Ball State vs. Northern Illinois Prediction and Picks for Saturday, October 25th, 2025
Use Code SSWC The Ball State Cardinals (3-4, 2-1 MAC) have rebounded after a tough start to the campaign, and they’ll try to collect another victory on Saturday when they take on the Northern Illinois Huskies (1-6, 0-3 MAC) in a MAC showdown. We’ve got you covered with our Ball State vs. Northern Illinois prediction. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 ET from Huskie Stadium in DeKalb, IL. Don’t get sacked this football season! Try our College Football Picks!
Cardinals Cruise Past Zips
This is the debut campaign as head coach of the Ball State Cardinals for Coach Mike Uremovich, and it has been a so-so season. Ball State started out the year going 0-2, scoring just three points against Purdue (31-0) and Auburn (42-3). They’ve since bounced back to go 3-2 in the five subsequent games, now sitting at 3-4 overall. That included their 2-1 MAC record. They’ve notched conference wins over Ohio (20-14) and Akron (42-28), and sandwiched in between is the lone MAC loss against Western Michigan (42-0). The Cardinals are a profitable 5-2 ATS, and they’ve seen four of their seven games go under the total.
It has been dual-threat quarterback Kiael Kelly leading the offense this season. The signal caller enters the weekend with 846 passing yards on a 59.3% completion rate, adding five touchdowns and three interceptions. Kelly has another 331 yards and five touchdowns on the ground, but RB Qua Ashley is the top back with 476 yards and four touchdowns on 90 totes (5.3 YPC). Out wide, WR Qian Magwood is the top target, hauling in 12 passes for 217 yards and one touchdown.
- Ball State’s offense has been underwhelming this season, ranking 127th in scoring (15.0 PPG), while putting up 249.0 yards per game (135th).
- On the defensive side, the Cardinals are 105th this season, allowing 31.3 points per game. In terms of yardage, they’re 107th, conceding 428.5 yards per contest.
Huskies Drop Sixth Straight Game
This is Coach Thomas Hammock’s seventh season as the lead man of the Northern Illinois Huskies, and he has posted a record of 33-43 (21-27 MAC) during his tenure. This will be the school’s final year in the MAC before joining the Mountain West. They’re not going out with a bang, as this Huskies squad is an atrocious 1-6 this season. After a season-opening win over FCS Holy Cross (19-17), they’ve dropped six straight games. NIU is 0-3 in MAC play, with those defeats coming against Miami (OH) (25-14), Eastern Michigan (16-10), and Ohio (48-21), most recently. As for the sports betting numbers, NIU is 1-6 ATS and 5-2 to the under.
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QB Josh Holst has handled a majority of the quarterbacking work this season, and it hasn’t been too fruitful a year for him. The sophomore has thrown for 537 yards on a 63.2% completion rate, adding three touchdowns and two interceptions. WR DeAree Rogers is by far the top target in the passing attack, making 35 catches for 396 yards and two touchdowns. RB Telly Johnson Jr. is the lead running back with 481 yards and two touchdowns on 78 carries (6.2 YPC).
- Offensively, the Huskies are scoring 11.2 points per game (135th), while averaging 260.3 yards per week (132nd).
- Defensively, they are 66th in the country this year, conceding 25.5 points per game. They’re allowing 376.8 yards per contest, which is 66th.
Ball State vs. Northern Illinois Pick
Spread Pick for Ball State vs. Northern Illinois
- Ball State Cardinals +6.0 (-110) (5 units)
I had to do a double-take when I first saw that Northern Illinois was laying nearly a touchdown’s worth of points this weekend. I mean, this team is terrible. The Huskies have lost six straight games, and they’ve failed to score more than 10 points in four of those contests. Now you want me to lay 6.0 points with them? I don’t think so. I’ll gladly take the points with Ball State in this one.
The Cardinals have issues of their own, but at least they’ve tasted victory (thrice) within the last two months. You have to go back to August to find the Huskies’ last win, which was a 19-17 win over FCS Holy Cross. I’m taking Ball State plus the points, and I think they’re also live to win this game outright.
Over/Under Pick for Ball State vs. Northern Illinois
- Under 41.5 (-115) (5 units)
Neither of these schools is a powerhouse offensively. For Northern Illinois, they’re averaging only 11.2 points per game against FBS-level competition. That’s 135th out of 136 D1 football teams this year. As for Ball State, they’ve been held to three or fewer points in three of their seven games this season.
Ball State is also a run-heavy team, ranking 18th in rush play percentage (58.5%). This should lend itself to a lower-scoring game since the clock will be continuously running with all of the rush attempts. The under is 5-2 in NIU’s last seven games, as well as 5-2 in the last seven meetings between the schools. I’m taking the under.
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