PURDUE: Four Days and Counting

There are more players than just Curtis Painter and Dorien Bryant to be worried about if you're an IU fan this weekend. HoosierNation.com looks at four other "names to know" when Indiana (6-5/2-5) faces Purdue (7-4/3-4) this weekend in Bloomington...

Dustin Keller, TE - Dorien Bryant is clearly the Boilermakers’ biggest playmaker at wideout as well as on special teams. But the Purdue passing attack also leans a great deal on Keller, who ranks second on the team with 55 catches for 650 yards and six touchdowns. The 6-4, 240-pound fifth-year senior from Lafayette averages five receptions per game, a total that ranks him fifth nationally among tight ends, trailing only Missouri’s Martin Rucker (6.7/game), Wisconsin’s Travis Beckum (6.2) and Marsahll’s Cody Slate (5.7). Indiana limited Beckum to three catches for 45 yards late last month, but Wisconsin attempted only 21 passes and rushed for nearly 300 yards in a game it won by 30. This game figures to be much more tightly-contested, and Purdue figures to lean on Keller a great deal more.

Greg Orton, WR – Indiana’s best cornerback, Tracy Porter, figures to be matched up against Bryant, which means Orton will also be a primary target for Boilermaker quarterback Curtis Painter. The 6-3, 199-pound junior ranks third on the team with 53 passes for 530 yards and two touchdowns and has been a solid move-the-chains receiver. He hasn’t had a 100-yard receiving game this season (his best day was a 10-catch, 91-yard effort against Ohio State), but actually had one of his best games of his career a year ago against the Hoosiers when he caught six balls for 112 yards and a second-quarter touchdown in Purdue’s 28-19 win in West Lafayette. It will be up to Leslie Majors to keep Orton from putting together a big encore performance in Bloomington.

Terrell Vinson, CB – The 5-9, 180-pound fifth-year senior arrived in Lafayette last fall from the junior college ranks and has emerged as one of the team’s biggest playmakers on defense. He ranks in the Big Ten with 16 passes broken up, while his five interceptions ranks him third behind only IU’s Porter and Wisconsin’s Shane Carter (both of whom have six). Perhaps the most surprising stat of them all is the fact this diminutive cornerback leads the Boilermakers in tackles as well with 75. It will likely fall to Vinson to find a way to keep James Hardy under wraps. Hardy tops Big Ten receivers with 15 touchdowns and his 64 receptions ranks him fourth behind Dorien Bryant (73), Michigan State’s Devin Thomas (68) and Wisconsin’s Travis Beckum (68). He’ll have a nine inch and 45-pound edge over Vinson, so don’t be surprised to see him pushing for double-digit receptions in a game that very well could be his final game at Memorial Stadium.

Cliff Avril, DE – After being among the Big Ten’s best early in the season in not surrendering sacks, Indiana has fallen victim to quarterback pressure as of late. IU quarterback Kellen Lewis has been sacked 26 times in seven Big Ten games, a total that ranks IU 10th in conference games, ahead of only Iowa (35 sacks). The player on the Boilermaker roster who figures to apply the most pressure is Avril, a 6-3, 251-pound defensive end who leads the team in sacks (six), forced fumbles (3) and fumble recoveries (3). He also ranks second on the team with 10 ½ tackles for loss, and it will likely fall to Hoosier redshirt freshman right tackle Mike Stark to keep Avril from taking up residence in IU’s backfield. Avril won’t overpower Stark, but he will present some problems with his speed.

What’s coming up:
On Monday – Five Numbers to Note
On Tuesday - Four Players to Know
On Wednesday – Three Big Concerns
On Thursday – Two Key Match-Ups
On Friday – One Bold Prediction