchup.
Looking at Illinois first, a team coming off their 2024 season that, despite a 10-3 record, ended feeling a little unfulfilled with close games against Penn St and Minnesota that they just couldn’t take full control of, which led to them just missing the CFP. However, this season the Fighting Illini are coming back with a vengeance, as they picked up seven new players from the transfer portal, all of whom have been impactful so far. As for quarterback Luke Altmyer, he has so far had eight passing touchdowns, 709 yards through the air via 56 completions off 78 attempts. This high-powered Illini offense has outscored its opponents, 135-22, through the first three games, with one of those wins coming against Duke, who were expected to keep it close. As for the other side of the field, Defensive Backs Miles Scott and Matthew Bailey are tied for the most tackles on the team with 11, while Gabe Jacas has a whopping 3.5 sacks so far. If Illinois’s defense continues to dominate like they have, and can take care of Indiana’s high-powered offense and keep it a low-scoring game, it could very well be leaving Bloomington with a win.
Looking at the Hoosiers, led by charismatic head coach Curt Cignetti, who, in his first year, brought something to IU that this school had been wanting for decades: a good football team. Starting 10-0 with wins over Michigan, Washington, and Nebraska, there was simply a different vibe on campus, as people finally had something to get excited about on Saturdays. Although they were eliminated in the first round of the CFP by Notre Dame, nobody can deny the impact Coach Cig had on this university and the players in just one year. Fast forward to today, and like their opponent this weekend, the Hoosiers are sitting at 3-0, looking to extend their undefeated record. Behind center, quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who spent his last two years at Cal, has shown why NFL teams are already eyeing him to be their franchise QB. Through the first 3 games, Mendoza has nine passing touchdowns, with four of those going to WR Omar Cooper Jr. last week against Indiana St. Yet, it’s not just the offense that's keeping this team’s energy through the roof, returning LB Aidan Fisher and DL Mikail Kamara are the backbone of this Hoosier defense with a combined 21 tackles and have their eyes on a trip back to the CFP. If the Hoosiers can control the clock and keep Illinois on defense for an extended period of time, they can very well prove the critics wrong who still doubt this electrifying team.
My thoughts
Looking at this from an unbiased perspective, Illinois certainly is the better team on paper. However, with the game being played in Bloomington at night and it being a sellout, I can easily see Illinois getting rattled early and making silly mistakes, which could lead to a Hoosier win. As long as Coach Cig or Offensive Coordinator Mike Shanahan doesn’t put Mendoza in shotgun on third and one, or call silly trick plays that the Illini defense will eat up. I believe they win this one in a low-scoring affair, 19-16.
