Northern Illinois Huskies at Georgia State Panthers

Both of these programs bottomed out in 2025 — this one's about who starts climbing back first.

Bush’s Picks

NIUGAST

NIUGAST

OverUnder

Best BetNorthern Illinois

Georgia State's new-era hope is real, but the numbers still say buyer beware at home — a defense that finished 130th nationally last year and a coaching staff sitting at 4-20 doesn't inspire much confidence in a get-right spot. Northern Illinois brings back the more proven individual pieces, including a top-15 pass defense and its leading receiver, even while breaking in an interim staff of its own. Take the Huskies in a game between two teams that were both bottom-tier nationally a year ago.

Northern Illinois

• +Secondary ranked 12th nationally in pass D
• +Leading WR DaAree Rogers, most catchers return
• +New OC Tony Petersen brings 30-plus years
• −Went 3-9, fewest points scored since 1998
• −Interim coach in his first year running things
• −Four-man QB competition still unresolved

Georgia State

• +Dell McGee enters third season, staff continuity
• +Home game, added coaching hires this offseason
• −Finished 1-11, 0-8 in Sun Belt in 2025
• −Defense ranked 130th nationally, 208.1 rush yds/gm allowed
• −McGee is 4-20 through two seasons

Northern Illinois heads south for a non-conference date with a Georgia State team going through its own reconstruction project. The Huskies enter under interim coach Rob Harley, who took over in mid-February after Thomas Hammock left for the Seattle Seahawks, and NIU still hasn't settled its quarterback race — Jalen Macon and Ean Hamric are squaring off against Brady Davidson and Bryshawn Brown for the job. Georgia State's Dell McGee, by contrast, has had the job since 2024 and gets a full offseason to try to fix a roster that hit rock bottom a year ago.

The bigger story might be defense. Georgia State finished 130th nationally in total defense in 2025, getting gashed for 208.1 rushing yards a game and 31 rushing touchdowns allowed, numbers that helped sink the Panthers to a 1-11 finish and an 0-8 mark in Sun Belt play. Northern Illinois has close to the opposite problem: its secondary, led by corners Liam Lindo and Yassine Falke, ranked 12th nationally in pass defense, but the Huskies' offense scored the fewest points of any NIU team since 1998.

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NIU Northern Illinois

GAST Georgia State

NIU's real offseason investment went toward fixing that offense, hiring longtime coordinator Tony Petersen, most recently at Illinois State, to run the quarterback room and find some life in the passing game. Leading receiver DaAree Rogers is back after a 46-catch season, and most of the rest of the pass-catching corps returns with him, giving Petersen pieces to work with even as the depth chart behind center stays wide open.

Northern Illinois Huskies

Sep 19?@ Arizona—

Sep 12?vs Illinois State—

Sep 5?@ Iowa—

Georgia State Panthers

Sep 19?@ UCF—

Sep 12?@ Kennesaw State—

Sep 4?vs North Carolina A&T—

Georgia State's rebuild looks less defined right now. McGee is 4-20 through two seasons in Atlanta, and while the program made staff additions and promotions this offseason, there's no obvious returning strength on either side of the ball to point to yet. A get-right spot against a fellow rebuilding team at home is exactly the kind of game McGee needs to find.

Northern Illinois Huskies

(0)

Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report

Georgia State Panthers

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Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report

Both of these teams were bottom-tier nationally by scoring or defensive efficiency last year, so don't expect a style resembling either school's better days. Whoever settles into a new identity fastest — a Huskies offense trying to escape historic futility, or a Panthers defense trying to escape 2025 altogether — should have the edge this Friday.