Indiana Hosts Western Kentucky: Week Three Initial Thoughts

Western Kentucky rolls into Bloomington to face Indiana. Do the Hilltoppers have any hope of keeping this competitive? Here are three early thoughts on the Saturday showdown.

Sep 12, 2026; Athens, Georgia, USA; Western Kentucky Hilltoppers quarterback Brock Glenn (11) runs with the ball against the Georgia Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

IU Should Score at Will Against a Battered Defense

The Indiana Hoosiers have scored more than 50 points in both outings this season, and it feels like Curt Cignetti and Mike Shanahan still have not needed to take the offense out of first gear.

Running backs Turbo Richard and Lee Beebe both exceeded 100 yards against Howard, and Charlie Becker is scoring nearly every time he touches the ball. Western Kentucky won’t offer much more resistance than Howard showed.

The Hilltoppers allowed 49 points to Nevada in Week One and then went to Athens and gave up 70 points to the Georgia Bulldogs. Through two weeks, Western Kentucky is surrendering an average of 489.5 yards per game and 59.5 points per game.

The Wolf Pack averaged 7.7 yards per carry, and the Georgia Bulldogs followed that up with 6.7 yards per carry, so Indiana’s rushing attack should continue to feast and gain confidence on Saturday afternoon.

While the passing game was hyper-efficient against Howard, six touchdowns on nine completions is quite the stat; it would be fair to say Josh Hoover made a few poor decisions after a razor-sharp opening week. IU’s transfer quarterback from TCU seemed to get stuck on his first read and missed a couple of open opportunities while forcing deep shots.

Against better competition, those were plays that could have resulted in turnovers. It will be interesting to see how the coaching staff corrects those potential issues after another week of practice.

WKU's Typically Explosive Offense Failing to Launch

The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers have produced some fantastic offenses under head coach Tyson Helton. Through two games, the Hilltoppers have failed to find the offensive rhythm their fans have grown accustomed to.

They only scored 14 points against Nevada and had only six points against Georgia until the fourth quarter when they added two touchdowns with backup quarterback Brock Glenn.

Starter Rodney Tisdale Jr. has been very poor to start the season, and it would not be a surprise to see Brock Glenn step in and get the nod against Indiana.

Glenn had 70 yards on the ground with two touchdowns against the Georgia Bulldogs, but the passing game, usually a major strength for WKU, appears largely broken.

Indiana’s defense was fantastic against the overmatched Howard Bison. Western Kentucky is a bigger test but North Texas putting up 44 points in a dominant victory over UNLV perhaps puts some of the concerns about the defense to rest and another good showing on Saturday should be expected.

Another 30+ Point Victory Incoming

Since Curt Cignetti arrived in Bloomington, the Indiana Hoosiers lead the country with the most wins by at least 30 points.

The Hoosiers are again heavily favored, and another blowout victory should be expected as Curt Cignetti continues to try and tune his team and get them ready for the Big Ten season to come.