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FACTS & STATS: Site: Memorial Stadium (52,692) -- Bloomington, Indiana. Television: Big Ten Network. Home Record: Illinois 1-2, Indiana 2-1. Away Record: Illinois 0-1, Indiana 1-2. Neutral Record: Illinois 0-1, Indiana 0-0. Conference Record: Illinois 0-3, Indiana 0-2. Series Record: Illinois leads, 43-21-2.

GAME NOTES: A pair of teams still in search of their first conference victory of the season square off at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, as the Indiana Hoosiers play host to the Illinois Fighting Illini in a Big Ten clash.

Illinois enters this contest trying to snap a three-game slide. Its Homecoming was spoiled in last weekend's 24-14 loss to Michigan State. This week's tilt kicks off a stretch in which the Illini will play three of their next four on the road.

Indiana is also trying to avoid a fourth straight loss. Last weekend, the Hoosiers were dismantled by Virginia in a 47-7 final. In their previous Big Ten games this season, the Hoosiers fell to Michigan (36-33) and Ohio State (33-14).

Illinois leads the all-time series with Indiana, 43-21-2, although the Hoosiers have won three of the last four meetings on their home field.

Things aren't a whole lot better on the defensive side of the ball for the Illini. After all, MSU sophomore quarterback Keith Nichol led the Spartans to victory last week in his first-ever collegiate start. On the season, Illinois is giving up an average of 408.6 yards and 28.6 points per game. But whereas more and more schools prefer uber-soft, early-season schedules, the Illini have been tested by some elite offenses. In addition to Michigan State, their other losses have come against Missouri, Ohio State and Penn State; three teams capable of dismantling just about any defense in the Football Bowl Subdivision on a given weekend. Still, the Illini have struggled against both the run and the pass. Opponents are averaging nearly five yards per rush. In the passing game, opposing quarterbacks have had ample time to operate in the pocket, as Illinois is averaging only one sack per game, which ranks 105th in the FBS.

The Indiana offense is searching for answers after scoring a total of 21 points over the last two games. Ever since an ugly 19-13 win over Eastern Kentucky in the season opener, the Hoosiers were making strides each week on offense. They averaged 31 points over the next three games, before struggling a bit against Ohio State two weeks ago, and ultimately getting annihilated last week at Virginia. Considering IU trailed by 30 at halftime, any hopes of a balanced attack were essentially squashed. Still, the Hoosiers offense did almost nothing in the first half. In the first eight drives, they had five punts, a fumble, an interception and a turnover on downs. Ben Chappell threw for 177 yards and an interception. He seldom took shots downfield, as his completions averaged just 8.3 yards. Chappell hasn't gotten a whole lot of help from the ground game this season, with Indian ranking 89th in the nation in rushing offense (122.8 ypg).

Defensively, IU could do nothing to stop or even slow down the Virginia offense. The Cavaliers were able to keep drives alive by converting 6-of-11 third downs, and they finished with 536 total yards. UVA running back Mikell Simpson was a big thorn in the Hoosiers' side, as he notched four rushing touchdowns. Just like the offense, this is a unit that has been searching for answers recently. Over the last three games, Indiana has allowed an average of nearly 39 ppg. Not surprisingly, all three have resulted in losses. Linebacker Tyler Replogle is coming off a 10-tackle game and now has 40 on the season. Fellow linebacker Matt Mayberry leads the team with 44 tackles to go along with his 2.5 sacks. While those two have been active making plays, the defensive line hasn't generated a ton of pressure and the secondary has had too many lapses.

After leading the team to the Rose Bowl two seasons ago, a lot of people -- particularly around Champaign -- figured Juice Williams would have developed into a more complete quarterback by now. But for one reason or another, that simply hasn't happened, and Illinois has been paying for it in the win-loss column. Although perhaps overdue, Zook finally sent a message to Williams last week that his job is not guaranteed. Now it is up to Williams to let everybody know that he got the message.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Illinois 37, Indiana 23