Way Too Early Iowa vs. Indiana Predictions

Iowa Hawkeyes fans took a deep breath as No. 19 Indiana finished their four-game homestand with a dominant victory over No. 9 Illinois. The Hoosiers improved to 4-0 (1-0) as they made light work of the Fighting Illini, 63-10.

It's safe to assume that the Hoosiers will jump into the Top 15 after making a Top 10 opponent look like Kennesaw State or Indiana State. Indiana's first three games may have been a cakewalk, but they came prepared to Illinois. The Big 10 is one of the toughest conferences in the nation, but Indiana proved to be no match for Illinois.

That raises, the question, how will Iowa fare against a completely different ranked team than the one they faced earlier this season? Iowa came up short to No. 16 Iowa State, 16-13. Hawkeyes fans are hopeful that HC Kirk Ferentz learned a thing or two from that loss as the Hoosiers come to Kinnick Stadium.

Right off the bat, it's important to note that this is Indiana's first road game of the year. Kinnick Stadium may not be the loudest stadium in the nation, but it's going to be a huge change for this Hoosiers team. That's not saying they aren't prepared for it, but there's nothing quite like that first game on the road after spending a month at home.

Take nothing away from Indiana, they're 4-0 for a reason. The Hoosiers have outscored their opponents, 219-42, since getting bounced in the first round of the College Football Playoffs last season.

Indiana's season got off on the wrong foot as they allowed a 75-yard kickoff return touchdown against Old Dominion. After that, they outscored them, 27-7. With it being the first play of the season, emotions were high but the Hoosiers were able to prove that it didn't phase them. Unluckily for Indiana, they're now going up against WR Kaden Wetjen who just returned a kick for 100+ yards.

Indiana Football — Indiana's Elijah Sarratt (13) celebrates his touchdown with Carter Smith (65) during the Indiana versus Illinois football game at Memorial Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025 | Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Wetjen, coming off being named Special Teams Player of the Week, will look to exploit the Hoosiers. If he's able to do so, it would take a huge amount of weight off QB Mark Gronowski and the Hawkeyes offense.

As it stands, ESPN Analytics gives Indiana a 78.4% chance to win. With the deck stacked against Iowa, Gronowski knows he'll need another three-touchdown game to put his team in position to win.

With Iowa's offense finally coming alive, it's just a matter of the Hawkeyes defense standing their ground. Iowa allowed 21 points to Rutgers in the first 18 minutes, but were able to correct themselves from there. Allowing 28 against the Scarlet Knights was far from the worst case scenario as they had just scored 60 the week prior. Now, they're in a similar situation against Indiana.

Currently a week out, it's hard to imagine a sccenario where Iowa pulls off the upset. It's possible, especially with how well they competed against the Cycoles, but Iowa State wasn't coming off a lopsided win over a Top 10 team. Indiana may be rattled for a bit on the road, but eventually they'll get the best of Iowa, who won't be able to compete for a full 60 minutes.

Prediction: Indiana 31, Iowa 13

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