Purdue Opponent Preview: Indiana

Purdue enters Year Two of the Ryan Walters era looking for growth following a 4-8 debut campaign. The Boilermakers will again face one of the nation’s most demanding schedules, a daunting proposition as they hope to return to postseason play.

Throughout the summer, GoldandBlack.com will preview each of Purdue’s 2024 opponents. Today, we take a look at the Indiana Hoosiers with the help of Dylan Sinn from the Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette.

The overview

It’s a new era in Bloomington as Curt Cignetti takes over for Tom Allen, who coached Indiana for seven seasons. The Boilermakers enjoyed a nice run of success in the rivalry, as they took five of the six matchups against Allen’s teams. Cignetti flipped the roster in a significant way, as more than half of the scholarship players did not play for Indiana in 2024. Things will look different for Indiana this season, as a favorable schedule and the excitement of a new coach have fans dreaming of returning to postseason play.

Name to know: offense

Elijah Sarratt – Sarratt, one of the transfers Cignetti brought with him from James Madison, was an FCS Freshman All-American at St. Francis (Pa.) in 2022 and then topped that performance after transferring to JMU last year, catching 82 passes for 1,181 yards (11^th in FBS) and scoring nine total touchdowns. The 6-2, 209-pound true junior was the second highest-graded Group of Five wide receiver by Pro Football Focus last season and will have room to operate with opponents also needing to key on fellow star wideout Donaven McCulley.

Name to know: defense

D’Angelo Ponds – Another transfer from JMU, Ponds was a star as a true freshman cornerback last season, ranking eleventh in the country with 15 pass breakups. He was named the best freshman corner in the country by College Football Network and a Freshman All-American by multiple outlets. The 5-9 sophomore will help the Hoosiers deal with the loss of star corner Kobee Minor to a transfer to Memphis. Said Cignetti this week: “I don’t know if we have beat him yet on a pass route.”

Biggest question:

Can the G5 transfers measure up? IU rebuilt its roster in the offseason with a transfer portal class of 30 players and is expecting many of those newcomers to start or at least contribute significant snaps. A large portion of the players the Hoosiers are counting on the most are transfers from Group of Five programs (James Madison, specifically, but also several other Sun Belt schools and a couple from the MAC), the lion’s share of whom earned all-conference honors at their previous schools. Those are players who are used to success and they came to Bloomington with a ton of confidence, but they still need to show they can handle the speed and physicality of the Big Ten.

There have been plenty of G5 transfers who have had success at the power-conference level in recent years and IU’s coaching staff brought in players with excellent resumes, but the questions will linger until the Hoosiers win a Big Ten game or two.

Key newcomer

Kurtis Rourke – IU’s presumptive starting quarterback came over from Ohio, where he was the MAC Offensive Player of the Year in 2022. Rourke has a big arm and while not a speedster can add a number in the run game. He threw 50 touchdowns against 16 interceptions for the Bobcats and will be counted on to spread the ball around to IU’s extremely talented receiving corps. If he can do so effectively, his payoff could be significant – Rourke was considered a potential NFL Draft pick prior to last season before an injury derailed his campaign.

Early outlook on Purdue vs. Indiana

After dropping four straight to Indiana under Darrell Hazell, Purdue has regained all of the momentum in this rivalry over the past seven seasons. Cignetti hopes to take it away, and bringing the Old Oaken Bucket to Bloomington would fire up the fan base. With both teams featuring very new rosters, it’s hard to know for sure what the matchup will look like after Thanksgiving. Could this be a throwback to 2017 and 2018, where the winner would earn bowl eligibility?

2024 expectations

The Hoosiers’ schedule is as friendly as one in the new-look Big Ten can be and it gives them an opportunity to build momentum with a soft early slate. If they can beat UCLA in the Rose Bowl on Sept. 14, they’ll likely start 4-0 and then get a beatable Maryland in Bloomington on Sept. 28. A bowl appearance is a reasonable goal and Cignetti will have a chance to extend his streak of above-.500 seasons as a head coach to 14.

2024 Purdue schedule

Date	Opponent
Aug. 31	Indiana State, Noon ET, BTN
Sept. 7	OFF
Sept. 14	Notre Dame, 3:30 p.m. ET, CBS
Sept. 21	at Oregon State, 8:30 p.m. ET, CW
Sept. 28	Nebraska
Oct. 5	at Wisconsin
Oct. 12	at Illinois
Oct. 18	Oregon, 8 p.m. ET, FOX (Friday)
Oct. 26	OFF
Nov. 2	Northwestern
Nov. 9	at Ohio State
Nov. 16	Penn State
Nov. 22	at Michigan State, 8 p.m. ET, FOX (Friday)
Nov. 30	at Indiana

Previous previews: Indiana State | Notre Dame | Oregon State | Nebraska | Wisconsin | Illinois | Oregon | Northwestern | Ohio State | Penn State | Michigan State