CrimsonCast

Indiana football opens Big Ten play Friday night against Northwestern, and this is the first matchup of 2026 that should tell us substantially more about the Hoosiers. Galen Clavio breaks down the Wildcats, the advanced metrics, Josh Hoover, Indiana’s running game, the secondary, and the matchups that could decide the game.

The numbers favor Indiana: the Hoosiers enter highly rated in FPI, SP+ and FEI, while Northwestern has been stronger defensively than offensively through its first two games. The most interesting areas are less straightforward, though. Indiana’s rushing success has been inconsistent, third-down efficiency needs improvement, and Northwestern’s defense has created takeaways and repeatedly kept opponents out of the end zone.

Defensively, the focus is on containing quarterback Aidan Chiles, generating pressure without giving him escape lanes, and seeing how Jamari Sharpe, Jaylen Bell and Ryland Gandy handle a more legitimate passing attack. Galen also looks at the offensive-line development, Northwestern corner Josh Fussell against Charlie Becker and Nick Marsh, and whether Turbo Richard and Lee Beebe Jr. can establish the run between the tackles.

The episode finishes with the major game-day storylines and Galen’s 34-18 Indiana prediction.

Subscribe to the Back Home Network for more CrimsonCast coverage of Indiana football, IU athletics and Big Ten football throughout the season.

Indiana football opens Big Ten play against Northwestern on Friday night, and this looks like a much different test than the Hoosiers’ first three games. Galen Clavio is joined by Hoosier Network reporters Andrew Garrison and Brooks White to break down the Wildcats, Indiana’s early-season questions, the return of Kellen Wyatt and Stephen Daley, and what to expect from Josh Hoover, Nick Marsh and Charlie Becker.

Northwestern enters conference play unbeaten under David Braun, with Chip Kelly’s offense giving the Wildcats a new identity. The group discusses how much can actually be learned from Northwestern’s small early-season sample, why Indiana should expect every opponent’s best shot as defending national champion, and whether some of IU’s uneven moments against Western Kentucky were simply part of a team still holding plenty back schematically.

On offense, the spotlight turns to Marsh and Becker against a Northwestern secondary that should tighten passing windows more than Indiana’s previous opponents. The episode also examines how Wyatt’s return raises the ceiling of Bryant Haines’ defense and what his role could look like as IU continues sorting out its personnel.

Plus, Galen checks in with Indiana volleyball before its Big Ten-opening homestand against UCLA and Maryland, including the team’s chemistry, leadership and expectations after a strong nonconference start.

James and Scott are back to break down another college football betting card — and this week, Big Ten play takes center stage.

The guys dig into Indiana vs. Northwestern, including whether IU can cover a three-touchdown spread, first-quarter and first-half betting angles, and the Hoosier touchdown prop that could offer some value. Then it’s around the Big Ten for picks on Oregon-USC, Iowa-Michigan, Wisconsin-Penn State, Illinois-Ohio State and more.

Plus, CrimsonCASH adds a couple of new ways to make questionable financial decisions: The Stupid Parlay of the Week and Gambling With Grok, where AI gets $20 and one mission — figure out how to bet it.

🏈 On this episode:

• Indiana vs. Northwestern: Is 21+ points too many?
• IU first-quarter, first-half and touchdown props
• Oregon at USC in one of the week’s biggest Big Ten matchups
• Iowa-Michigan and an intriguing Hawkeyes spread
• Nebraska-Michigan State
• Notre Dame-Purdue
• Wisconsin-Penn State
• Illinois-Ohio State
• UCLA-Maryland
• The Hoosier Hot Streak
• Keegan’s Slice of the Pie
• The five-leg Stupid Parlay of the Week
• The debut of Gambling With Grok 🤖💰

Drop your best bet of the week in the comments — and tell us whether you’re brave enough to tail the Stupid Parlay or trust your money to the robots.

CrimsonCASH is a proud podcast of the Back Home Network, presented by Homefield Apparel and Posh on Kirkwood.

Subscribe for more Indiana sports, college football talk, betting picks and plenty of questionable wagering decisions.

