← Matchups

Illinois

B1G · 1-1 · power +18.3 · #44
Our numberNU -5.4 no book has priced this game

Northwestern

B1G · 1-0 · power +17.0 · #48
Our side
MoneylineNU to win ours 51%
Projected score 22–27 ILL – NU
2026-11-28 · kickoff TBD Ryan Field · Evanston, IL B1G game Early season

The books 1 account books · tap any price — the ticket builds at that book

Book ILL spreadNU spread OverUnder ILL winNU win ILL TT overILL TT under NU TT overNU TT under
DraftKings

The gold price is the best available on that side; a gold marks the side our number implies — a read, not a pick. TT is a team total — that team’s own points, not the game’s; columns are empty where no book hangs one. Send to book opens whichever book you tapped, not the one we would have picked. Prices are the books’ own.

Series Illinois lead 59–55–5 · 119 meetings since 1892
2025 unit ranks — last completed season, from games actually played
Run game edge Illinois Fighting Illini 89 ranks
Illinois Fighting Illini #124 rush offense Northwestern Wildcats #213 run defense
Pass game edge Illinois Fighting Illini 70 ranks
Illinois Fighting Illini #38 pass offense Northwestern Wildcats #108 pass defense
Run game even 19 ranks apart
Northwestern Wildcats #79 rush offense Illinois Fighting Illini #60 run defense
Pass game even 9 ranks apart
Northwestern Wildcats #170 pass offense Illinois Fighting Illini #179 pass defense
Illinois Fighting Illini Balanced · 54% run Ball-control Northwestern Wildcats Balanced · 56% run Ball-control
Bret Bielema · 56-45 · offense-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
Illinois Fighting Illini
WR Collin Dixon 17 rec · 236 yds · 5 TD #5 WR
QB Katin Houser 453 pass yds · 6 TD · 1 INT #8 QB
LB Ismael Kante 10 tkl · 0.5 TFL #45 LB
LB Will Holmes 10 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 2.0 TFL #102 LB
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
TeamPowerOffDefRank
Illinois Fighting IlliniB1G +18.3 +9.8 +8.5 #44
Northwestern WildcatsB1G +17.0 +3.6 +13.3 #48

Def is higher = better. The projection assumes a 2.4-pt home edge (0 at neutral sites).

Where the number comes from
Illinois offense vs Northwestern defense-3.5 pts
Northwestern offense vs Illinois defense-4.8 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.