Indiana football vs. Western Kentucky: Kickoff and prediction for Week 3

BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA - SEPTEMBER 02: Aaron Steinfeldt #84 and Brendan Sorsby #15 of the Indiana Hoosiers celebrate after a victory over the Illinois Fighting Illini at Memorial Stadium on September 02, 2022 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA - SEPTEMBER 02: Aaron Steinfeldt #84 and Brendan Sorsby #15 of the Indiana Hoosiers celebrate after a victory over the Illinois Fighting Illini at Memorial Stadium on September 02, 2022 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)

Indiana football looks to remove the first half of Week 2 against Idaho from their minds and now fully focus on the Hilltoppers on Saturday afternoon. In 2021, the Hoosiers took on the Hilltoppers in Bowling Green, KY, and pulled out a 33-31 win on the road. Though both offenses seemed to be unstoppable, Indiana football took a nose-dive after that game for the rest of the season and the Hilltoppers’ offense took off.

Indiana football vs. Western Kentucky kickoff

Saturday, September 17th
12:00pm E.S.T.
Memorial Stadium – Bloomington, IN
Big Ten Network

Indiana football vs. Western Kentucky prediction

My original final game-by-game predictions are a bit off, as I expected the Hoosiers’ offense to be a bit more comfortable from where they’re at after last week’s performance. Both teams have started the season undefeated, and with the Hilltoppers offense that has averaged 43.5 points in its first two matchups, the Hoosiers are still in for a challenge to slow down the new-look offensive unit for 2022.

How will Indiana football slow down Austin Reed and Western Kentucky’s passing game? Two names come to mind. Tiawan Mullen and Cam Jones. Mullen has a chance to step up against some better competition and show his leadership skills and playmaking abilities. Jones and Tom Allen’s pass-rushing defense can really put pressure on Reed and force mistakes.

The Hoosiers will be reliant on Shaun Shivers to lead the way in the running game and opening passing opportunities for Connor Bazelak to look for D.J. Matthews or Cam Camper streaking down the field. With all of this taken into consideration, the Hoosiers will finish Week 3 still undefeated.