Game Preview: No. 2 IU football set to host surging UCLA

UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava.

No. 2 IU football concludes a two-game homestand on Saturday, hosting the UCLA Bruins. FOX will broadcast Saturday’s game at 12 p.m. ET and will host Big Noon Kickoff live from Bloomington beginning at 10 a.m. ET.

Last time out, the Hoosiers dominated with a 38-13 victory against Michigan State at home for their seventh-straight victory. Also on a win streak, the Bruins made a late field goal to clip Maryland at home for their third-straight win.

With Miami’s loss to Louisville, Indiana jumped one spot to No. 2 in the most recent AP Poll, the highest in program history.

Ahead of Saturday’s contest, here is Inside the Hall’s preview of the afternoon tilt between the Hoosiers and Bruins.

Game Information

Who: No. 2 Indiana (7-0, 4-0 in Big Ten) vs. UCLA (3-4, 3-1 in Big Ten)
Where: Merchants Bank Field at Memorial Stadium, Bloomington, Indiana
When: Saturday, October 25th, 2025. Noon EST
TV: FOX, Gus Johnson (Play-By-Play), Joel Klatt (Analyst), Jenny Dell (Sideline)
Radio: Don Fischer (Play-By-Play), Buck Suhr (Analyst)
The line: Indiana -25.5, Over/Under 53.5 (DraftKings)
SP+ prediction: Indiana 40, UCLA 13 (96 percent chance of an IU win)

Meet the opponent

Entering its fourth game under interim head coach Tim Skipper, UCLA has rejuvenated its season. After a 0-4 start, the Bruins fired DeShaun Foster after just 16 games.

Since then, the Bruins have been a completely different team with wins against Penn State, Michigan State and Maryland.

UCLA is averaging 233 yards per game on the ground while scoring 33 points per contest over its last three games.

Led by quarterback Nico Iamaleava, UCLA is averaging 366.1 total yards per game, 77th in the country. Defensively, the Bruins are allowing a modest 27.4 points a game, ranking them 80th amongst FBS defenses.

This weekend’s game marks the second time the programs have squared off. Last year, Indiana beat UCLA, 42-13, on the road at the Rose Bowl. The week three victory became the first of eight conference wins for the Hoosiers.

Injury Update

Curt Cignetti announced on Monday that defensive end Kellen Wyatt suffered a “long-term” knee injury in Saturday’s win against Michigan State.

The required Big Ten availability report will be released two hours before kickoff, at 10:00 a.m. EST on Saturday.

Storylines

Indiana has a chance to put UCLA hype to rest

Amid all the good Indiana has done in recent weeks, UCLA has been the team that has taken the college football world by storm.

All of the talk has been about how the Bruins have turned their program from the depths of college football to a national conversation about winning.

Despite the lopsided betting lines, UCLA offensive coordinator Jerry Neuheisel’s father, Rick, predicted a Bruin win on the CBS panel earlier this week.

Indiana successfully shook off a slow start against a putrid Michigan State team and won comfortably last weekend. However, with a red-hot UCLA team coming into town, the Hoosiers can ill-afford a shaky opening 15 minutes.

Is this time for Mendoza to pad his Heisman stats?

There is no doubt that the most challenging games on Indiana’s regular season schedule are in the rearview. Quarterback Fernando Mendoza dazzled in both top 10 wins, putting him at the top of the Heisman Trophy watchlist.

The Cal transfer has completed 73.5 percent of passes for 1,755 yards, throwing 21 touchdowns to just a pair of interceptions.

His outing against Michigan State was impressive, with the same number of incompletions (four) as touchdown passes.

The final five games of the season give Mendoza a chance to pad his stats and boost his Heisman odds. Though there doesn’t appear to be an imminent campaign, Cignetti may tip his hand, allowing his quarterback more opportunities for touchdown passes.

Mendoza has a clear path to become IU’s first Heisman trophy winner, starting on Saturday against UCLA’s defense.

Outlook

Indiana and UCLA are two of the hottest teams in the conference right now and there is a reason FOX chose this game for Big Noon Kickoff.

The noon start could be problematic for UCLA, as it will be a 9 a.m. local time start for the traveling Bruins. The Hoosiers jumped all over UCLA in their week three win at the Rose Bowl last season. Another tone-setting opening quarter can bring the Bruins’ recent success to a screeching halt. If Cignetti successfully instills his mindset into his team, Indiana will be focused and prepared to play.

This game may be close for a few drives, but Indiana is a much better team on paper and on the field. Expect an IU win by a comfortable margin.

(Photo credit: UCLA Athletics)

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