Indiana gets another shot at settling things down at home in Week 9, but the line suggests oddsmakers still believe the Hoosiers can separate themselves from Minnesota.
No. 4 Indiana returns to Memorial Stadium at 7-1 after scraping past Michigan 13-6 on the road in Week 8.
It was another narrow escape for the Hoosiers, and while the win kept the record rolling, there is still plenty for this team to clean up as the season continues. Minnesota comes in at 5-2 after edging then-No.
15 Iowa 13-10 last weekend, setting up a Big Ten matchup that should carry plenty of intrigue.
Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, with Brad Nessler handling play-by-play, Charles Davis on color, and Jenny Dell reporting from the sideline.
ESPN’s College GameDay will also be in Bloomington that morning, with Rece Davis, Desmond Howard, Nick Saban, Pat McAfee, and Kirk Herbstreit on hand. It marks the first College GameDay visit to Bloomington since October 26, 2024, when Indiana beat Washington 31-17.
The betting board gives Indiana a large cushion. DraftKings Sportsbook has the Hoosiers favored by 20.5 points.
Indiana sits at -1450 on the moneyline, while Minnesota is listed at +850. The spread is Indiana -20.5 (-112) and Minnesota +20.5 (-108).
The total is set at 41.5, with the Over at -108 and the Under at -112.
That said, Indiana has not been a reliable team against the number. Despite the No. 4 ranking and the 7-1 record, the Hoosiers are only 1-7 against the spread this season.
Their only cover came in Week 5, when they beat Rutgers 47-15. Minnesota, meanwhile, is 5-2 against the spread.
The Over has hit in four of Minnesota’s games, while the Under is 5-3 for Indiana.
These two programs have met 69 times, and Minnesota holds the edge in the series at 40-26-3. The Golden Gophers have won the last four meetings, including a 35-14 result on November 20, 2021. Indiana’s last victory in the matchup came on October 6, 2007, a 40-20 win.
Official Big Ten availability reports for Week 9 have not been released yet. Indiana’s Week 8 injury report was light, with RB Khobie Martin the only player unavailable. Martin is still working back after breaking his forearm in Week 1 against North Texas, but he has not returned to game action yet.
Minnesota has shown it can win the right kind of game this season, with victories over Washington and Iowa, but it has also looked flat at times, dropping games to Mississippi State and Purdue by scores of 38-13 and 41-13. Indiana has had its own consistency issues, surviving several close calls and failing to cover the spread in most of its games.
With the running game struggling over the last three weeks, laying more than 20 points with the Hoosiers is a tough sell. Indiana still has the clearer talent edge, but this feels more like a grind than a blowout.
IU wins 21-13.
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