Indiana State vs Purdue Prediction College Football Picks 8/31/24

The Indiana State Sycamores and the Purdue Boilermakers meet in week 1 college football action from Ross-Ade Stadium on Saturday afternoon. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s an Indiana State vs. Purdue prediction.

Indiana State Team Preview

The Indiana State Sycamores could use a reset in 2024 after a disastrous 2023 campaign in Terre Haute where the Sycamores went 1-10. There really is not a lot of returning production for the Sycamores in 2024, but Plez Lawrence is going to be a name to keep an eye on at running back after rushing for 502 yards last year in a run-heavy offense with a lot of size on the offensive line. Elijah Owens is expected to lead the Sycamores at QB after taking most of the snaps in spring practice and seeing four games of action in 2023 as a true freshman with 310 passing yards, 2 TDs and 3 picks. If he doesn’t get it done, Keegan Patterson is waiting in the wings for his chance to shine.

The Sycamores need someone though, averaging just 13.5 PPG last year and less than 20 PPG in each of the last 6 seasons. On defense, Maddix Blackwell is the key name there at safety, but at least six starters is returning for ISU’s defense. Blackwell led the Missouri Valley with 107 tackles last year as well.

Why the Indiana State Sycamores will win

• Purdue has lost three of its last four games against non-conference opponents.
• Purdue has failed to cover the spread in five of its last six games against non-conference opponents.

Purdue Team Preview

The Purdue Boilermakers come into the 2024 season hoping to take a step forward in year two of the Ryan Walters era in West Lafayette, finishing 2023 with a record of 4-8 overall, including a 3-6 mark in Big Ten conference play. Hudson Card is expected to lead the offense for Purdue at quarterback after a decent 2023 season, but he’ll have work to do with the top four receivers for Purdue gone. That being said, Devin Mockobee and Reggie Love are a solid two-headed monster in the Purdue backfield, and transfers are coming in to help the receiving group in CJ Smith from Georgia alongside the returning Max Klare at tight end for the Boilermakers.

On defense, CJ Madden comes in from Georgia to lead the pass rush and Cole Brevard is back to provide some serious size at nose tackle. Yanni Karlaftis and Kydran Jenkins will make up one of the better linebacker duos in the Big Ten, with Jenkins logging 15.5 TFLs last season. Dillon Thieneman is back to lead Purdue’s secondary after recording a team-high 106 tackles and 6 INTs to make the all-Big Ten team, while Kyndrich Breedlove and Nyland Green come in from Colorado and Georgia to help the cause on the back line of Purdue’s defense.

Why the Purdue Boilermakers will win

• The home team has won seven of Purdue’s last eight games.
• Purdue has covered the spread in three of its last four games against non-FBS teams.

Indiana State vs. Purdue Prediction

I’m on Purdue here. Do I love the makeup of the Boilermakers? Not necessarily as I don’t know if there’s enough going on for Purdue to love them against the better teams in the Big Ten. However, there’s still certainly enough here against a Sycamores team that had just 13.5 PPG last season and one that also lost in their last trip to West Lafayette in 2022 by a final score of 56-0. Purdue’s still the better team in a better position by a fair margin here and I think they get the job done in this one. Give me Purdue.

Chris Ruffolo's Pick: Purdue -33.5