Indiana Football Slight Underdog at Rutgers in Week 8

Indiana football (3-4) travels to Rutgers (3-3) for a Week 8 matchup at Noon ET. Rutgers begins the week as a three-point favorite.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana football heads to Piscataway, N.J. in Week 8 for a matchup with the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Saturday at Noon ET.

Rutgers is favored by three points and the over/under is set at 45.5 points, according to the SI Sportsbook on Monday.

After beginning the season with a 3-0 record, the Hoosiers have dropped four consecutive games, most recently a 38-33 home loss to Maryland. Indiana holds a 1-3 record in Big Ten play with a win over No. 18 Illinois in the season opener and losses to Nebraska, Michigan and Maryland.

Rutgers stands at 3-3 in a season that has played out similar to Indiana in 2022. The Scarlet Knights started with three straight wins over Boston College, Wagner and Temple but lost three in a row to Iowa, Ohio State and Nebraska. 

Following a 14-13 loss at home against Nebraska on Oct. 7, Rutgers fired offensive coordinator Sean Gleeson and promoted Nunzio Campanile. The Scarlet Knights are coming off a bye week and have played three different quarterbacks this season, which creates a level of unknown heading into this matchup. 

Sophomore Evan Simon has taken the majority of snaps at quarterback this season, completing 71-of-122 passes for 740 yards, four touchdowns and six interceptions. Senior Noah Vedral started all 13 games at quarterback for Rutgers in 2021, but he was out with an injury during the first five games. Vedral earned the start against Nebraska, and he completed 6-of-15 passes for 133 yards. Simon also played in this game, but he threw three interceptions and connected on 6-of-15 passes for 100 yards. Sophomore Gavin Wimsatt has appeared in three games this season, throwing for 117 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions on 10-for-23 passing. 

Evan Simon’s 14-yard touchdown pass to Sean Ryan that put Rutgers up 7-0 on Ohio State at the Shoe: pic.twitter.com/t01BbZaN37

— Brian Fonseca (@briannnnf) October 1, 2022

Greg Schiano is in the third year of his second head coaching stint at Rutgers. He previously coached the Scarlet Knights from 2001-11 with a 68-67 overall record, a 28-48 mark in Big East play and a 5-1 record in bowl games. Schiano went on to coach the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and served as the Ohio State Buckeyes' defensive coordinator before coming back to Rutgers for the 2020 season. Since his return, Rutgers has an 11-17 overall record, a 5-16 finish in Big Ten play and 38-10 loss to Wake Forest in the 2021 Gator Bowl.

Related stories on Indiana football: 

• TUTTLE ENTERS TRANSFER PORTAL: Indiana quarterback Jack Tuttle is entering the transfer portal so he can play elsewhere in 2023, but unlike many transfers, the redshirt-senior captain is staying with the Hoosiers throughout this season ''because I love my guys too much.'' CLICK HERE
• INDIANA LOSES FOURTH CONSECUTIVE GAME: Indiana football had multiple opportunities to end its losing streak on Saturday against Maryland at Memorial Stadium, but the Hoosiers fell into similar patterns that have plagued them all season. CLICK HERE
• MARYLAND BACKUP QB RUNS THROUGH IU DEFENSE: Indiana football had a prime opportunity to reverse the trend of fourth quarter downfalls on Saturday against Maryland, but backup quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. ran through the Indiana defense in the Terrapins' 38-33 victory. CLICK HERE
• TOM ALLEN REACTS MARYLAND LOSS: Indiana head coach Tom Allen addressed the media following the Hoosiers' 38-33 loss to Maryland. Read his transcript, or just watch the attached video of the full press conference. CLICK HERE
• WHAT CONNOR BAZELAK SAID: Indiana quarterback Connor Bazelak spoke to media after the Hoosiers' 38-33 loss to Maryland. Read the transcript, or just watch the attached press conference. CLICK HERE