Northern Illinois vs Ball State Prediction Football Picks Today 10/25/25

The Ball State Cardinals and the Northern Illinois Huskies meet Saturday in college football action from Huskie Stadium. Here’s a Northern Illinois vs Ball State prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Northern Illinois vs Ball State pick.

Ball State Cardinals Betting Preview

The Cardinals were only able to score three points in their first two games of the season combined, racking up a pair of losses versus Purdue and Auburn—both on the road. Ball State responded with a five-point win over New Hampshire, but then lost 31-25 versus UConn in game four. The Cards would get a win over Ohio from there ahead of a 42-0 blowout loss versus Western Michigan. In that shutout defeat, the Cardinals gave up 461 total yards, 219 rush yards, 6.3 yards per play and 25 first downs. The offense was pretty miserable, posting two lost fumbles, 88 yards, 1.8 yards per play, five first downs and just 1-of-13 on third-down tries. It was a pretty miserable effort all the way around.

In their game versus Akron last weekend, the Cardinals scored 14 points in the first, third and fourth quarters (while allowing points in every quarter on the other side) during a 42-28 victory at home. QB Kiael Kelly went 10-of-19 for 121 yards, one TD and one pick, while also rushing 19 times for 58 yards and a nice three touchdowns. Qua Ashley led the runners on 20 carries for 143 yards and a score of his own while Koby Gross had three catches for 81 yards and a score in the winning effort.

Northern Illinois Huskies Betting Preview

Over on the Huskies’ side, they were able to eke out a tight win over Holy Cross in their opener, then the team hit a rough skid. Northern Illinois would lose their next five outings versus Maryland, Mississippi State, San Diego State, Miami-Ohio and Eastern Michigan. In the loss to the Eagles, Northern Illinois held a 10-6 edge going into the fourth quarter but couldn’t hold it in a 16-10 result. The Huskies offense generated 310 total yards with 216 of those coming on the ground, alongside 14 first downs and a 4-of-16 success rate on third-down tries. The defense gave up 296 yards on the other side with 4.2 yards per play and 17 first downs.

Matched up against Ohio last weekend the Huskies gave up points in every quarter—including double-digits in three of those—along the way to a 48-21 road loss. Josh Hoist threw for 21-of-29 for 161 yards and two touchdowns while also running for 48 yards on 11 carries. Telly Johnson added 11 carries for 64 yards as the leading rusher in the loss, and top receiver DeAree Rogers caught seven balls for 107 yards and a touchdown along the way.

Ball State Cardinals @ Northern Illinois Huskies Betting Trends: Week 9

Northern Illinois Huskies Player Prop Facts

• Heading into Week 9, Quinn Urwiler leads the league for tackles (82) this season.

Ball State Cardinals Player Prop Facts

• Heading into Week 9, Nathan Voorhis ranks 6th amongst FBS players for sacks (8.0) this season.

Matchup/League Facts

• Northern Illinois has recorded the equal-most home wins by a margin of three points or less of any FBS team this season (1).
• Northern Illinois ranks 135th among FBS teams for points per game this season (12.3).
• Ball State has scored fewer than five points in three road games this season – most of any FBS team.
• Ball State ranks T134th among FBS teams for Q2 points per game this season (3.0).

Northern Illinois vs Ball State Prediction

I’ll lean toward Ball State. The Cardinals didn’t have the perfect game in their win over Akron last weekend, posting just 158 pass yards, 4-of-13 on third-down conversion attempts and two turnovers. The defense gave up 419 yards on the other side but also held the Zips to just 2-of-12 on third downs in a pretty decent effort overall.

As for Northern Illinois, they gained a tepid 293 yards with 15 first downs in their Saturday loss to Ohio. The major issue was defense however, as the team gave up 538 total yards—a whopping 333 of those coming on the ground—7.2 yards per play, 27 first downs and 9-of-13 on third-down tries. NIU couldn’t get much benefit from 13 Ohio penalties either. The good news? The Huskies’ 21 points were their highest total of the season so far. The bad news? the 48 points allowed were also the highest total of the season so far.