Game preview: No. 19 IU football hosts No. 9 Illinois in primetime

Photos from IU football vs. Indiana State football on September 12, 2025.

Big Ten play has finally arrived and the game that’s been on the calendar is nearing kickoff – a top-20 showdown between 9th-ranked Illinois and 19th-ranked Indiana to open conference play.

The Hoosiers are fresh off a 73-0 blanking of Indiana State. Also coming off a shutout victory are the Fighting Illini, who beat Western Michigan 38-0 at home last week.

The primetime affair marks the first-ranked game IU football has hosted since 1993 and the first top-20 matchup since 1987.

Ahead of Saturday’s game under the lights, here is Inside the Hall’s preview of the sold-out clash between the Hoosiers and Fighting Illini.

Game information

Who: No. 19 Indiana (3-0, 0-0 in Big Ten) vs No. 9Illinois (3-0, 0-0 in Big Ten)
Where: Merchants Bank Field at Memorial Stadium
When: Saturday, September 19, 7:30 p.m. EST
TV: NBC, Noah Eagle (Play-By-Play), Todd Blackledge (Analyst), Kathryn Tappen (Sideline)
Radio: Don Fischer (Play-By-Play), Buck Suhr (Analyst)
The line: Indiana -6.0 (DraftKings)
SP+ prediction: Indiana 28, Illinois (60 percent chance of an IU win)

Meet the opponent

Led by fifth-year coach Bret Bielema, the Fighting Illini are ranked in the top-10 for the first time since 2001.

Following a nine-win season, expectations have grown for Illinois in the 2025 campaign with hopes of a College Football Playoff appearance.

Quarterback Luke Altmyer leads the high-octane Illini offense after throwing for over 2,700 yards and 22 touchdowns last season. A seasoned veteran, Altmyer has taken care of the ball this season with eight touchdown passes and zero interceptions.

Though the offense is potent, Illinois’ defense is what the offseason hype surrounded. The Fighting Illini defense is top-five nationally in points allowed this season. Through three games, Illinois is allowing 7.3 points per game.

Bielema announced on Thursday afternoon that preseason All-Big Ten defensive back Xavier Scott is “not expected to go” in Saturday’s game. Scott was injured on a fourth-quarter play in a 31-0 Illinois lead against Western Michigan last weekend.

Injury Update

Cignetti announced an injury update to running back Lee Beebe Jr. in his Monday press conference.

The junior is officially out for the rest of the season after suffering a non-contact knee injury in last weekend’s victory over Indiana State.

Byron Baldwin Jr. remains day-to-day and his status remains uncertain.

The required Big Ten availability report will be released two hours before kickoff, at 5:30 p.m. EST on Saturday.

Storylines

Can Indiana set the tone in the first few drives?

In its big games last season, Indiana was relatively successful on its opening drives on both offense and defense.

At Ohio State, the offense scored a touchdown, then stuffed the Buckeyes’ first drive in the red zone. After a solid first quarter, Indiana began to falter and ultimately lose steam.

Obviously, new teams bring new habits, but Indiana can ill-afford going into neutral on Saturday with the explosiveness of Illinois.

A complete, 60-minute effort will be necessary if the Hoosiers want to begin Big Ten play 1-0.

How will the crowd impact the game?

IU athletics announced a sellout on July 31. There will be no shortage of noise inside Memorial Stadium on Saturday evening.

Saturday night’s game is the first matchup between top-20 teams in Bloomington since October 1987, when the Hoosiers defeated Michigan.

Last year, Indiana had four sellouts on the corner of 17th and Dunn. The stakes were not nearly as high for those games as they will be for Saturday.

Illinois has already played a road game this season, a 45-19 victory against Duke. However, students were not back on Duke’s campus, creating a much different environment than what Indiana fans will bring this weekend.

How Illinois handles the constant noise on offense in a challenging road environment has the potential to be game-changing either way.

How will the depleted IU secondary fare?

With the season-ending injury of Bryson Bonds, Indiana’s secondary is a cause for concern as the Hoosiers enter conference play.

In addition to Bonds’ injury, highly touted freshman Byron Baldwin has yet to play in a game and is still considered day-to-day.

The weak non-conference slate allowed IU to iron out the issues at defensive back. Louis Moore has been granted eligibility through this week’s game in his ongoing legal battle against the NCAA.

Altmyer and the Illinois offense will be leaps and bounds better than the prior three opponents this season for Indiana.

D’Angelo Ponds remains one of the top cornerbacks in the country. But it will be up to the supporting cast to keep the Illini offense in check Saturday night.

Outlook

Saturday night is a long time coming for both programs.

Indiana and Illinois have rarely shared the spotlight, but that will change Saturday night.

The Fighting Illini are at the beginning of a program rebirth and have the tools to become a great football team.

Indiana, meanwhile, brings a wealth of big-game experience. With a sold-out crowd behind them, the Hoosiers may have the upper hand.

Still, Saturday night has the potential to be an all-time classic – no matter who prevails.

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