Unlike last season, the Indiana Hoosiers appear better prepared to meet the Ohio State Buckeyes on the national stage.
The Big Ten Championship Game on Saturday features the nation’s top two-ranked programs and the top two sports bets to earn the CFP Championship. The Buckeyes (+180) earned BetOnline Sportsbook’s top odds, followed by the Hoosiers (+400).
With both clubs virtually assured of qualifying for the postseason, the No. 2 Hoosiers (12-0 overall, 9-0 Big Ten) will be playing for their first conference title since 1967. To do so, they will need to overcome two “uncharacteristic” errors they made during last season’s defeat at Ohio Stadium.
The No. 1 Buckeyes (12-0, 9-0), who are coming off last Saturday’s convincing victory over the host Michigan Wolverines, ending a four-game skid in the rivalry, “dominated” with their pass rush and special teams’ execution.
“They dominated that football game,” Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said, as reported by The Herald-Times. “And was the moment too big for that football team? I mean, really objectively, you’d almost have to say it was.”
The Buckeyes’ defensive linemen scouted the Hoosiers’ silent snap count, coordinated by hand gestures from the guard, and generated five sacks. The pressure resulted in just 68 passing yards and 151 total yards, the lowest in Cignetti’s coaching career.
“Every time we dropped back to pass something bad happened,” Cignetti said last season.
Something also bad happened when Hoosiers punter James Evans dropped a snap and absorbed a tackle at the 7-yard line. The 7-7 game soon turned into a rout, aided by the Buckeyes’ Caleb Downs, who scored off a 78-yard punt return.
“They had all the momentum in the world,” Cignetti said on Sunday. “They pretty much dominated for two quarters in that football game.”
This season, the Hoosiers, who beat the Penn State Nittany Lions and Iowa Hawkeyes following fourth-quarter drives in the final two minutes, appear primed to compete with the Buckeyes and earn their third all-time conference crown.
The matchup is set: No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 2 Indiana 🍿
Any early predictions? 👇 pic.twitter.com/OwzoARDmYT
— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) November 29, 2025
2025 CFP Championship Odds
Here is a Week 15 look at the 2025 CFP Championship odds, according to BetOnline Sportsbook:
| Team | 2025 CFP Championship Odds |
|---|---|
| Ohio State | +180 |
| Indiana | +400 |
| Georgia | +800 |
| Texas Tech | +850 |
| Oregon | +850 |
| Notre Dame | +1000 |
| Texas A&M | +1100 |
| Alabama | +1200 |
| Ole Miss | +2500 |
| Oklahoma | +6600 |
| Miami (Fla.) | +6600 |
| North Texas | +30000 |
| Virginia | +50000 |
| Tulane | +50000 |
| BYU | +50000 |
| Duke | +75000 |
| UNLV | +75000 |
| James Madison | +100000 |
*-Odds current at time of publication
