BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Despite a valiant second-half effort on both sides of the ball, Northwestern football fell 29-23 to No. 5 Indiana on Friday night in Memorial Stadium.
The Wildcats (2-1, 0-1 Big Ten) outscored the Hoosiers (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) 23-17 in the game’s final 30 minutes, registering the most points against the defending national champions since Nov. 8, 2025. However, a 12-0 halftime deficit ultimately proved too much to overcome.
Fourth-year quarterback Aidan Chiles completed 22-of-29 passes for 293 yards and three total touchdowns. He is the first NU quarterback to log three games of at least 225 passing yards to start a season since C.J. Bacher did so in 2007.
Chiles found another gear in the second half, going 17-of-21 for 237 passing yards, two passing touchdowns and a rushing score in the latter two quarters.
With his Friday night showing, Chiles became the first Big Ten quarterback to post at least 200 passing yards, two passing touchdowns and a rushing score against a ranked opponent since Ohio State’s Dwayne Haskins did so against No. 15 TCU on Sept. 15, 2018.
Third-year Luke Dehnicke recorded seven receptions, amassing 140 yards (20 yards per catch), to lead NU’...