Bucket Game Inside the Numbers: Indiana Hoosiers at Purdue Boilermakers
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Written by Andrew Walker
The Hoosiers and Boilermakers shall meet again on the gridiron in a tradition as old as time. They’ll be fighting for the Old Oaken Bucket; a simple, yet coveted trophy that I already wrote a historical summary on. Two unfortunate consecutive losses accompany Indiana into West Lafayette on Saturday, but as the old adage goes, hungry dogs run faster. The Purdue Boilermakers come into Saturday’s game at 4-7, looking for a fifth win; one short of bowl eligibility. With the stage set, let’s take a look inside the numbers at some of the statistical advantages for each side.
Rushing yards
Indiana - 130 ypg
The Hoosiers have been a fairly consistent rushing team all year. Stevie Scott and company have led Indiana’s ground attack to 20 rushing TDs on the year and have been really effective against a lot of defenses. IU’s rushing game should be able to effectively tear apart the Boilermaker defense. Purdue’s opponents this year have been able to average over 190 rushing yards per game. For Purdue to have a shot, they’ve got to stop Indiana’s ground game.
Purdue - 74 ypg
Purdue’s ground attack has been seriously lacking this year. Freshman RB King Doerue has only been able to rush for a little over 450 yards on the ground this year, and the next best guy only has 213. QB Jack Plummer has the third most rushing yards on the team. Look for Purdue’s offense to run strictly through the air on Saturday, seeing that the Hoosier run defense has had its moments of greatness.
Penalties
Indiana - 6.6 per game
Indiana’s ability to rack up penalties and penalty yards has been almost second nature to the Hoosiers this year. We’re one of the most penalized teams in the Big Ten, and it shows. Exactly 700 yards given up on penalties for the year. Luckily, Indiana’s passing game has enough firepower to make up for lost yardage, but every little bit helps.
Purdue - 4.9 per game
The Boilermakers have had their act together with penalties a whole lot more than Indiana has this year. Less than five penalties per game and only 437 total yards given up has been a big reason as to why Purdue has four wins on the season. They’re only giving up about 40 yards per game, compared to Indiana’s 64.
TD% in the red zone
Indiana - 66%
I brought this up a while ago, but it’s a good thing the Hoosiers are still at ⅔ success rate for TDs in the red zone. They just got done playing some tough games against some really good defenses, so it’s a good thing. If Indiana can exploit Purdue’s red zone defense, they should have a field day on Saturday.
Purdue - 71%
I know it might look like Purdue’s red zone TD efficiency is higher than IU’s, and that’s because it is. The difference lies in how many attempts each team has taken. Indiana’s been in the red zone 50 times and scored a TD on 33 of those times. Purdue, however, has only been in the red zone 35 times and scored on 25 of those. Logically speaking, if you have more opportunities in the red zone, the more you’re going to score, which is exactly why Indiana has a great shot at winning the game on Saturday.
IU Can Clinch the Decade With a Win
With a win the Hoosiers will have beaten Purdue six times in the 2010’s (‘11,’13-’16). It would be the first winning decade for Indiana in the rivalry series since they went 7-3 in the 1940’s. If Purdue claims the Bucket, the series will be tied 5-5 in the 2010’s. Currently the series stands at 74-41-6 in favor of Purdue.