Northern Illinois vs. Maryland Picks and Predictions, Friday, September 5, 2025
College Football began with a bang a week ago, and with every game meaning so much to these teams and players, it will only get better from here, especially in our Northern Illinois vs. Maryland prediction.
The Northern Illinois Huskies (1-0) picked up a tight win in their 2025 opener, and with the team set to be a top contender in the MAC, they’ll be looking for another big win in this one to keep momentum going.
On Friday, they battle the Maryland Terrapins (1-0), a team that made a big statement in week one, and given the tough fight that it always is in the Big Ten, they’ll need to be at their best every single week. Read on to see our Northern Illinois vs. Maryland prediction.
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Can Northern Illinois pick up a major upset?
The Northern Illinois Huskies have played a very competitive brand of football in the past two years, and following a week one win, they’ll come into this one confident after going 8-5 overall last year, including a 4-3 record away from their home stadium a year ago. After that win, they joined three other teams in the Mid-American Conference to start 1-0, and after a dominant performance from their defense, they could keep things going with a big upset.
That win in week one came over FCS Holy Cross at home, with the offense doing just enough behind running back Chavon Wright, who ran for 77 yards and a score on the day as the defense gave up just 218 yards overall as they managed to come away winners 19-17.
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Can Maryland stay undefeated early in the year?
The Maryland Terrapins are in one of the toughest conferences in College Football in the Big Ten, as they joined 15 other teams in the conference by going 1-0 with a win in week one. The Terrapins were a major disappointment a season ago, as they went just 4-8 on the season, losing four of their six games played at home, but with both sides of the ball thriving in week one, hopes are high for 2025.
Their non-conference schedule features FAU, Northern Illinois, and Towson (FCS) before they face conference foe Wisconsin on Sept. 20. In that week one victory, Maryland took down Florida Atlantic behind 258 passing yards and three touchdowns from true freshman quarterback Malik Washington as the defense surrendered just one first-quarter touchdown despite giving up 354 yards overall as they came away winners 39-7. If there was a major issue for the Terps, it was penalties as they committed 14 for 100 yards.
Maryland -17.5 (5 units)
On paper, it’s the Huskies that come into this matchup with much more momentum after going 7-3 in their last 10 overall games, but after a statement in week one, it’s clear that this Maryland team has taken a major step forward after last season, with a potential star in freshman quarterback Malik Washington. Northern Illinois was certainly not impressive on the offensive end against an FCS program in Holy Cross so it's apparent that they've taken a step back.
On top of that, the Terrapins' offense was much improved in week one after struggling a season ago, and with the step up in competition from the MAC to the Big Ten, this matchup in a hostile environment is going to be just too much for this Northern Illinois team.
Under 46.5
While the Terrapins' offense was fantastic a week ago, these two teams thrived defensively, allowing a total of just 24 combined points between them, and while that could change in this matchup, the defense will define the outcome. The Huskies put up just 19 points against an FCS squad to open the season.
In eight of their last 10 games, the Huskies have allowed 20 or less points, with the over being 5-5 in that time, and for the Terrapins, the over is 6-4 in their past 10, with the team scoring 25 or less points in six of those matchups.
Keep it simple, take the under.
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