TIMESTAMPS / CHAPTERS

00:00 Intro / James & Scott
01:25 Nebraska at Michigan State
02:27 Minnesota at Washington
03:00 Oregon at USC
04:30 Notre Dame at Purdue
05:52 Iowa at Michigan
06:38 Wisconsin at Penn State
06:55 Howard at Rutgers
07:53 Illinois at Ohio State
08:17 UCLA at Maryland
09:25 Indiana vs. Northwestern betting preview
15:11 IU alternate betting lines
16:17 IU first-quarter & first-half bets
17:10 IU anytime touchdown props
18:13 Hoosier Hot Streak
19:30 Keegan’s Slice of the Pie: Oregon-USC
21:00 Stupid Parlay of the Week
23:18 Gambling With Grok 🤖

Chapter times above are adjusted to the actual show opening at approximately 7:55 in the source recording; pre-show setup has been excluded. Note: timestamps may not appear as clickable links for every listener depending on platform/app

Big news for Indiana athletics: Stephen Daley and Kellen Wyatt are eligible to play, after a Monroe County court granted temporary relief in the NCAA eligibility case. The ruling also affects Sam Alexis in men’s basketball, Avry Tatum in volleyball, IU swimmers, and other athletes involved in the case.

In this breaking CrimsonCast update, Galen Clavio explains what the court found, why the NCAA’s treatment of the 2022 recruiting class became central to the dispute, and how the organization’s move toward a five-years-to-play-five model created a major inconsistency. The ruling points specifically to how athletes from the 2022 class who had already played four seasons were excluded while redshirted athletes and later classes were treated differently.

Galen also breaks down the court’s criticism of the NCAA’s rulemaking process, previous eligibility exceptions involving COVID seasons, junior-college transfers and former professional athletes, and why the judge found immediate relief necessary with several college sports seasons already underway.

The temporary order is not necessarily the final word, but for Indiana the immediate impact is significant: Daley and Wyatt can return to the football defense, while Alexis and Tatum also regain eligibility for their respective IU programs.

Subscribe to the Back Home Network for more CrimsonCast, Indiana football, IU basketball and breaking Indiana athletics coverage.

Galen Clavio covers a packed week in Indiana Athletics, including No. 2 IU men’s soccer, No. 18 Indiana volleyball, Brooksley Colvin’s women’s basketball commitment and the latest on the eligibility cases involving Stephen Daley and Kellen Wyatt.

The football conversation turns toward Indiana vs. Northwestern on Friday night, when IU gets an exclusive national window on FOX. Galen discusses how dramatically the program’s place in college football has changed — and why this game provides the first major national showcase of the 2026 season.

Finally, Galen compares Indiana’s 2025 and 2026 PFF grades through the opening three games. Despite the criticism surrounding Josh Hoover and the Western Kentucky performance, the numbers show a team playing at a level remarkably similar to where last year’s national champions were at the same point. The run game still needs development, but the early data offers far more reason for patience than panic.

The full Indiana basketball 2026-27 schedule is out, and it gives Darren DeVries and the Hoosiers something they badly need: meaningful résumé opportunities without an overwhelmingly difficult path. Galen Clavio and Scott Caulfield break down IU’s nonconference slate, the Big Ten schedule, the toughest stretches and what Indiana will need to do to get comfortably back into the NCAA Tournament.

The nonconference schedule is a major improvement. Kentucky is back, Arkansas awaits at Madison Square Garden, Syracuse provides another ACC opponent, and Indiana also gets power-conference games against UCF and Missouri. Rather than putting the entire résumé on one massive early-season matchup, IU has multiple opportunities to build a tournament case throughout November and December.

Then comes the Big Ten. Indiana opens conference play with Rutgers at Assembly Hall and a trip to Iowa before moving into a January stretch featuring USC, Oregon, Washington, Michigan and more. Galen and Scott discuss why the schedule looks manageable on paper — but also why Indiana’s recent history makes it dangerous to assume the Hoosiers will simply bank every game they are supposed to win.

A major theme is home-court performance. Indiana gets several of its more difficult opponents at Assembly Hall, including Michigan, Illinois, UCLA and Purdue. If this team wants to move beyond the NCAA Tournament bubble and become a legitimate upper-half Big Ten team, those home games have to become an advantage again.

The guys also dig into the current Bart Torvik projections, which see Indiana as a tournament-level team but show just how many close games could determine the season. Galen argues that this year's group needs to learn how to "exceed the median" rather than continually hovering around .500 in Big Ten play.

What would a successful regular season look like? Galen sees a path to roughly 23 wins if Indiana lives up to its talent level and takes care of business during the softer sections of the schedule. Scott agrees that the opportunity is there — but the Hoosiers have to stop turning projected wins into coin flips.

And basketball is coming quickly. Indiana's exhibition schedule begins in October, meaning football season will still be in full swing when the first real look at DeVries' second IU team arrives.

