Indiana
College football Week 6 picks: Is Indiana-Northwestern a total mismatch?
Northwestern won eight games last season; Indiana won three. NU was 5-4 in the Big Ten; IU was 1-8. One team, surprisingly good; the other, hopelessly bad.
Now forget all that, OK? Because if the Wildcats beat the Hoosiers Saturday in Evanston, few, if any, will have seen it coming.
No. 23 Indiana (-13½) at Northwestern (2:30 p.m., BTN, 720-AM) is a prime example of how much things can change from one year to the next in the transfer-portal age. The 5-0 Hoosiers are ranked for the first time since the 2021 preseason — hilarious, in retrospect, given that team failed to win a single Big Ten game — and three good hours from their first 6-0 start since 1967, the year the Cream and Crimson last ended up in the Rose Bowl.
If Alabama’s Kalen DeBoer is the “it” guy in the crowd of new coaches, IU’s Curt Cignetti is right behind him. Cignetti added 31 players from the portal — 13 of whom came from the soaring program he left, James Madison — and the results have been mind-blowing. The Hoosiers are ninth in the country in offense (513 yards per game) and eighth in defense (239.6). They haven’t faced a murderer’s row, but they hung 42 points on both UCLA and Maryland, have a trio of running backs with 15 rushing touchdowns between them and have tormented opposing quarterbacks with 17 sacks. Most of those sacks — 10½ of them — have come from JMU transfers, a striking example of the portal at its most beneficial.
“Coach Cignetti has done an incredible job,” Wildcats coach David Braun said. “It’s a hot football team right now.”
Braun’s team has changed, too, but seemingly not for the better. Their last outing, a 24-5 loss at Washington two weeks ago, dropped the Wildcats to 2-2 and raised doubts they can score enough to be more than a speed bump in this Big Ten season. This defense can get after the passer, too, putting up three sacks per game — a strength that should keep the Hoosiers from piling up a big score — but the 123rd-ranked offense isn’t even averaging 300 yards. The Wildcats are desperate to establish the run and will keep things simple out of necessity in the schools’ first meeting since 2019.
The Hoosiers are different animals than they were then.
“This is a team that’s on a little bit of a mission,” Cignetti said, “and Northwestern’s the next one up.”
The mission isn’t to win nine games, but doing so would be a first for IU since the aforementioned Rose Bowl season. At a basketball school, nine would be more than fine. Hoosiers by nine — 26-17.
OTHER WEEK 6 PICKS
All games are Saturday.
UMass (+17½) at Northern Illinois (11 a.m., CBSSN): Not many are paying attention to this one with the Minutemen at 1-4 and the Huskies back down to earth at 2-2. Worth watching, though, is visiting quarterback Taisun Phommachanh, who is huge, dangerous as a dual threat and once upon a time was a blue-chip recruit bound for mighty Clemson. He sure gets sacked a lot, though. Huskies, 31-17.
Rutgers (+7) at Nebraska (3 p.m., FS1): The 4-0 Scarlet Knights have won at Virginia Tech and beaten Washington, impressive stuff so far. They have a real shot to win again here because of their run game, one of the Big Ten’s best. Can the Huskers load up and shut it down? If not, it’s a total tossup. Huskers, 24-20.
No. 10 Michigan (+1½) at Washington (6:30 p.m., NBC 5): It’s a title-game rematch! Sort of. Michigan is far from what it was last season, and Washington had faded even further. In case you were unaware: Michael Penix Jr. and that Rome Odunze character don’t play in Seattle anymore. When these Huskies aren’t dinking, they’re dunking, not the greatest approach against a defense as tough as the Wolverines’. Maize and Blue, 24-17.
My favorite favorite: No. 3 Ohio State (-18) vs. Iowa (2:30 p.m., CBS 2): Kirk Ferentz has been coach at Iowa since 1999, longer than any other current major-college coach has been on the job. You know what Ferentz has never done? Win at OSU; he’s 0-6 there. His last crack at it in Columbus was in 2022, when the Buckeyes destroyed the Hawkeyes by 44. What does all that have to do with Saturday? Nothing, clearly. Buckeyes by 44.
My favorite underdog: No. 9 Missouri (+2½) at No. 25 Texas A&M (11 a.m., ABC 7): OK, so it’s not the most mouth-watering slate of games around the country; this is Week 6’s only Top 25 matchup. Mizzou struggled to beat Boston College and Vanderbilt in its last two games, both at home, but it’s hard to forget how great the Tigers were on the road last year en route to a top 10 finish. Also, there’s this: A&M is 0-4 against the spread at home this season. The Zou, that’s who.
