Illinois and Northwestern close the regular season fighting over the Land of Lincoln Trophy again, and this time both rosters look almost nothing like they did a year ago.
Bush’s Picks
ILLNU
ILLNU
OverUnder
Best BetIllinois
Illinois brings the more proven setup into this one — a transfer quarterback with a real track record of production and a program that's already strung together back-to-back winning seasons. Northwestern's ceiling is real, but asking a new coordinator and a transfer quarterback to be buttoned up by late November is a lot to bank on for an outright win.
Illinois
+Houser threw for 3,300 yards, 19 TDs in 2025
+Program has 2 straight winning seasons under Bielema
+Won the last Land of Lincoln Trophy meeting
−Lost 3-year starter Altmyer and top receiver
−Offensive line largely rebuilt heading into fall
−New pieces have no live snaps together yet
Northwestern
+Braun's program has improved every season so far
+Landed Chip Kelly as new offensive coordinator
+Komolafe returns to anchor the run game
−Chiles still adjusting to a new dual-threat scheme
−Toughest 3-game stretch in FBS looms mid-season
−Northwestern trails 6-10 in recent series history
Bret Bielema is chasing a 3rd straight winning season in Champaign, and the engine behind that push is a brand-new quarterback. Longtime starter Luke Altmyer is gone, replaced by East Carolina transfer Katin Houser, who threw for 3,300 yards with 19 touchdowns against just 6 interceptions last season. Northwestern enters its own version of a reset under David Braun, who's improved his win total every year he's been in Evanston and just handed the offense to new coordinator Chip Kelly.
The bigger question for both sides is whether the new parts fit before Friday, November 27 rolls around. Illinois lost several starters up front and its leading receiver alongside Altmyer, so Houser will be asking a retooled line to protect him behind an offense that's had all offseason to gel but no real live fire until fall camp hits. Northwestern's got a dual-threat wrinkle in transfer quarterback Aidan Chiles, with running back Caleb Komolafe back to anchor the ground game — but Braun's group has to survive a three-game stretch at Oregon, home for Iowa and at Ohio State that's been flagged as one of the toughest slates in the country before it ever gets to this one.
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ILL Illinois
NU Northwestern
None of that shows up on a scoreboard yet, which is the fun part of previewing a game this far out. By late November, both rosters will have been shaped by injuries, breakout freshmen and whatever the Big Ten grind leaves behind — the kind of variables that make the numbers on a screen right now close to meaningless.
Illinois Fighting Illini
Nov 20?vs Iowa—
Nov 13?@ UCLA—
Nov 6?vs Nebraska—
Oct 30?@ Maryland—
Oct 9?@ Michigan State—
Oct 2?vs Purdue—
Sep 25?@ Ohio State—
Sep 19?vs Southern Illinois—
Sep 12?vs Duke—
Sep 3?vs UAB—
Northwestern Wildcats
Nov 20?@ Minnesota—
Nov 13?@ Ohio State—
Nov 6?vs Iowa—
Oct 30?@ Oregon—
Oct 16?@ Michigan State—
Oct 9?vs Ball State—
Oct 2?vs Penn State—
Sep 25?@ Indiana—
Sep 19?vs Colorado—
Sep 5?vs South Dakota State—
Recent form.
Illinois has actually had the better of this rivalry lately, taking the trophy in the last meeting and owning a share of recent bragging rights even though Northwestern leads the long-view series. The Hat has bounced around Illinois' trophy case more often than not since 2009, and Bielema's program now has the stability — 2 winning seasons running — that Northwestern is still trying to build toward under Braun.
Illinois Fighting Illini
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Northwestern Wildcats
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
Whichever version of these two teams shows up on the last weekend of the regular season, the stakes are the same as always: keep The Hat, or watch it head up I-90 to Evanston. With a new quarterback and half a rebuilt line for Illinois, and an all-new coordinator plus a brutal midseason gauntlet for Northwestern, this one's got a real chance to come down to whichever roster is holding up better by the time November ends.
