Big Ten Matchups

Illinois vs Northern Illinois

Illinois Fighting Illini vs Northern Illinois Huskies

Who wins Illinois vs Northern Illinois?

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Head-to-head on record

Illinois vs Northern Illinois series
TeamWinsSeries
Illinois Fighting Illini4Illinois leads
Northern Illinois Huskies0

Meetings since 1992: 4. Source: CollegeFootballData game log.

The series in numbers

Illinois has won the last 4 meetings.

4-0 Regular season
4-0 Last 4
27-15 Avg score
4 Longest Illinois win run

Biggest Illinois win 34-10 in 1994, a 24-point margin.

Every Illinois vs Northern Illinois meeting

Illinois Fighting Illini vs Northern Illinois Huskies, every meeting on record
SeasonResultSiteScore
2010 Illinois win Champaign 28-22
2001 Illinois win Champaign 17-12
1994 Illinois win Champaign 34-10
1992 Illinois win Champaign 30-14

Scores from the Illinois perspective. Source: CollegeFootballData game log, since 1992.

Matchup stats

Last five games

Northern Illinois

DateOppResult
09-26 atGAST L 14-35
09-19 atARIZ L 17-42
09-12 vsILST L 24-28
09-05 atIOWA L 0-40
11-28 vsKENT L 31-35

Illinois

DateOppResult
10-03 vsPUR L 17-24
09-26 atOSU L 19-42
09-19 vsSIU W 48-10
09-12 vsDUKE L 27-31
09-03 vsUAB W 42-23

Completed results from CollegeFootballData via the CFB Data Hub

2026 standings

Mountain West

TeamWLTPCTPFPA
North Dakota State 500 1.00016849
New Mexico 410 .80021753
Air Force 310 .75011680
UNLV 320 .600125118
San José State 320 .600113125
Wyoming 230 .40071110
Nevada 130 .25010997
Hawai'i 140 .20088124
UTEP 140 .20082207
Northern Illinois 040 .00055145

Big Ten

TeamWLTPCTPFPA
Indiana 500 1.00022154
Nebraska 500 1.00021871
UCLA 400 1.00017975
USC 510 .833224153
Ohio State 410 .80021163
Iowa 410 .80014563
Wisconsin 410 .80015883
Minnesota 410 .80016090
Oregon 310 .75019093
Northwestern 310 .75013267
Penn State 320 .60016080
Washington 320 .60013392
Michigan 320 .60011579
Illinois 230 .400153130
Maryland 230 .400152151
Purdue 230 .400152175
Michigan State 230 .40091116
Rutgers 140 .200150161

Records computed from completed games this season

Illinois Fighting Illini lead the series since 1992, 4-0. Here is the series on record and how to watch when Illinois and Northern Illinois meet.

How to watch Illinois vs Northern Illinois

When Illinois and Northern Illinois are scheduled, here is how to find the game.

  1. National TV National windows are set by Set weekly by the conference TV partners (ESPN, ABC, FOX, FS1).
  2. Streaming ESPN+ and the FOX Sports app stream the national windows.
  3. Radio Listen on the Illinois radio network.
  4. Confirm kickoff Kickoff and the exact channel are set by the networks before game week. Check the match center for the Illinois vs Northern Illinois time and line.

The live time, line and how-to-watch details land on the match center and how to watch pages once the game is scheduled.

The Illinois this season

Follow Illinois in the title race on the Big Ten standings, and model the finish with the title race calculator. For the conference series that define the year, see the Big Ten rivalry pages, or browse every Big Ten matchup.

About the author and reviewer

Written by

The BIG10.CO Desk

Conference Newsroom · Independent Big Ten coverage since 2026

The house desk of BIG10.CO - independent researchers tracking every Big Ten game, stat and storyline.

Fact-checked by

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Fact & Data Review · Primary-source verification

Every stat and historical claim on data pages is checked against official box scores and the live feed before publication.

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Illinois vs Northern Illinois: the essentials

Illinois Fighting Illini vs Northern Illinois Huskies is a non-conference matchup that sets the Big Ten against the Mountain West (Group of 6). Illinois Fighting Illini lead the series since 1992, 4-0. Across 4 meetings on record the series is one-sided so far, and whenever the two programs are scheduled this page carries the Illinois vs Northern Illinois head-to-head record, the matchup numbers for both sides, and how to watch on TV and streaming. It sits alongside the Illinois Fighting Illini team hub, the Big Ten this week round-up and the live conference standings. For Northern Illinois against the whole conference, see Northern Illinois vs the Big Ten.

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Frequently asked questions

What is the all-time record between Illinois and Northern Illinois?

Illinois Fighting Illini lead the series since 1992, 4-0. The two programs have met 4 times on record.

How can I watch Illinois vs Northern Illinois?

National windows are set by Set weekly by the conference TV partners (ESPN, ABC, FOX, FS1). Kickoff time and the exact channel are set by the networks before game week.

Are Illinois and Northern Illinois in the same conference?

No. Illinois plays in the Big Ten. Northern Illinois plays in the Mountain West (Group of 6). This is a non-conference game.