← Matchups

Northern Illinois

MAC · 0-2 · power -0.1 · #185
Our numberSJSU -1.4 no book has priced this game

San José State

MWC · 2-1 · power +3.5 · #135
Our side
MoneylineSJSU to win ours 63%
Projected score 25–26 NIU – SJSU
2026-11-07 · kickoff TBD CEFCU Stadium · San Jose, CA Early season

The books

No book has priced this game. Nothing to compare, and no ticket to build.

Series Northern Illinois lead 1–0 · 1 meeting since 1995
2025 unit ranks — last completed season, from games actually played
Run game even 14 ranks apart
Northern Illinois Huskies #133 rush offense San José State Spartans #147 run defense
Pass game edge San José State Spartans 48 ranks
Northern Illinois Huskies #232 pass offense San José State Spartans #184 pass defense
Run game edge San José State Spartans 49 ranks
San José State Spartans #118 rush offense Northern Illinois Huskies #167 run defense
Pass game edge Northern Illinois Huskies 147 ranks
San José State Spartans #194 pass offense Northern Illinois Huskies #47 pass defense
Northern Illinois Huskies Run-heavy · 71% run Ball-control San José State Spartans Pass-heavy · 41% run Avg pace
Thomas Hammock · 35-47 Ken Niumatalolo · 62-63

Ranked by team-unit strength (rush & pass offense vs. run & pass defense) across all 265 D1 teams, not by individual players. Identity, tempo and unit strength are measured from the 2025 season.

The evidence 2025 production and power ratings · supporting the number above

Who carried each team in 2025
Northern Illinois Huskies
LB Jashawn Nelson 19 tkl · 0.5 sacks · 1.5 TFL #47 LB
DB Avery Jones 11 tkl #136 DB
LB Jack Murray 18 tkl · 0.5 TFL #108 LB
DB Andruw Ellis 1 tkl · 1 INT #204 DB
San José State Spartans
LB Dylan Lee 24 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 2.5 TFL #10 LB
LB Naseri Danielson 22 tkl #22 LB
DB Caleb Womack 25 tkl · 1 INT #46 DB
QB Luke Weaver 788 pass yds · 8 TD · 1 INT #14 QB

Top-rated players from last season, ranked within their position across D1. A grade measures what a player produced, and no 2026 game has been played yet — so this is who produced for these programs in 2025, not a claim about who is on the field this year.

Power breakdown
TeamPowerOffDefRank
Northern Illinois HuskiesMAC -0.1 -4.2 +4.1 #185
San José State SpartansMWC +3.5 +2.2 +1.3 #135

Def is higher = better. The projection assumes a 2.4-pt home edge (0 at neutral sites).

Where the number comes from
Northern Illinois offense vs San José State defense-5.5 pts
San José State offense vs Northern Illinois defense-1.9 pts
Travel · context onlyAway team travels 1,778 mi

An efficiency adjustment from season-to-date EPA and success rate applies once teams have played enough games; before then it is 0 and the number is the power rating alone.

Situational spots are shown for context, not baked in: travel, altitude and rest were tested against 6,000+ games and the power and efficiency ratings already account for them. Adding them again would double-count.