Subscribe to the Back Home Network for more CrimsonCast and Assembly Call coverage of Indiana basketball, IU football and Hoosier athletics throughout the season.

Indiana football is 3-0 after a 38-0 shutout of Western Kentucky, yet the reaction around the Hoosiers is surprisingly complicated. Galen Clavio and Scott Caulfield break down what Indiana actually did well, the growing scrutiny around Josh Hoover, the state of the running game and defensive front, and why a comfortable win can still leave fans wanting more.

The box score says domination: Indiana outgained Western Kentucky 513-186 and allowed only 49 yards in the second half. But the game did not always feel that way. Galen and Scott dig into the disconnect between the statistical performance and the eye test, including missed throws, third-down frustrations, inconsistent rushing lanes and a first half that felt flatter than the final score suggests.

Charlie Becker provides the highlight of the day with another explosive touchdown, while Hoover becomes the center of the larger conversation. His ball placement was uneven at times, but Galen and Scott push back on the idea that three games are enough to decide what kind of quarterback he can be. His early production remains comparable to where Kurtis Rourke and Fernando Mendoza were at the same stage of their Indiana seasons, and this offense is still learning what its most reliable answers will be.

The advanced numbers show a similar story. Indiana’s third-down performance against Western Kentucky was a legitimate weakness, but its season-long offensive efficiency remains solid. Turbo Richard flashed again in the running game, while Lee Beebe Jr. had a tougher afternoon as Western Kentucky focused heavily on stopping the run. The tight end room also remains a work in progress as Indiana searches for the kind of dependable third-down option it had in Riley Nowakowski last season.

Defensively, the Hoosiers have now pitched two shutouts in three games. Rolijah Hardy continues to emerge at linebacker, while Indiana’s defensive line and secondary are still working through personnel changes and early-season injuries. Galen and Scott discuss why there are still things to improve without losing sight of what the defense has actually accomplished.

The episode also covers the continuing eligibility uncertainty surrounding Stephen Daley and Kellen Wyatt, Charlie Becker getting a look as a punt returner, Fernando Mendoza’s latest State Farm campaign, and a first look at Indiana’s Friday-night Big Ten opener against Northwestern.

Subscribe to the Back Home Network for more CrimsonCast coverage of Indiana football, IU athletics, Curt Cignetti, Big Ten football and the Hoosiers throughout the 2026 season.

Indiana football is preparing for Western Kentucky, Fernando Mendoza is back on television in a new State Farm commercial, and the complete Indiana basketball schedule is finally here. Galen Clavio and Kamady Rudd cover all of it in a Friday CrimsonCast before another packed IU sports weekend.

The show starts with Indiana’s final nonconference football game. The Hoosiers dominated Howard and now face a Western Kentucky team that has traditionally given IU problems, even if the 2026 matchup looks much more favorable on paper. Galen and Kamady discuss what can still be learned from a heavily favored Indiana team: execution, focus, depth, and which second-unit players begin emerging before Big Ten play.

It is also going to be another hot afternoon at Memorial Stadium. They discuss the forecast, IU’s decision to allow sealed water bottles into the stadium, and what fans need to know before a long day of tailgating. A listener question leads to a larger conversation about taking young kids to an Indiana football game, including family-friendly tailgate ideas, the band and cheerleaders, the pregame walk, and the importance of letting toddlers dictate the timetable.

Then comes Fernando Mendoza’s new State Farm commercial. Galen and Kamady explain why the spot works so well, how it plays off Mendoza’s personality, and why his ability to make fun of his own wholesome reputation has made him such an enduring favorite with Indiana fans.

The second half turns to IU men’s basketball and the newly released 2026-27 schedule. The discussion covers the early neutral-site games, Arkansas at Madison Square Garden, Kentucky at Lucas Oil Stadium, UCF and Missouri, and a Big Ten slate featuring Michigan, Illinois, UCLA, Northwestern, USC, Oregon, Washington and Purdue. They also discuss the awkward timing of the late-season Purdue game and just how quickly basketball season is approaching.

The episode wraps with the CrimsonCast Dogs of the Week, as Fernando and Jordy earn this week’s honors.

Subscribe to the Back Home Network for more CrimsonCast coverage of Indiana football, IU basketball, Indiana athletics, the Big Ten and the Hoosiers all season long.

Indiana is laying 44.5 points against Western Kentucky — and somehow, we’re willing to talk ourselves into it.

This week on CrimsonCASH, James and Scott break down the college football betting board, including Indiana’s matchup with Western Kentucky, a loaded slate of Big Ten picks, the return of the Hoosier Hot Streak, and an absolutely responsible 11-leg moneyline parlay that definitely won’t cause any stress on Saturday. 

