The #23 Indiana Hoosiers, who are a much better team than you probably give them credit for, come to Northwestern on Saturday in a matchup of the 2020 Big Ten Title game that we should have gotten, but didn’t.
If you flash back to that weird, pandemic lockdown created quasi-season, you might remember that IU was on their way towards winning the Big Ten East title, but then the league bended the rules of how you qualify for the B1G Title game (under the guise that everybody was making it up as they go during covid-19), and sure enough, those new rules benefited the conference’s banner brand name team.
SPREAD: Indiana Hoosiers -14 O/U 41.5
TV/RADIO: Big Ten Network (Chris Vosters, Anthony Herron), WGN 720 AM (Dave Eanet, Ted Albrecht)
Indiana Hoosiers Preview:
It just sounds weird to say this: “the Indiana Hoosiers are nationally ranked in football.” With their tradition as a basketball school (although that is very much fading fast into the distant past), plus the fact that they have been pretty bad at football for most of our lives….it just doesn’t feel right to see the Hoosiers as two touchdown favorites in a road conference game.
However, they really are very good.
They’re a fun to watch, high-scoring team that maybe gets to 8-4 or 9-3 when all is said and done this season.
They look poised to reach new levels that they were just never going to attain under Tom Allen.
Overflowing with offensive talent, IU has scored at least 31 in every game this season. They have gone 40+ in every game but one, and they hung 77 on lowly Western Illinois
Quarterback Kurtis Rourke makes a lot of big plays, as he’s already racked up 1,372 passing yards and 11 TD passes this season.
Northwestern Wildcats (2-2, 0-1) Preview
Head coach David Braun and Defensive Coordinator Tim McGarigle (every time I hear/read/type his name I can’t help but think of The Simpsons- “MCGARNIGLE!”) really have their work cut out for them. The Cats simply do not have the firepower to keep up with IU. Jack Lausch has a long way to go, in terms of growing into the role.
He’s had two games at the helm, as has the guy that he replaced, Mike Wright.
And so far, Lausch has a worse QBR, completion percentage and yards per attempt. He has also been sacked three more times, in far less drop backs, than Wright was.
I’m still not convinced that hooking Wright was the correct decision. I think he should have been given more time.
But for now, the Wildcats will focus their offense around Cam Porter, and try to play a ball control, time of possession game in order to limit how many series that we see that potent IU offense on the field.
Prediction: Indiana Hoosiers 28, Northwestern Wildcats 21
The Cats will get stymied at the end, but they’ll keep it close….sort of. The final score won’t be indicative of how the game goes. The Indiana Hoosiers will pull away, but then a fake rally/window dressing of the score will occur.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.