Indiana is headed out on the road for the first time in 2026, and the matchup comes with plenty of noise around it. The No.
5/6 Hoosiers, sitting at 4-0, will visit Rutgers on Saturday night at 8 p.m. ET at SHI Stadium in Piscataway, N.J.
The game will air on BTN.
The series history tilts narrowly toward Indiana overall, but Rutgers has owned the recent stretch. The Hoosiers are 5-5 all-time against the Scarlet Knights, yet they’ve dropped three straight meetings. Rutgers won the last one, 31-14, in 2023, and IU’s most recent victory in the series came in 2020.
Greg Schiano’s program enters the weekend with a 1-3 record and a fresh win in hand. Rutgers beat Howard 58-7 on Friday for its first victory of the season, after opening with losses to UMass, Boston College and USC. That also means this will be the Scarlet Knights’ fourth home game in five outings.
Schiano is in his second run as Rutgers’ head coach, after leading the school from 2001-11 and again since 2020. He is 100-111 at Rutgers, including 15-40 in Big Ten play.
The Scarlet Knights have reached a bowl in three of his five previous seasons. Schiano also went 11-21 as head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2012-13.
Saturday night’s setting is being built to look and feel like a big one. Rutgers is planning a blackout, fireworks before the game and all-black uniforms for the home team. It’s also homecoming weekend.
Rutgers’ offense has put up 33.8 points per game, which ranks 54th nationally, while the defense is giving up 28.5 per game, a number that sits at No. 107. PFF grades the Scarlet Knights as the No. 39 offense and No. 113 defense in the country.
Quarterback has been a revolving door at times. Boston College transfer Dylan Lonergan has completed 56.1% of his passes for 708 yards with seven touchdowns and five interceptions.
Junior A.J. Surface has hit 62.8% of his throws for 347 yards, five touchdowns and four interceptions.
Lonergan is expected to start Saturday.
K.J. Duff has emerged as the top target IU will need to track closely.
He has 29 catches for 550 yards and seven touchdowns. Antwan Raymond has also been a key piece, rushing for 438 yards and four scores.
Neither Rutgers quarterback has offered much as a runner. Combined, they’ve produced just five rushing yards, including sack adjustments, and Rutgers has allowed nine sacks for 43 yards.
The betting markets and computer models lean heavily toward Indiana. The Hoosiers are a 24.5-point favorite as of Monday morning.
ESPN’s FPI gives IU a 96.6% chance to win, with Indiana ranked No. 7 and Rutgers No. 84 in the model. ESPN’s SP+ projects a 42-16 Hoosiers win and gives IU a 95% shot at the victory.
The early weather forecast for Friday calls for partly cloudy skies, a high of 87 and a low of 62, though that will need to be checked again later in the week.
For fans making weekend plans, parking lots open at 3:00 p.m. ET, stadium gates open between 6 and 6:30 p.m., and kickoff is set for 8:00 p.m.
ET. Tickets remain available through Rutgers.
In Other News...
Indiana May Have Avoided A Bigger Problem Before Rutgers
Indiana got a little breathing room on the injury front as it turns its attention to Rutgers on Saturday night. Curt Cignetti said running back Turbo Richard and linebacker Rolijah Hardy, both hurt in the win over Northwestern, are expected to be available, easing some concern after both players left the game with injuries and were labeled day-to-day.
Richards lower leg and ankle issue had the potential to become a real complication for an offense that needs its depth intact, while Hardys exit after a tackle attempt briefly raised alarms on the defensive side. For a Hoosiers team heading into a primetime matchup, getting both back in the mix would help keep the rotation steady and prevent one game from turning into a bigger problem. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Defense Has A New Standout And A Secondary Twist
Indianas win over Northwestern came with the kind of defensive backbone the Hoosiers have been looking for, and Stephen Daley was right in the middle of it. In limited snaps, he kept showing up around the ball with multiple pressures, tackles and a forced fumble, giving Indiana a disruptive edge that helped shape the 29-23 result. The broader snap counts and grades painted a fuller picture of a defense that had some strong individual work to lean on even while the unit sorted through a few uneven stretches.
The secondary was the other part worth watching, because the review of the game suggested more than one player made a case for a bigger role moving forward. Indiana got useful contributions across the back end, but the grades also pointed to a few spots where the coverage still has room to tighten up. For a team trying to build on a hard-fought conference win, that mix of emergence and uncertainty is exactly the kind of thing that can define what comes next. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Keeps Winning But AP Voters Still Arent Buying In
Indianas latest result looked like the kind of win that usually steadies a poll position, if not lifts it. The Hoosiers survived Northwestern 29-23 to stretch their winning streak to 20 games, stay unbeaten at 4-0 and keep adding to a run that has made Memorial Stadium feel like a weekly obstacle course for visiting Big Ten teams.
Still, the AP voters were not moved much. Indiana dropped one spot to No. 6 in the latest poll despite earning a first-place vote, the second straight week the Hoosiers have slid after a close conference opener. Under Curt Cignetti, the program has banked 19 straight home wins and taken 18 of its last 19 Big Ten games, but the rankings stubbornly remain one of the few places where the respect has not quite caught up. [Read more 🡒]