Indiana Football vs Purdue: Key players, notes and opening spread

Indiana football travels to West Lafayette for the final game of the season, where they will play the Purdue Boilermakers for the Old Oaken Bucket.

Purdue comes into this game with a record of 3-8 with wins against Virginia Tech, Illinois and Minnesota. The team’s losses came against Fresno State, Syracuse, Wisconsin, Iowa, Ohio State, Nebraska, Michigan and Northwestern.

Kickoff is set for Noon ET on Saturday and the game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network.

Here is a look at some of the key players, notes and the opening spread.

Key players

QB Hudson Card: The redshirt-junior quarterback is in his first year at Purdue after transferring from Texas over the offseason. The former four-star spent his first three seasons in Austin, where he played sparingly, throwing for 1523 yards, 11 touchdowns and two interceptions. The 6-foot-3 210-pound quarterback has thrown for 2112 passing yards, 12 passing touchdowns with a 58.6% completion percentage, but Card has struggled with ball control, throwing eight interceptions in 10 games. He is coming off of an injury that caused him to miss last weekend’s game.

RB Devin Mockobee: The redshirt-sophomore running back committed to the Boilermakers as a three-star recruit from Boonville, Indiana. Mockobee sat out his first season but was extremely productive in year two, totaling 1,242 scrimmage yards, on 5.0 yards per rush while adding nine rushing touchdowns which led to him being named as a Big Ten Honorable mention in 2022. The 6-foot 200-pound running back picked up right where he left off in 2o23. He has 911 total yards, six touchdowns and is averaging 5.0 yards per rush in 11 games in 2023.

RB Tyrone Tracy Jr.: The sixth year running back is in his second season with the Boilermakers after transferring from Iowa. Tracy Jr. originally committed to the Hawkeyes as a wide receiver but has made the transition to running back since coming to Purdue. In his four years with Iowa, Tracy Jr. caught 66 passes for 871 receiving yards and scored 7 touchdowns. Last season was a transition year for the 6-foot-1 210-pound running back. He ran for 138 yards on 17 carries while also catching 28 passes for 198 receiving yards. In 10 games in 2023, Tracy Jr. has run for 668 yards on 6.5 yards per rush and has scored eight rushing touchdowns. He has also added 18 receptions for 129 yards this year.

WR Deion Burks: The redshirt-sophomore wide receiver is in his third year at Purdue after committing as a three-star recruit. Burks has seen his role expand each season, and he has become an essential part of the Boilermakers’ offense in 2023. Burks had caught 16 passes for 175 yards in his first two years in West Lafayette. The 5-foot-11, 195-pound wide receiver currently leads the team in receptions and receiving yards this season. Burks has caught 40 passes for 542 receiving yards and has scored seven touchdowns in 11 games.

DB Dillon Thieneman: The freshman defensive back has burst onto the scene as a playmaker on the Purdue defense. He committed to the Boilermakers in 2022 as a three-star recruit from Westfield, Indiana. Thieneman has been everywhere for the defense, leading the team in tackles with 98 in 11 games. The 6-foot, 205-pound safety also leads the team with two forced fumbles and four interceptions on the season. Thieneman also has two pass breakups on the season.

OLB Kyrdan Jenkins: The senior outside linebacker is in his fourth year with the Boilermakers after committing as a three-star recruit in 2019. Jenkins makes up one half of a dominant pass rush pair and has been a difference maker on the edge since his sophomore year. In 26 games from 2021-2022, Jenkins totaled 16 tackles-for-loss, nine sacks and one forced fumble. The 6-foot-1 260-pound outside linebacker is having his best year in 2023, being a game wrecker on the edge for Purdue. In 11 games, Jenkins has 14 tackles-for-loss, 7.5 sacks, a forced fumble, two fumble recoveries, including one for a touchdown.

OLB Nic Scourton: The sophomore outside linebacker makes up the other half of the dominant pass rush duo with Kyrdan Jenkins. Scourton is in his second season with the Boilermakers after committing in 2021 as a four-star recruit. In his freshman season, he played in 14 games. Scourton had 22 tackles, including two for loss, two sacks and a forced fumble. The 6-foot-4 280-pound edge rusher leads the Purdue defense in sacks with eight. He also has 13 tackles for loss, three pass breakups and a forced fumble on the season.

DB Cam Allen: The fifth year senior defensive back has been with Purdue since 2019 after committing as a three-star recruit in 2018. Saturday will be Allen’s 56th game he has played in for the Boilermakers. In his first four seasons (44 games), Allen totaled 173 tackles, including seven tackles for loss, he had 10 interceptions and 12 pass breakups while also recovering four fumbles. Allen has played a big role on the Purdue defense this year. He has totaled 29 tackles, two interceptions and six pass breakups in 11 games this year.

Other Notable Players: 

Sanoussi Kane DB, Sr. 

TJ Sheffield WR, Rs-Sr.

Yanni Karlaftis LB, Rs-So. 

Markevious Brown DB, Jr.

Abdur-Rahmaan Yaseen WR, Rs-Jr.

Key Notes

• Indiana football is 42-76-6 against Purdue all time with the first matchup taking place in 1891
• This game will be the 98th battle for the Old Oaken Bucket
• Indiana football lost its last matchup against the Boilermakers in 2022, losing 30-16 in Bloomington
• Purdue has won 4 of the last 5 matchups, with Indiana’s last victory coming in 2019
• The last 10 matchups have been split evenly with each team winning 5 games
• Purdue head coach Ryan Walters is in his first season with Purdue
• The Purdue defense is allowing 30.4 points per game on the season
• This is the 125th meeting between the two programs, which is seventh among the most played FBS rivalries in history

Spread

• Indiana football opened as 3.5-point underdogs and an the O/U opened at 51.

SEE ALSO: Coach Q&A: Tom Allen recaps loss to Michigan State, previews Old Oak Bucket game vs Purdue

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