Purdue vs. Indiana State

Date/Time/Place: Thursday, September 10, 4:00 PM, Ross-Ade Stadium

Surface: Natural Grass

Capacity: 57,282 (Tickets are available)

2022 schedules/records: Indiana State 1-0 (0-0 MVC), Purdue 0-1 (0-1 Big Ten)

Series notes: Saturday's matchup will mark the sixth all-time meeting between the Boilermakers and Sycamores. Purdue holds a 5-0 all-time record against Indiana State, with those matchups spread out between 1926 and 2015. Since that last matchup in 2015, both schools have hired new football coaches, as neither Jeff Brohm nor Curt Mallory were at the helm of Purdue or Indiana State when that game was played. Saturday's game will mark the first time Jeff Brohm has faced an FCS opponent while at Purdue and will mark Purdue's first FCS opponent since the 2016 season opener vs. Eastern Kentucky. The Boilermakers are 12-0 all time versus since the FCS/Division 1-AA came into being in 1978

TV: BTN(PxP Joe Beninati, Analyst Matt McGloin, Sidelines Brooke Fletcher)

Radio: Purdue Sports Properties (PBP Tim Newton; Analyst Pete Quinn; Sidelines Kelly Kitchel) Listen on Tunein or the VarsityApp

Line: Purdue -34.5

Pregame: Gold and Black Radio

Purdue roster | Purdue Game Notes

Indiana State roster | Indiana State Game Notes not available

West Lafayette weather

Curt Mallory's offense doesn't differ too much from what his father ran at Indiana, so expect the Sycamores to look to run the ball early and often on Saturday. Tennessee transfer Tee Hodge led the way on the ground for Indiana State in its season-opening win with 78 yards on 20 attempts, and he had some help from San Diego State transfer Justin Dinka, who provided 10 carries for 65 yards. Expect that pair of FBS transfers quite a bit on Saturday as Indiana State looks to establish itself on the ground. Quarterback Gavin Screws doesn't pose a tremendous running threat.

Purdue's run defense began the season with a strong start last week vs. Penn State, holding the Nittany Lions to 98 yards on 32 carries in the loss. The Boilermakers utilized their deep defensive line with seemingly countless substitutions to stay fresh and allow linebackers and safeties to clog holes and make tackles. While Penn State's run game stood out as a critical question for their team, Purdue did a nice job bottling up some talented running backs, including standout freshmen Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen. Though the Sycamores will want to establish a presence on the ground, Purdue should be in good shape to force them to put the ball in the air.

Indiana State struggled to get much going in the passing game against North Alabama, as Screws completed 16 of 30 passes for 141 yards. Screws did not have his top receiver, Dante Hendrix, at his disposal, so he spread the ball around quite a bit. His 16 completions were distributed among seven different receivers, though Hendrix's return for the Purdue game could alter that. Screws came in from Butler Community College, where he started for the entire 2021 season. Though there is experience, this will be his first game against a Power Five-level defense.

Purdue's pass coverage drew mixed reactions in their season-opener. While the highlight of the game from a Purdue perspective came in Chris Jefferson's pick-six, the secondary struggled in space at times and missed several tackles. The pass rush wasn't incredibly effective, as it allowed Sean Clifford to extend plays with his feet and buy time for the secondary to break down, which led to several big plays for Penn State. Purdue played a lot of defensive line combinations in the opener, and they will continue to look to find that right combination to pressure opposing passers consistently.

In the meantime, Purdue will look for improved play in its secondary to limit yards after the catch and keep receivers in front of them. As long as Purdue can improve there, it shouldn't have any issues on Saturday against a questionable Indiana State passing attack.

Maybe the most significant story following Purdue's season opener came in fourth-quarter play calling, as Purdue leaned heavily on the pass when trying to put the game away. However, in the first three quarters, Purdue ran the ball more effectively than it had against former talented opponents. King Doerue is the top option in the backfield, carrying the ball 15 times and finding the end zone twice. Though by no means a speed demon, Doerue showed nice vision on both touchdown carries. Dylan Downing saw the number two carries for Purdue, and while Central Michigan transfer Kobe Lewis saw a few snaps, the ball never came his way. Brohm has maintained that Tyrone Tracy needs to get more involved in the backfield, but regardless, running the ball won't be a strength for Purdue this season. The closer to "average" they can get, the better.

If you're looking at the box score, the rushing statistics from Indiana State's win over North Alabama look slightly skewed. While North Alabama had a nice day running the ball, the Sycamores' eight sacks deflate rushing numbers. Opposing running backs averaged over four yards per carry against ISU last week, so Purdue should have a chance to move the ball on the ground against Indiana State's 4-3 front. Until proven otherwise, can it be justified to give Purdue the edge here?

Aidan O'Connell didn't perform at his highest level against the Nittany Lions, completing just 50% of his passes and dodging a few near-interceptions. Several factors stand out as contributors. Penn State's secondary may be the strongest he faces all season, as cornerback Joey Porter Jr did an excellent job. Purdue’s group of receivers doesn’t have the same level of star power as it did a season ago with David Bell and Milton Wright. Nonetheless, Charlie Jones burst onto the scene with a huge Boilermaker debut, establishing himself as a clear-cut number one receiver for this team.

Don't expect Payne Durham to stay quiet for long. Penn State did a good job focusing on the standout tight end, but not every opponent will have that ability. Jones and Durham will be frequently targeted this season. Outside of them, O'Connell will look for another receiver to step up and stand out. Maybe there will be some more clarity here after this weekend.

Indiana State did a fantastic job getting to the passer last week, sacking North Alabama quarterbacks eight times. Whether that had more to do with the Sycamore front or North Alabama's protection, who knows, but it's still an excellent start to the season. When throwing the ball, North Alabama was largely ineffective, as three quarterbacks combined to complete just 15 of 31 passes in the game. Though the Sycamore pass defense looks like it could have a nice season in the Missouri Valley, they could be in for a culture shock with Jeff Brohm's downfield passing attack.

Purdue needed a better season from punter Jack Ansell, and he certainly delivered with a strong opener following an up-and-down freshman season. Maintaining consistency there will be a key for Purdue. Speaking of consistency, Mitchell Fineran showed it yet again, drilling a short field goal and all four extra points after a solid 2021 season.

While Purdue added Charlie Jones in part because of the dynamicity he can bring to the return game, it was nothing doing against Penn State, who did an excellent job in coverage by not allowing Jones have any space to operate. They say patience is a virtue, which could be the case here as Purdue waits for that elusive big play in the return game.

Kicker Ryan O'Grady made all three field goal attempts in their win over North Alabama from inside 30 yards, including what proved to be the game-winner in overtime. Punter Harry Traum got plenty of action with eight punts but only averaged 39 yards per punt and got a mere two of them inside the 20-yard line. Likewise, for the Sycamores, it was a slow start to the season in the return game, and going up against Big Ten athletes won't make things easier.

Purdue faces the challenge of returning from a disappointing loss needing to quickly move on and get in the win column as a heavy favorite. Results following a tough loss have been a bit of a mixed bag under Jeff Brohm, but Purdue should be eager to get on the field and improve on some areas where they struggled against a strong opponent in the opener.

Indiana State will play this season with heavy hearts following the passing of two football players in a car accident in August. They wore all-white uniforms for their first game, making their win all the more special to the ISU community.

Purdue has only been a bigger favorite at home (34.5) four other times since 1995 (some FCS games didn't have spreads however), despite being a 35-point favorite last year at UConn.

FCS teams generally have nothing to lose when they take on Power Five opponents. This will be the biggest environment they see all season. Will it be too much for the Sycamores, or will they rise to the occasion?

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