Opponent View/Scouting Indiana State

Are you ready for some football? Purdue will kick off the 2024 season vs. in-state FCS foe Indiana State.

Saturday will mark the seventh meeting between the schools, as Purdue holds a 6-0 advantage. Though the series began in 1926, the previous five meetings all came between 1990 and 2022. Purdue’s 20-14 wins in 1990 and 2013 are the only two competitive matchups in the series, with decisive Boilermaker victories coming in the remainder of the battles.

Most recently, Purdue dominated the Sycamores, 56-0, in 2022. The Boilermakers have never lost to a FCS opponent.

Indiana State play-by-play man Brian Jennings breaks down the Sycamores in advance of their trip to West Lafayette for a noon ET game on BTN.

GoldandBlack.com: What can Purdue expect from the Indiana State offense?

Jennings: I think you’re going to see an offense that’s going to really try to run the football early on, take a little bit of pressure off of the quarterback, Elijah Owens. He’s a redshirt freshman. Only started four games a season ago, got his first start vs. Ball State. I wouldn’t be surprised to see them be a little bit more on the conservative side early, just to sort of let him get into the flow.

Plez Lawrence is our sophomore tailback, Kokomo (Ind.) kid. He was second on the club in rushing a season ago, runs hard, gained about 15 pounds in the offseason. He’s about 195 pounds now. He was a member of the All-Missouri Valley Conference newcomer team in ’23. I would look for Indiana State to try to establish the run a little bit early on, maybe try to roll out Owens, work with the tight ends a little bit. Just try to take a little bit of pressure off him, to let him get into the flow of the offense.

MORE: 2024 Purdue roster | The 3-2-1: True freshman starters, Saturday’s stakes, Purdue roster churn and more

GoldandBlack.com: What about the defense? What’s the scheme and what’s the style on that side of the ball?

Jennings: You’re going to see more of a 4-3, 3-4-type look. They’ve got an outstanding middle linebacker in Garret Ollendieck, who was a preseason All-American at the FCS level and a guy who really has a nose for the football. Up front, you’ve got Gianini Belizaire and Geoffrey Brown. Brown is a Fisher’s (Ind.) kid. They’ve been around. They’re both seniors. Actually, all three of them are seniors. An experienced club. Ollendieck led the club last season in tackles. I think the defense is a strong suit of this club, which really bodes well for them because obviously the offense is a little bit young.

In the secondary, you got a guy by the name of Maddix Blackwell, a Bloomington (Ind.) kid who’s a preseason All-Missouri Valley Conference selection, as well. A season ago, had a fumble recovery for a score against Indiana.

The defense will set the tone for this club this season. Obviously, playing against a Big Ten opponent like Purdue will require a little bit different approach than you might see from a Missouri Valley school, just with the size of the (Purdue) offensive line, if nothing else. This is a club that really likes to fly to the football and had success at times last season. A lot of it came down to the defense was just on the field a lot, especially in the latter stages of the second half.

GoldandBlack.com: How do you see this game unfolding Saturday? Is there any way Indiana State can make things interesting?

Jennings: I think the biggest thing for Indiana State is just don’t turn the football over. Don’t shoot yourself in the foot with penalties. If you recall a couple of years ago when Indiana State played in West Lafayette, the Sycamores fumbled the football on the first play from scrimmage and that eventually led to a touchdown. And that was it. From that point on, Indiana State was playing catch up.

I think really, for Indiana State, it’s just about taking care of the football, trying to do something offensively and keep the ball out of the hands of that offense. Obviously, Hudson Card is an outstanding quarterback and a guy who can beat you with his arm, no question. And then you talk about some of the transfers he’s got joining him, as well, especially in the receiving corps with a couple of the kids from Georgia. So, I just think right now for Indiana State, it’s just about taking care of the football, and just trying to establish a little bit of a flow early on.