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Tayven Jackson #2 of the Indiana Hoosiers runs the ball as we look at our 2023 October Indiana sportsbook financials.
Tayven Jackson #2 of the Indiana Hoosiers runs the ball during the first half against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Memorial Stadium on September 2, 2023 in Bloomington, Indiana. Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images via AFP.

Two slumping offenses meet Friday night. We're assessing the matchup with our top Indiana State-Indiana prediction based on the best college football odds

It was a rough offensive start to the season for both Indiana and Indiana State in Week 1. After the two programs combined to score only three total points in their respective games last weekend, will the home side Hoosiers rebound on offense to get their season back on track?

Our Indiana State vs. Indiana predictions and college football picks are based on the best NCAAF odds from our best college football betting sites.

Indiana State vs Indiana best odds

Indiana State vs Indiana picks and predictions

There’s always risk in taking a team laying five touchdowns. It’s especially daunting when that team didn’t score even a singular touchdown in its first game of the season. Still, it’s important to consider the difference in opponent caliber between the Ohio State defense and the one that the Indiana State Sycamores will bring into Bloomington on Friday.

The Hoosiers mustered only a field goal in a 23-3 home loss to Ohio State last weekend, but that capable defensive performance against an Ohio State offense with lofty expectations should not be overlooked. If Indiana can hold the Buckeyes to 23 points, I look for a stifling performance against an Indiana State offense that failed to score a point against an FCS team last week.

In a disappointing performance, Indiana State struggled offensively, committing six turnovers, including four interceptions, in a shutout 27-0 loss to Eastern Illinois. Despite an impressive showing against Ohio State in Week 1, where their defense prevented any passing touchdowns and intercepted the ball once on 237 passing yards, Indiana's secondary now faces an opportunity to capitalize on their opponent's mistakes and provide better field position for their offense, which has had a slow start to the season.

It's uncertain if Indiana's quarterbacks Brendan Sorsby and Tayven Jackson can elevate the Hoosier's offense to remain competitive in the challenging Big Ten. However, surpassing the 27 points that Eastern Illinois recently scored against the Sycamore's defense doesn't seem like a daunting task.

My best bet: Indiana -33.5 (-105 at FanDuel)

Indiana State vs Indiana same-game parlay

Indiana -33.5 + Under 46.5 (+419 at FanDuel)

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If you parlay Indiana on the spread with the game total going Over, the total SGP odds only get you to +159. But this is a great opportunity to play around with reverse correlation if you want to try to thread the needle on Indiana covering the hefty 33.5-point spread but not scoring enough to get the game total Over 46.5.

Parlaying Indiana -33.5 with Under 46.5 at FanDuel nets parlay odds of +419. A conceivable path to this SGP cashing would include Indiana scoring between 34 and 42 points while allowing no more than a field goal to the Sycamores. It’s a somewhat narrow target, but given the tendencies of both teams from Week 1, this feels like a sweet spot that could be attainable on Friday night.

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Indiana State vs Indiana spread and Over/Under analysis

For this FBS vs. FCS matchup in the Hoosier State, we’re pretty limited in terms of shops at which to place our wagers. FanDuel opened with the spread at Indiana -34.5 (-110). That represented the upper limit to where we would be comfortable taking the Hoosiers, but we’ve already seen movement to Indiana -33.5 with -105 odds, suggesting the line could push further in that direction to create additional value on our spread bet.

FanDuel has opened with the total at 46.5 with standard -110 odds. The total has not moved yet despite seeing some movement on the spread. If the spread continues to shrink, we would expect the total to follow at some point, which could risk some of the value for our SGP if things move significantly south on the total.

So far, our other best sports betting apps haven’t gotten around to listing odds for this game. As is typical for FBS vs. FCS matchups, we expect more odds options to trickle in Friday morning during the lead-up to the game

Indiana State vs Indiana betting trend to know

Neither Indiana State nor Indiana has scored a touchdown this season. We expect that to change for one of the sides on Friday night - but if Indiana State keeps the trend alive while allowing a moderate breakout for the Hoosier offense, it’s possible our same-game parlay has some serious legs.

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Indiana State vs Indiana game info

  • Where: Memorial Stadium, Bloomington, IN
  • When: Friday, Sept. 8, 2023
  • Time: 7 p.m. ET
  • How to watch: Big Ten Network

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