Indiana vs. Northwestern betting preview: Odds, picks, predictions, spread for Week 4 college football Friday

Indiana and Northwestern begin Big Ten play against one another on Friday night, with the Hoosiers looking to defend their conference and national championship this season. Indiana is coming off a 38-0 win over Western Kentucky last week to improve to 3-0, while Northwestern is coming off a 41-7 win over Colorado to improve to 2-0. Kickoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Indiana. Bet on Northwestern vs. Indiana in Week 4 at FanDuel and get $250 in bonus bets when you bet $5 for five days:

We'll look at the latest Indiana vs. Northwestern odds and Northwestern vs. Indiana spread at FanDuel Sportsbook before breaking down this Big Ten matchup. We'll also share our best bets using the SportsLine Projection Model, which simulates every FBS game 10,000 times. It is on a 22-19 run on top-rated CFB money-line picks on betting sites so far this season, and it has been upgraded for the 2026 season to better factor in the transfer portal. Anybody following its picks on college football betting sites could have seen strong returns.

Northwestern vs. Indiana betting odds

Northwestern vs. Indiana betting preview

Indiana is coming off the high of its magical 16-0 national championship season. However, the Hoosiers weren't just a one-year turnaround, as Indiana went 11-2 the season before in the first year under head coach Curt Cignetti. Indiana didn't open with a particularly challenging non-conference schedule, but the Hoosiers performed as expected. Indiana enters Friday with the No. 8 scoring offense (45 points per game) and No. 7 scoring defense (eight points per game allowed) in the nation. However, Indiana failed to cover the spread in any of those contests. Josh Hoover, previously a standout quarterback at TCU, has completed 72.5% of his passes with 10 touchdowns and zero interceptions in limited time due to the lopsided scores this season.

Meanwhile, Northwestern also enters undefeated and is coming off its own dominant win. The Wildcats defeated Deion Sanders' Colorado team 41-7 last week, and they are 2-0 against the spread this season. Northwestern is 13th in scoring offense (41 ppg) and third in scoring defense (seven ppg allowed) this season, and it is coming off its second winning season in the last three years. Use the BetMGM promo code to get up to $1,500 back in bonus bets if your first bet loses, including Indiana vs. Northwestern: 

Northwestern vs. Indiana picks, prediction

Northwestern +20.5 vs. Indiana

Northwestern is 2-0 against the spread this season and is coming off a 34-point win over Colorado when it was favored by just 3.5 points. The Wildcats were 7-4-2 ATS last season, consistently covering the number over their last 15 games. Northwestern added quarterback Aidan Chiles from Michigan State this offseason, and he threw for 241 yards and had five total touchdowns against Colorado last week. Meanwhile, Indiana is 0-3 ATS this season and hasn't faced a team near Big Ten talent yet. For Indiana vs. Northwestern, the SportsLine Projection Model predicts Northwestern to cover in 55% of simulations.