Northern Illinois vs Arizona Prediction 9/19/2026 Today’s College Football Picks

The Northern Illinois Huskies and the Arizona Wildcats meet in week 3 college football action from Casino Del Sol Stadium on Saturday. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Northern Illinois Huskies vs. Arizona Wildcats Prediction.

Northern Illinois Huskies Recap

The Northern Illinois Huskies come into this game looking to shake off a 28-24 loss at the hands of Illinois State last time out to sit at 0-2 on the year. After this game, NIU will head on the road again for a game against Georgia State.

Huskies Searching For First W

Taron Dickens has thrown for 289 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions on 75.6% passing while Telly Johnson Jr. leads the Huskies in rushing with 99 rushing yards and 1 touchdown so far this season. Elijah Porter has 41 rushing yards and 0 TDs while La’Don Bryant leads Northern Illinois in receiving with 89 receiving yards and 6 catches along with 0 touchdowns while DeAree Rogers leads the team with 12 catches along with 77 receiving yards and 1 touchdown so far this season. On defense, Jack Murray and Jashawn Nelson are tied with a team-high 18 total tackles each while Avery Jones leads the team with 2 sacks, and Northern Illinois’ defense as a whole has combined for 3 sacks and 3 interceptions so far this season.

Arizona Wildcats Recap

The Arizona Wildcats come into this game looking to rebound from their 28-17 loss at the hands of BYU last time out to sit at 1-1 this season. After this game, Arizona will head on the road for a game against Washington State.

Wildcats Looking To Bounce Back At Home

Noah Fifita has thrown for 509 yards, 3 touchdowns and 1 interception on 75.4% passing while Kedrick Reescano leads the Wildcats in rushing with 97 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns so far this season. Fifita also has 62 rushing yards and 1 TD while Giovanni Richardson leads Arizona in receiving with 161 receiving yards and 14 catches along with 0 touchdowns so far this season. On defense, Taye Brown has a team-high 15 total tackles while Chase Kennedy leads the team with 2.5 sacks, and Arizona’s defense as a whole has combined for 7 sacks and 1 interception so far this season.

Northern Illinois Huskies @ Arizona Wildcats Betting Trends: Week 3

Why the Arizona Wildcats will win

• Northern Illinois has lost each of its last 10 September games against non-AP-ranked teams.
• Arizona has won each of its last eight home games against non-conference opponents.
• Northern Illinois has failed to cover the spread in each of its last eight games as an underdog.
• The favorite has covered the spread in seven of Northern Illinois’ last eight games.
• Arizona has won the first quarter in each of its last four home games against non-conference opponents.
• Northern Illinois has lost the first half in each of its last eight games as a road underdog.

Why the Northern Illinois Huskies will win

• The road team has won four of Northern Illinois’ last five games.
• The road team has covered the spread in four of Northern Illinois’ last five games.
• Arizona has failed to cover the spread in four of its last five games against opponents from the Mountain West Conference at Casino Del Sol Stadium.
• Northern Illinois has won the first quarter in three of its last four games against non-AP-ranked teams.
• Arizona has lost the first half in four of its last five games against non-AP-ranked teams.

Total Points Facts

• Each of Arizona’s last eight home games against non-AP-ranked teams have gone UNDER the total points line.
• Each of Northern Illinois’ last five games against non-AP-ranked teams have gone OVER the total points line.

Arizona Wildcats Player Prop Facts

• Heading into Week 3, Rodney Gallagher III ranks T1st amongst qualified players for catch rate (100.0%) this season.

Northern Illinois Huskies Player Prop Facts

• Heading into Week 3, Yassine Falke ranks T5th amongst FBS players for interceptions (2) this season.

Matchup/League Facts

• Arizona ranks T1st among FBS teams for red zone percentage this season (100.0).
• Arizona ranks T15th among FBS teams for red zone percentage against this season (60.0).
• Northern Illinois ranks 137th among FBS teams for Q1 opponent points per game this season (17.0).
• Northern Illinois ranks T2nd among FBS teams for sacks this season (9.0).

Northern Illinois Huskies vs. Arizona Wildcats Prediction

I’m on the Huskies and the points here. I’m not going to just willingly take NIU every week, but this is just a case of too many points with an Arizona team that has bigger fish to fry than just blowing away a clearly inferior NIU team. The Huskies very well could go winless this season but this just feels like a go through the motions and get out healthy kind of game for Arizona. I’m seeing a 38-7 kind of game so give me the points with NIU here.

Chris Ruffolo's Pick: Northern Illinois +33.5