After No. 5 Indiana obliterated three inferior opponents in the non-conference section of the schedule, the Hoosiers are finally set to face an adversary from within the Big Ten.
On Friday night, under the lights at 8 p.m. on Merchants Bank Field at Memorial Stadium, Indiana (3-0) hosts Northwestern (2-0) to kick off Big Ten action.
Northwestern poses much more of a threat to the Hoosiers than the three opponents that came before it, having defeated South Dakota State 34-18 and Colorado 41-7. It’s Northwestern’s first road trip of the year, while Indiana has hosted every one of its matchups through to this point.
“Going to have to be really on point this week,” Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti said on Monday. “Northwestern is a really good football team. Coach (David) Braun has done a great job with that program. He’s a really smart, detailed, thorough guy. It shows up on tape.”
A few matchups are integral to Indiana’s ability to begin league play unbeaten:
Indiana’s passing game vs. Northwestern’s lockdown secondary
Josh Hoover threw 13 interceptions last year, tied for the third-most in college football. Through three weeks of his first season as a Hoosier, the TCU transfer has zero turnovers to his name.
Northwestern’s defense will be the strongest Hoover has thrown against during his time at Indiana. Illustrating that point is the fact that despite playing one or two fewer games than everyone else in the Big Ten, Northwestern’s 16 pass defenses are the most in the conference. Northwestern’s defense is also tied at No. 4 in the Big Ten in interceptions, with the conference’s most interceptions per game.
“These guys have created a lot of turnovers, and so, you know, those equal points,” Cignetti said.
Colorado’s offense floundered in competition with Northwestern, perhaps inflating those statistics, but Northwestern’s secondary will likely tighten pass windows much more effectively than Indiana’s non-conference opponents could.
It’s on Hoover to fit throws into tight windows, and it’s on the receivers to create separation for him to work with. After all, it’s impossible to miss an open pass if it isn’t open in the first place.
Hoover was awesome in the non-conference stretch of the schedule, completing 72.5% of his pass attempts for 649 yards, 10 touchdowns and no interceptions in that time frame. Now, he strives to transfer that success to Big Ten competition.
Hoover could handle North Texas, Howard and Western Kentucky. He almost definitely can handle Big Ten opponents, too.
Northwestern provides the first opportunity to prove it.
Northwestern’s dual-threat quarterback vs. Indiana’s defense
Northwestern quarterback Aidan Chiles isn’t unfamiliar with Indiana defenses. In Chiles’ two seasons at Michigan State, he lost to Cignetti’s Hoosiers twice, first at home by a score of 47-10 and then on the road by a score of 38-13.
Chiles has found some success against the Hoosiers, though, completing 27 of 33 pass attempts for 243 yards and a touchdown in Bloomington last season. Notably, Chiles also ran for 48 yards on eight carries in that game.
Chiles wasn’t outstanding as a Spartan, but has been much better under the leadership of Braun at Northwestern. In two starts so far, Chiles has completed 31 of 46 pass attempts for 514 yards and four touchdowns, while also logging 17 carries.
At least against South Dakota State and Colorado, Chiles is efficient as a Wildcat. Given his dual-threat abilities, is also able to extend plays, which accentuates his impact.
“The quarterback can run it obviously,” Cignetti said about Chiles. “When he drops back, he can still run it. You’ve got to contain him.”
Dual-threat quarterbacks don’t decimate Indiana, but quarterbacks who can run are often able to escape disastrous situations and turn potential negative plays into neutral outcomes. North Texas quarterbacks Tayven Jackson and Chaston Ditta, for example, combined for seven carries for 23 yards against Indiana in week one. Western Kentucky’s Brock Glenn later ran 11 times for 30 yards against Indiana in week three.
Not enough power to independently drive the offense’s boat, but enough to help keep it above water with timely first downs and clever evasions of devastating sacks.
It won’t be easy to bring down Chiles. That’s not much of a concern for the Hoosiers, but if they want to dismantle the Northwestern offense like they did against No. 10 Illinois in 2025, placing restraints on the quarterback is a great place to start.
A season within a season
Indiana is undefeated, but for the moment, unproven against Big Ten opponents — 3-0 overall, but like most teams at this point in the season, 0-0 within the conference.
For the Hoosiers and the Wildcats, either an updated 1-0 or 0-1 conference mark is soon to come.