🏈 On this episode:

• Indiana vs. Western Kentucky: Can IU cover another massive number?
• Why Western Kentucky gives us an interesting measuring stick for the Hoosier defense
• Big Ten picks including Michigan, Iowa, Penn State, USC-Rutgers, Northwestern-Colorado, Michigan State-Notre Dame and more
• The Hoosier Hot Streak: IU -39.5 paired with UCLA moneyline
• A four-leg parlay featuring Indiana, USC, Northwestern and UCLA
• James unleashes an 11-leg moneyline parlay
• Why those giant parlays always look brilliant before kickoff
• Keegan’s Slice of the Pie CASHES again 🍕
• This week’s Slice of the Pie matchup: LSU vs. Ole Miss

Drop your favorite bet of the weekend in the comments — and tell us which leg is inevitably destroying that 11-leg parlay.

Subscribe for more CrimsonCASH college football picks, betting talk and Indiana coverage all season long.

CrimsonCASH is a proud podcast of the Back Home Network.

TIMESTAMPS / CHAPTERS
00:05:59 — Welcome to CrimsonCASH
00:06:40 — Recapping last week’s bets
00:07:39 — Big Ten betting picks begin
00:11:14 — USC vs. Rutgers
00:12:27 — Colorado vs. Northwestern
00:13:07 — Michigan State vs. Notre Dame
00:13:29 — Purdue vs. UCLA
00:14:11 — Oregon & Ohio State bounce-back spots
00:15:43 — Nebraska & Maryland picks
00:17:35 — Indiana vs. Western Kentucky betting preview
00:18:05 — How IU’s shortened game affected the under
00:23:13 — Hoosier Hot Streak
00:24:58 — The ridiculous 11-leg moneyline parlay
00:28:25 — Keegan’s Slice of the Pie
00:29:19 — LSU vs. Ole Miss: this week’s fan pick

Note: timestamps may not appear as clickable links for every listener depending on platform/app.

Indiana football is 2-0 and closes out its nonconference schedule against Western Kentucky on Saturday at Memorial Stadium. In this CrimsonCast preview, Galen Clavio breaks down the statistical mismatch, what Indiana still needs to improve before Big Ten play, Josh Hoover’s early efficiency, the Hoosiers’ increasingly dangerous rushing attack, and the uncertainty surrounding Stephen Daley and Kellen Wyatt.

The episode opens with the ongoing eligibility situation involving Daley and Wyatt. Their temporary restraining order covered Indiana’s first two games, but their status for Western Kentucky remained unresolved when this episode was recorded. Galen explains the court situation, which also involves IU basketball player Sam Alexis and volleyball player Avery Tatum, and why Indiana is still waiting for clarity.

Then it is time for the matchup itself. Western Kentucky has endured a difficult start, including a 70-20 loss at Georgia, and the early statistical profiles show a major gap between the Hilltoppers and the defending national champions. Galen digs into Indiana’s advanced numbers and identifies one area he would especially like to see improve: creating more consistent push in the running game against an FBS defensive front.

The offensive numbers are already encouraging. Josh Hoover is completing more than 70 percent of his passes with eight touchdowns and no interceptions, putting his early efficiency in the same neighborhood as Kurtis Rourke and Fernando Mendoza. Turbo Richard and Lee Beebe Jr. have developed into a productive two-back attack in the absence of Khobie Martin, while Indiana is averaging more than five-and-a-half yards per rush as a team.

At receiver, Charlie Becker has been absurdly efficient, producing five touchdowns on only seven receptions, while Nick Marsh is averaging more than 20 yards per catch. Galen also looks at Tyler Morris, Shazz Preston, and Davion Chandler, and why Indiana’s combination of receiver depth, blocking demands, and different skill sets gives the offense so many options.

The episode also checks Indiana’s updated FPI win probabilities for the rest of the season, including Northwestern, Nebraska, Michigan, USC, Washington, Ohio State, and Purdue.

Finally, Galen covers the Saturday gameday forecast — including a hot 4 p.m. kickoff, IU’s updated water-bottle policy, Parents Weekend ticket demand, and tailgating conditions — before identifying the Western Kentucky players to watch, including quarterbacks Rodney Tisdale Jr. and Brock Glenn and running back A.J. Allen.

Subscribe to the Back Home Network for more CrimsonCast, Indiana football, IU athletics, Big Ten football, and Hoosiers coverage throughout the 2026 season.