Last week: 5-1 straight-up, 4-2 against the spread.
Season: 22-11, 17-16.
Atlanta will host a top-five Big Ten rematch in the Peach Bowl on Friday. No. 1 Indiana will take on No. 5 Oregon in a semifinal of the College Football Playoff for a chance to compete for a national championship. The Hoosiers won the regular-season matchup 30-20. This is the fifth all-time meeting between the teams, with the series tied 2-2.
Both defenses have proved stout, making the offenses the biggest determining factor in this game. Indiana is second in scoring defense, while Oregon is close behind at sixth. The Hoosiers have the advantage on the line, giving up the third-fewest rushing yards in the nation. Oregon, however, has the edge in the air, allowing the ninth-fewest passing yards. The Ducks also pitched a shutout in the Orange Bowl against Texas Tech.
The Hoosiers didn’t skip a beat on offense, handing Alabama its first 30-point loss this side of the new millennium. Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza was highly efficient, going 14-of-16 with three touchdowns and no interceptions. That efficiency has helped Indiana earn the top seed; the Hoosiers have committed the fewest penalties of any CFP team and have the fourth-fewest penalty yards in the nation.
Oregon, meanwhile, struggled to score for most of its quarterfinal matchup against Texas Tech. The Ducks didn’t reach the end zone until 11:20 remained in the third quarter and rushed for just 64 yards. Dante Moore threw for 234 yards but had no touchdowns, an interception and minus-12 rushing yards due to constant pressure.
Indiana is the favorite, but Oregon has been one of the strongest units in the country, with its lone loss coming against the Hoosiers. Will the Ducks learn from their earlier mistakes, or will Indiana continue one of the most dominant runs of the CFP era?
Oregon struggles to match Indiana’s dominant defensive front
Oregon must control the line of scrimmage to have any hope against Indiana’s dominant front.
The College Football Playoff national semifinal at the Peach Bowl marks a rematch of No. 1 seed Indiana’s 30-20 win against No. 5 Oregon in October, the first of several results this year that have left the Hoosiers knocking on the door of a historic and unbeaten season.
With two more wins, Indiana would become the first 16-0 national champion since Yale in 1894. But in order to make history, the Hoosiers will need to reverse some recent history.
Since the 1996 season, there have been seven regular-season rematches in the College Football Playoff and in national championship games played under the two previous postseason formats, the Bowl Championship Series and the Bowl Alliance. Four of these pairings have occurred since the playoff expanded last season.
Surprisingly, all but one of these games have seen the loser from the regular season rebound to win the rematch. This could be a coincidence. At a minimum, though, this trend shows the difficulties in defeating an elite opponent twice in under a four-month span.
The Hoosiers look to buck that recent history. Here’s a look back at these rematches and what they might suggest about the Peach Bowl:
Ole Miss vs. Georgia, 2025
Results: Georgia 43-35, Ole Miss 39-34.
Ole Miss led Georgia in the second half when the two met in October but coughed up a lead for its one and only loss on the year. The two SEC rivals met again in the Sugar Bowl earlier this month, with the Rebels pulling out the win on a late field goal. Unlike during the regular season, Ole Miss landed a big game from Trinidad Chambliss and did much better running the ball, indicating how teams can strategize by looking back and evaluating the previous matchup.
Ole Miss vs. Tulane, 2025
Results: Ole Miss 45-10, Ole Miss 41-10.
Here’s the one outlier. The Rebels stampeded over Tulane at home in September and then did the same in the opening round. The one difference: Lane Kiffin was the head coach for the first game and Pete Golding for the second. In this case, a significant edge in talent was the biggest factor in helping Ole Miss defy recent history.
Oklahoma vs. Alabama, 2025
Results: Oklahoma 23-21, Alabama 34-24.
Again, an SEC rematch that reversed the regular-season result. Oklahoma’s win in November sparked its run to the playoff. That seemed to carry over to the opening round, when the Sooners stormed out to a 17-0 lead. But the Tide crawled back to tie for the biggest comeback in playoff history.
Oregon vs. Ohio State, 2024
Results: Oregon 32-31, Ohio State 41-21.
