Just one week remains in the 2025 college football regular season, and Northwestern is looking to close out November with a victory over rival Illinois. Here's how our writers predicted the game will go:

Gavin Dorsey: Northwestern 30, Illinois 21

I'm riding the Wildcat Wave against Illinois. After nearly two seasons of offensive stagnation, everything finally clicked against Minnesota as Zach Lujan's brainchild came to life with a 38-point explosion. With a strong ground game, a stout offensive line, a precise quarterback and what must've been a hell of a halftime speech, Northwestern's offense was firing on all cylinders.

With 30° weather and upwards of eight inches of snow inbounds, we're not going to see the same offensive performance tonight in Champaign. However, I'm still going with the 'Cats, who usually prevail in ugly slogfest-type games. Illinois is widely perceived as the better team than Northwestern, but after losing by 17 points to a Wisconsin team that can barely throw the ball, I don't see any reason that Caleb Komolafe and Joseph Himon II couldn't lead the Wildcats to 200 yards on the ground.

Give me Northwestern by nine as the 'Cats finish the regular season 7-5 and win the prized Hat trophy back from their bitter rivals. Illinois has plenty of talent on its roster, but the Wildcats have proven they're much better than their 6-5 record indicates. This has been a successful season for Northwestern, but it's not over yet, and the 'Cats will continue their momentum with another big win.

Ryan Cole: Northwestern 27, Illinois 24

If Northwestern comes out of the gates strong in this one, I think it has a good shot to pull off the upset on the road. Last week, the ‘Cats beat themselves early and often with penalties and mistakes, but an emerging multi-dimensional offensive attack led by quarterback Preston Stone dragged NU back from a multi-score deficit. I don’t think Northwestern is pulling off that game script once again, but I think they have a cleaner start and don’t end up behind by that margin.

The ‘Cats should be able to win the rushing battle against Illinois. In turn, they should be able to control the time of possession. That’s how they’ve won most games this season (besides last week), and I think that’s what we’ll see once again tonight. Stone is coming off his best game of the season so far, and I think he keeps the momentum rolling against the Illini. Give me the ‘Cats to narrowly upset their cross-state rivals and bring “the hat” back to Evanston.

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