Credit to: purduesports.com
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue Football wraps up the 2024 season with a pair of road contests, starting with a Friday night matchup at Michigan State. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. ET on FOX.
QUICK HITS
• Meeting for the 69th time in program history, this is the latest date in the calendar year that the Boilermakers and Spartans have battled on the gridiron.
• The last time these two met, Purdue handed No. 3 Michigan State its first loss of the season, 40-29 (Nov. 6, 2021).
• Purdue’s schedule ends with back-to-back road games for the first time since 2003.
• The matchup is the second Friday game of the year for the Boilermakers, the first time Purdue has ever played two Friday games in a season.
• Three of the Boilermakers’ past four games have been against teams ranked in the CFP’s Top 5 (No. 1 Oregon, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 4 Penn State).
• Four of Purdue’s final six games of the season are against teams currently ranked in the AP’s Top 5. The Boilermakers are the only team in the country to have five of the Top 6 on their schedule.
• Starting center Gus Hartwig has a 84.4 pass blocking grade from PFF, the best in the Big Ten and 13th nationally among centers, while not giving up a sack and allowing only one hit on the quarterback.
• One of the nation’s leading tacklers as an All-American a season ago, sophomore Dillon Thieneman ranks second in the Big Ten and seventh nationally in solo tackles (5.6 per game) this year. The 2023 Big Ten Freshman of the Year has recorded 56 solo tackles, ranking second nationally among defensive backs.
• Thieneman’s 83 total tackles are 20 more than the next Big Ten defensive back.
• Senior linebacker Kydran Jenkins is the conference leader in sacks wearing a Big Ten uniform, recording 22.0 throughout his career to also rank sixth in Purdue history.
• Freshmen and sophomores have accounted for 64 starts for Purdue this season.
• Tight end Max Klare leads the Boilermakers in receptions (39), receiving yards (566) and receiving touchdowns (3), ranking second among Big Ten tight ends in receiving yards and third in receptions. Klare is on pace to become the first Purdue tight end to lead the team in receptions since current tight ends coach Justin Sinz hauled in 41 receptions (240 yards, four touchdowns) during the 2013 season.
• Purdue has rushed for at least 200 yards in three games this year, the most 200-yard games in a season since 2018.
• Kyndrich Breedlove has recorded three of Purdue’s four interceptions this season, ranking fourth in the Big Ten and 29th nationally.
• In his first season as a Boilermaker, Keelan Crimmins is on pace for the second-best punting average (45.0 yards per punt) in program history, behind only 2001 Ray Guy Award winner Travis Dorsch (48.1 yards per punt).
• Crimmins’ punting average ranks third in the Big Ten and 16th nationally.
THE TOUGHEST SCHEDULE IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL
• Purdue entered the 2024 season as one of only two teams (Florida) in the country to have four preseason Top 10 teams on its schedule. Turns out, the slate proved to be even harder, perhaps one of the most difficult in college football history.
• The Boilermakers are the only team in the country to have five of the nation’s Top 6 on their schedule (No. 1 Oregon, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 4 Penn State, No. 5 Indiana, No. 6 Notre Dame).
• Purdue has played four of those teams already, having just ended a stretch of playing three ranked in the Top 4.
• Four of the Boilermakers’ final six games on the schedule feature Top 5 teams. Three of the final four games are against Top 5 opponents.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ROSS-ADE
• While the Boilermakers will be on the road, they will be playing on the 100th birthday of their home.
• The two men for whom the stadium is named after, David E. Ross and George Ade, were instrumental in building a stadium that has served as the home of Purdue Football for the past century.
• Purdue opened the stadium Nov. 22, 1924, its season finale and Homecoming game, defeating Indiana 26-7.
• The Boilermakers hold a 301-210-13 record all-time at Ross-Ade.
• The stadium has undergone multiple expansions and renovations over the past century. The original capacity was 18,500. The largest crowd was 71,629 in 1980 when the Boilermakers beat Indiana 24-23.
• Following renovations in 2023, the current capacity is 61,441.
FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
• In 136 seasons of Purdue Football, the Boilermakers have played on Fridays 14 times throughout history, recording a 5-8-1 record. Seven of those games have been night games and only three have been in Ross-Ade Stadium.
• For the first time in program history, the Boilermakers have two Friday games on the schedule.
• The Boilermakers hosted top-ranked Oregon earlier this season on a Friday night.
ON THIS DATE
• Happy Birthday Ross-Ade Stadium! Purdue plays its first game in his current home, rolling past Indiana 26-7 (Nov. 22, 1924).