Oregon narrowly pulled out the win in Autzen Stadium and then went on to post a perfect regular season, earning the top seed in the debut of the expanded playoff. But in the Rose Bowl the Ducks ran into a buzzsaw in the Buckeyes, who stormed out to a 34-0 late in the second quarter and won going away. A year later, Oregon hopes to follow Ohio State’s blueprint and score the upset against the unbeaten Big Ten champs.
Alabama vs. Georgia, 2021
Results: Alabama 42-24, Georgia 33-18.
The Tide knocked off then-unbeaten Georgia in the SEC championship game behind 421 yards and three touchdowns from quarterback Bryce Young. That landed Alabama in the four-team playoff as the No. 1 seed, while Georgia slotted in at No. 3. The pair met in the championship game after beating Cincinnati and Michigan, respectively, and the Bulldogs would hold Young to 6.5 yards per throw and make two picks to take the first of back-to-back titles.
LSU vs. Alabama, 2011
Results: LSU 9-6, Alabama 21-0
The Tigers’ overtime win during the regular season was about as ugly as the score suggests with five field goals being the only scores. The rematch in the title game about two months later wasn’t any better. Alabama’s defense barely allowed LSU to cross midfield in this second meeting to win the second of Nick Saban’s six titles in Tuscaloosa.
Results: Florida State 24-21, Florida 52-20.
No other rematch has come within such a short time frame. FSU topped Florida on Nov. 30 to end the regular season and drew the immediate rematch in the Sugar Bowl, which was designated as the championship game in the Bowl Alliance format, because then-No. 2 Arizona State was obligated to face No. 4 Ohio State in the Rose Bowl. This time, Steve Spurrier’s Gators bombarded the Seminoles to capture the first national title in program history with the Sun Devils falling to the Buckeyes.
As the No. 5 Oregon Ducks prepare to face off against the No. 1 Indiana Hoosiers with a bid to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game on the line, ticket prices for the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl in Mercedez-Benz Stadium have increased.
Though Duck fans were outnumbered in the previous playoff quarterfinal against Texas Tech at the Orange Bowl in Miami, a Big Ten rematch might drum up more fans wearing green at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
That increase in visiting fans, plus the importance of this game, can be seen through the surging prices for tickets on event websites.
Current Prices for Peach Bowl Tickets
The cheapest tickets to get into the Peach Bowl start at standing room only, with a $166.50 price from Ticketmaster and a $178 price on StubHub.
This total for standing room has decreased since allotment tickets sold out on Monday, with Oregon Ducks on Sports Illustrated reporting $184 for standing-room only on StubHub.
Seats behind both teams’ benches have almost the same amount of seats still open, with the cheapest ticket behind the Ducks’ bench sit around the club 130 section in row 34 for $628.32 on StubHub. Ticketmaster has a $638 price tag per ticket in the same section a few rows up, which the website states is discounted from an over $1,000 original resale listing.
The most affordable sections according to both websites is the upper decks with sections 342 through 350 on the Oregon bench side selling in the $250-$300 range a piece. The highest-priced ticket, according to Ticketmaster, sits on the side of the Indiana bench in section 110 in the club, with a price of $4,760. However, there are several club level tickets with price tags well over a grand.
Oregon’s Ticket Allotment Sold Out Early
At the beginning of the week, the allotted tickets for Oregon fans to the Peach Bowl had officially sold out through the Oregon Athletic Department. According to the Peach Bowl, this is the 26th time the game has sold out of initial ticket inventory in it’s last 29 kickoffs.
MORE: Oregon Fans Won’t Like Dante Moore’s New Projected NFL Team
MORE: Oregon Ducks’ Peach Bowl Uniforms Make History
MORE: Oregon Ducks Get Jay Harris Update From New Injury Report
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Comparing Peach Bowl Tickets to Oregon’s Other Playoff Games
In terms of ticket prices, the Peach Bowl turnout likely will become the most expensive postseason game for Oregon this season. For the Orange Bowl in Miami, Vivid Seats reported that the get-in price dropped to $39 a ticket.
The Oregon crowd for that showdown was roughly 25 percent compared to 75 percent Texas Tech fans, with many empty seats seen throughout Hard Rock Stadium. Furthermore, the lowest cost for tickets in terms of Oregon’s first round playoff game against James Madison at Autzen Stadium also reached around $50 with only a few hours before kickoff.
The Hoosiers and the Ducks will kickoff at 4:30 p.m. PT from Mercedenz-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.
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