Game preview: IU football travels to Rutgers for first road game of the season

Rutgers football running back Antwan Raymond.

IU football will hit the road for the first time in the 2026 campaign, heading to Piscataway to take on Rutgers.

This game likely won’t draw much national attention and doesn’t fit the mold of a “big game” for most people, but Indiana treats every game the same way. Rutgers has done a lot well. It also has lots to clean up. Indiana has done a lot well. It is looking to play to its full potential. It all unfolds Saturday night in Jersey.

Game information

Who: No. 6 Indiana (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) vs. Rutgers (1-3, 0-1 Big Ten)
Where: SHI Stadium, Piscataway, New Jersey
When: Friday, September 25, 2026. 8:00 p.m. EST
TV: BTN, Mark Followill (Play-By-Play), Rhett Lewis (Analyst), Caroline Hendershot (Sideline)
Radio: Don Fischer (Play-By-Play), Buck Suhr (Analyst)
The line: Indiana -24.5, O/U 56.5 (DraftKings)
SP+ prediction: Indiana 42, Rutgers 16 (95 percent chance of an IU win)

Say hello to the Scarlet Knights

Curt Cignetti will do so for the first time in his Indiana tenure.

Saturday’s game will be the first matchup between Indiana and Rutgers since 2023, when the Scarlet Knights beat the Hoosiers 31-14 in Bloomington. It is the first matchup between the two schools in Piscataway since 2022, also a Rutgers win.

The Scarlet Knights haven’t looked like the best team in the conference by any means, but they do have talented players and bright spots. They lost their season opener to UMass, before losing to Boston College in the “Red Bandanna Game” in Chestnut Hill and to USC at home in a shootout.

Rutgers has averaged 33.8 points and 431.0 yards per game offensively, but has allowed 28.5 points and 361.0 yards per game defensively. It has a turnover margin of -4 and has turned the ball over 11 times in four games.

The big names to watch are wideout KJ Duff and running back Antwan Raymond. Duff, a 6-foot-6, 225-pound force, is one of the nation’s best receivers. He has 29 receptions for 550 yards and seven touchdowns in four games, averaging 19 yards per reception. Raymond has rushed for over 120 yards in each of Rutgers’ last three games. He scored three touchdowns against Howard.

Rutgers’ defense and quarterback play have been questionable. Duff and Raymond run the show. It all comes down to who else can step up.

Injury update

The following comes from the Big Ten availability report as of 8 p.m. on Thursday:

Indiana:

Out: Carson Williams, Lebron Bond, Daniel Ndukwe, Khobie Martin
Questionable: AJ Harris, Sean Cuono, Lee Beebe Jr.
Probable: Turbo Richard, Rolijah Hardy

Ndukwe is the only addition to the list of players ruled out. The big storyline is that four of Indiana’s running backs are on the report. Beebe’s name was a surprise; Richard got an extremely fortunate diagnosis from his Week 4 injury; Cuono was a surprise addition as well; and Martin continues to recover from his fractured wrist. Hardy also suffered an injury scare last week on a hit to the chin, but Cignetti said during the week that he should be good to go.

Rutgers:

Out: Kevin Levy
Doubtful: Davoun Fuse, Steven Murray
Questionable: Antwan Raymond, Kevyn Humes, Dylan Braithwaite, Dantae Chin
Probable: Kaj Sanders

This injury report differs little from last week’s for Rutgers. The big name to watch is Raymond, who was questionable last week, but played.

Storylines

Who is available at running back for Indiana?

With four running backs on the Thursday injury report, Indiana’s depth at the position is a mystery. It will likely get clearer closer to kickoff. The staff was optimistic all week about Richard’s ability to play. His probable designation supports that case. Beebe Jr. and Cuono are the big question marks.

If both are unavailable, Richard and Jayreon Campbell would be the only two healthy running backs. If desperate measures are needed, freshman linebacker Henry Ohlinger was a star running back in high school.

Just keep an eye on Beebe Jr. and Cuono’s status as we get closer to kickoff.

The turnover battle

Rutgers has the worst turnover margin in the Big Ten and the fifth-worst among all Power Four teams. Indiana is in the middle of the pack in the Big Ten in turnover margin, but has not turned the ball over at all.

Indiana preaches the importance of winning the turnover battle week after week. All signs point to that happening in this game, but Indiana will have to go out and make it happen.

How impactful will KJ Duff be?

Rutgers goes as far as Duff goes. Without him, this team would be significantly worse. Receivers like him are rare. He is in the same tier as Jeremiah Smith, Cam Coleman and Charlie Becker.

Indiana’s secondary has not looked up to standard in the first four games of the season. It will have to be with Duff lined up on the other side. He can take over a game. His quarterback will need to get him the ball accurately.

Outlook

Cignetti has stated throughout the week that he has seen development from his team. He is still looking for a game to dominate and play the standard in all three phases from the first play to the last.

Rutgers has strengths and has shown it can put pressure on opponents. Regardless, it has failed to come out on the winning end in three FBS games.

Indiana has everything it needs to dominate this game. If the Hoosiers play their brand of football, the pure talent and coaching should be enough to subdue any Rutgers threats.

(Photo credit: Rutgers Athletics)

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