Our side
MoneylineNU to win
ours 86%
Projected score
14–36
BALL – NU
2026-10-10 · kickoff TBD
Ryan Field · Evanston, IL
Early season
The books
No book has priced this game. Nothing to compare, and no ticket to build.
Series
Northwestern lead
1–0
· 1 meeting since 2015
2025 unit ranks —
last completed season, from games actually played
Run game
even
12 ranks apart
Ball State Cardinals #225 rush offense
Northwestern Wildcats #213 run defense
Pass game
edge Northwestern Wildcats
154 ranks
Ball State Cardinals #262 pass offense
Northwestern Wildcats #108 pass defense
Run game
edge Northwestern Wildcats
141 ranks
Northwestern Wildcats #79 rush offense
Ball State Cardinals #220 run defense
Pass game
even
28 ranks apart
Northwestern Wildcats #170 pass offense
Ball State Cardinals #198 pass defense
Ball State Cardinals
Run-heavy · 62% run
Ball-control
Dual-threat QB · 50 rush ypg
Northwestern Wildcats
Balanced · 56% run
Ball-control
Mike Uremovich · 4-8 · defense-minded
David Braun · 19-19
Ranked by team-unit strength
(rush & pass offense vs. run & pass defense) across all 265
D1 teams, not by individual players. Identity, tempo and unit strength are measured from the
2025 season.
The evidence 2025 production and power ratings · supporting the number above
Who carried each team in 2025
Ball State Cardinals
DB
Anthony Pinnace
6 tkl · 1 PD
#261 DB
TE
Tate Hoover
6 rec · 23 yds · 1 TD
#70 TE
RB
Jalen Bonds
86 rush yds · 1 TD · 2 rec
#211 RB
DB
Kamron Chamble
4 tkl · 2 INT
#507 DB
Northwestern Wildcats
DB
Braden Turner
7 tkl · 3 PD
#97 DB
DB
Robert Fitzgerald
14 tkl · 1 PD
#113 DB
DB
Damon Walters
9 tkl · 1 PD · 1 INT
#114 DB
DL
Brendan Flakes
4 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 1.0 TFL
#225 DL
Top-rated players from last season, ranked within their
position across D1. A grade measures what a player produced, and no
2026 game has been played yet — so this is who produced for
these programs in 2025, not a claim about who is on the field this year.
Power breakdown
Def is higher = better. The projection assumes a 2.4-pt home edge (0 at neutral sites).
Where the number comes from
Ball State offense vs Northwestern defense-13.2 pts
Northwestern offense vs Ball State defense+2.5 pts
An efficiency adjustment from season-to-date EPA and success rate applies once teams have
played enough games; before then it is 0 and the number is the power rating alone.