It didn’t take long for Indiana football senior tight end Zach Horton to understand the way Hoosier fans feel about in-state rival Purdue.
“Since I stepped on campus — even the recruitment — they talked about how much they hate Purdue,” Horton said Tuesday. “It’s really exciting to be a part of that.”
Horton transferred to Indiana last winter alongside 12 other players from James Madison University, where Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti spent the previous five years. The Dukes didn’t have a rivalry near the magnitude of Indiana, Purdue and the Old Oaken Bucket.
The No. 10 Hoosiers (10-1, 7-1 Big Ten) and Boilermakers (1-10, 0-8 Big Ten) will meet for the 126th time at 7 p.m. Saturday inside Memorial Stadium in Bloomington. Purdue has largely dominated the series, owning a 77-42-6 record while winning each of the past three matchups.
But the Boilermakers haven’t faced what Cignetti calls the “new Indiana,” which has reached double-digit wins for the first time in program history and, according to ESPN, has a 95.5% chance to make the College Football Playoff.
Cignetti is new to the Indiana-Purdue rivalry, but he emphasized the importance of the Old Oaken Bucket to his players this week, mentioning where it came from and how much it means to the university.
Indiana sixth-year senior offensive lineman Mike Katic, who was on the Hoosiers’ roster during their last Bucket win in 2019, has also told several teammates about the nature of the rivalry, which began in 1891. Indiana entered this season with only 36 returning scholarship players, making Saturday the first taste of the rivalry for over half the roster.
Some, like sixth-year senior defensive tackle James Carpenter, didn’t know Purdue was Indiana’s rival or how important it was until a handful of months into their time in Bloomington. Now, through messages from Cignetti, Katic and a handful of alums, Carpenter gets it.
“I know there’s some pretty deep hatred between the two fanbases,” Carpenter said Tuesday. “And that’s what college football is all about. So, we’re pumped for this game. We’re excited.”
Horton said the Hoosiers’ preparation and weekly routine hasn’t changed this week.
“Like Cig preaches, it’s an important game because it’s the next one,” Horton said. “But with it being the Bucket game, you’ve just got to have something a little extra.”
Meet the Boilermakers
Purdue’s lone win this season came in its first game — a 49-0 victory over Football Championship Subdivision squad Indiana State University, which has a 4-8 record this season. The Boilermakers, led by second-year head coach Ryan Walters, have lost 10 straight games.
In the 18-team Big Ten, Purdue’s offense ranks 16th in total yards with 320.4 per game, and 17th in scoring, averaging 17.2 points per game. The Boilermakers’ defense allows a conference-worst 440.9 yards and 37.5 points per game. Purdue is the only team in the Big Ten giving up more than 400 yards or 30 points per contest.
Still, Cignetti isn’t overlooking the Boilermakers, noting they scored 40 second-half points to nearly erase a 27-3 deficit to No. 23 Illinois on Oct. 12.
“They're a capable team,” Cignetti said. “They're not having the kind of season they wanted to have, obviously. At this level, everybody is capable. We've got to play well and play very well.”
Purdue quarterback Hudson Card, a fifth-year senior, has completed 58.7% of his passes for 1,606 yards, nine touchdowns and six interceptions across nine games this season. Cignetti touted his arm strength, experience and ability to escape trouble in the pocket.
The Boilermakers’ leading receiver is redshirt sophomore tight end Max Klare, who’s caught 46 passes for 649 yards and four touchdowns. Cignetti dubbed Klare a “weapon,” while noting Purdue has a handful of receivers with speed and contested catch ability.
Cignetti is fond of Purdue redshirt junior running back Devin Mockobee, the team’s leading rusher with 124 carries for 666 yards and four touchdowns. He’s similarly high on fifth-year senior center Gus Hartwig and athletic redshirt junior right tackle Marcus Mbow.
Purdue’s defense, despite its lackluster numbers, has one of the conference’s best safeties in sophomore Dillon Thieneman. The Big Ten Freshman of the Year after intercepting six passes, Thieneman has recorded 94 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss this season.
“He is definitely a good player,” Indiana fifth-year senior receiver Myles Price said Tuesday. “He plays hard, they play hard. Good special teams. They do a lot of good things.”
Cignetti agreed with Price, noting that while Purdue’s defense has allowed a heavy dose of points, it’s made a few adjustments that have resulted in better play.
And so, the Hoosiers, who are 29-point favorites over the Boilermakers, aren’t overlooking West Lafayette’s finest.
“They're a very capable football team,” Cignetti said.
Looking back
Indiana has its eyes forward, as a win over Purdue likely secures the team’s College Football Playoff berth — but it’s difficult to discuss the future without acknowledging the past that put the Hoosiers in this position.
Led by Cignetti and an upperclassmen-heavy transfer class, Indiana started 10-0 for the first time in program history. The Hoosiers’ undefeated season ended Nov. 23 at No. 2 Ohio State, as they fell 38-15 inside Ohio Stadium.
But Indiana junior linebacker Aiden Fisher said postgame the Hoosiers felt it was an “uncharacteristic” performance, one that included a pair of special teams blunders and the fewest yards from scrimmage (151) of any team Cignetti’s coached dating back to 2011.
After reviewing the game, Horton concurred with Fisher’s opinion.
“When I turn on the tape, I’m looking at it like, ‘This is not the team I know,’” Horton said. “We left a lot out there. A lot of self-inflicted wounds. There’s stuff Ohio State did, stuff we did and stuff we know how to fix.”
Indiana gets a chance to show its adjustments — and perhaps take out frustration — against its in-state rival.
But there’s more to Saturday than just the Old Oaken Bucket. The Hoosiers will celebrate Senior Day, honoring a class comprised mostly of players who spent only one season in Bloomington but have delivered the best year in program history.
Barring the chance to host a College Football Playoff game, Saturday will be Indiana’s last home affair of the season. It’s the last time the Hoosiers will run out of their red tunnel to a full-capacity crowd at Memorial Stadium. And maybe, with a victory, the last time they’ll hear DJ Khaled’s song “All I Do Is Win” blare over the speakers as they walk back to the locker room.
Some will get a chance to experience it again next season. The seniors never will.
“It’s definitely going to be a little bit of an emotional moment,” Carpenter said. “It’s been an incredible ride. I understand it could get emotional out there considering everything that’s happened.”
Follow reporters Daniel Flick (@ByDanielFlick) and Dalton James (@DaltonMJames) and columnist Jhett Garrett (@jhettgarrett) for updates throughout the Indiana football season.
