North Texas
Indiana #6
4:00 PM · Memorial Stadium (Bloomington, IN)

North Texas at Indiana (#6) — Indiana (#6) is favored by 40.5.

What’s at stake

Make the CFP field

Indiana · 34%34% → ▲36% if win34% → ▼23% if loss
North Texas · 3%3% → ▲5% if win3% → ▼2% if loss

Win the conference

Indiana · 9%9% → ▲9% if win9% → ▼8% if loss
North Texas · 15%15% → ▲17% if win15% → ▼14% if loss

Win it all

Indiana · 2%2% → ▲2% if win2% → ▼1% if loss
North Texas · 0%0% → ▲0% if win0% → ▼0% if loss

CFP odds as of September 5, 2026

See this week’s biggest postseason implications ›

The series

The series is tied 1-1

2 meetings since 2011 · Indiana won the last meeting

  • 2014Indiana 49–24
  • 2011North Texas 24–21

Face-off

What each fanbase carries into this one.

North Texas

The chip · vs the blue bloods

Fans note that the moment North Texas finally got good — the first ranking since 1959, 12 wins, a Burlsworth Trophy quarterback — a power-conference school simply reached down and took the coach and the QB, the way the big programs always do.

What this game touches

Built it, then watched it leave. Eric Morris took the Mean Green from afterthought to 12-2, a No. 24 ranking, and an American title-game berth — then left for Oklahoma State after the regular season, taking Burlsworth-winning QB Drew Mestemaker with him to Stillwater. Denton's best season ever ended with the architects walking out the door.

Indiana

The chip · vs the national media

The same voices who called 2024 a fluke and 2025 a soft schedule are still waiting for Indiana to fall back to earth. Cignetti's answer — roughly, 'I win, look it up' — became the fanbase's whole posture.

What this game touches

A century as the Big Ten's football afterthought. From 1887 to 2023 Indiana had never won 11 games or reached the playoff; the football program was a punchline at a basketball blue blood. Cignetti inverted it in two seasons — but the long irrelevance is the backdrop every win is still measured against.

Best players

Indiana

  • Rolijah Hardy (LB) · 2025: 103 tackles
  • Louis Moore (DB) · 2025: 90 tackles
  • Isaiah Jones (LB) · 2025: 78 tackles

North Texas

  • Trey Fields (LB) · 2025: 100 tackles
  • Will Jones II (S) · 2025: 82 tackles
  • Cameron Dorner (WR) · 2025: 886 receiving yards

The line, and the room

Indiana fans are feeling it more than most fanbases this week (45th percentile) — the mood matches the numbers.

  • Model · 96%
  • Market · 100%
  • Indiana fans · 45th
  • North Texas fans · 42nd

Home −40.5 · O/U 56

Conditions

90°F · 7 mph wind · Fair

Home-field advantage: Strong

Indiana is 64% at home, 44% on the road since 2018 (32-18 home, 17-22 away).