• In Joe Tiller’s final game as head coach, the Boilermakers won back the Old Oaken Bucket with a 62-10 victory over the Hoosiers (Nov. 22, 2008).
• Ending the regular season, Purdue and Indiana have met 13 times on November 22. The Boilermakers have a 9-3-1 advantage when the rivalry is renewed on that date, including seven straight victories that stretches back to 1969.
LEADING THE O-LINE
• Center Gus Hartwig and right tackle Marcus Mbow have been the leaders on Purdue’s offensive line this season.
• Both Boilermakers have started all 10 games this season, bringing a total of 76 starts between the duo (Hartwig – 46, Mbow – 30).
• Hartwig has earned an 84.4 pass blocking grade from PFF, not allowing a sack and only surrendering one hit on the quarterback. His pass blocking grade leads the Big Ten and ranks 13th nationally among centers. Hartwig’s 75.3 offensive grade ranks second in the conference and 14th nationally.
• Going up against No. 2 Oregon, Mbow earned a spot on the PFF National Team of the Week for battling the Ducks’ difficult defensive line.
• Mbow has a 76.1 run blocking grade by PFF, ranking sixth among Big Ten tackles.
MAD MAX
• Max Klare has not missed a beat since he returned to the lineup at the start of the season.
• The sophomore tight end leads Purdue in receptions (39), receiving yards (566) and receiving touchdowns (3), on pace to become the first tight end to lead the Boilermakers in receiving since current tight ends coach Justin Sinz paced Purdue in 2013 (41 receptions).
• Klare ranks second in the Big Ten and seventh nationally in receiving yards by a tight end.
• Klare has led Purdue in receiving in seven of the team’s 10 games this season.
• His 566 receiving yards rank 10th in a single season by a Purdue tight end and are the most since Brycen Hopkins’ 830-yard season in 2019. It also ranks 11th on the Purdue career tight end charts.
• He had his best game as a Boilermaker at No. 23 Illinois (Oct. 12), hauling in six receptions for a career-high 133 yards. It marked the most receiving yards by a Purdue tight end since Payne Durham’s 150-yard night in the 2021 season opener and the sixth most by a Boilermaker tight end since 1996. Klare added 76 yards after catch as part of his receiving total.
• Klare was on pace to be one of the best tight ends in the country before his 2023 season was cut short. However, the sophomore bounced back in the 2024 season opener with five catches for 71 yards, both team highs.He also caught Purdue’s first touchdown of the season, a 9-yard strike from Hudson Card on the opening drive.
• Klare was also tabbed to the Comeback Player of the Year Award Watch List ahead of the year.
HERE COMES THE MOCK TRAIN
• From walk-on to phenom, Devin Mockobee has certainly made a name for himself in his time in West Lafayette.
• For the third straight season, Mockobee leads the Purdue rushing attack. The junior has 652 yards with three rushing touchdowns to pace the Boilermakers in both categories.
• Mockobee’s 5.67 yards per carry ranks seventh in the Big Ten.
• Mockobee sits 10th on Purdue’s all-time rushing list (2,431), passing legendary College Football Hall of Fame running back Leroy Keyes (2,094) against Nebraska (Sept. 28). He also sits 11th with 18 career rushing touchdowns, passing another College Football Hall of Famer (Otis Armstrong) by finding the end zone against Northwestern (Nov. 2).
• The junior is 69 yards away from becoming just the eighth Boilermaker in history to rack up 2,500 career rushing yards.
• With 11 carries for 102 yards at No. 23 Illinois (Oct. 12), Mockobee became the seventh Boilermaker to produce at least eight 100-yard rushing games over a career and the first since Kory Sheets (2005-08) recorded nine over his career.
• He rushed for a season-high 168 rushing yards at Oregon State (Sept. 21), becoming the sixth Boilermaker since 1996 to record a 100-yard rushing game in three separate seasons.
• He started his career by setting a new Purdue freshman record with 968 rushing yards while also adding nine touchdowns.
• After being put on scholarship in the first official act of the Walters era, he led the team in rushing once again with 807 yards and six touchdowns in 2023.
• In doing so, Mockobee became the first Boilermaker to lead the team in rushing in back-to-back seasons since Markell Jones, who did it three years running (2015-17).
• The Boonville, Ind., native is one of only four Big Ten players to rush for more than 800 yards in each of the past two seasons.
DT THE TACKLING MACHINE
• After pacing Purdue and becoming one of the nation’s leading tacklers as a freshman, Dillon Thieneman is back atop the Boilermakers’ chart for tackles in 2024.
• The sophomore defensive back leads Purdue in total tackles (83) and solo tackles (56), besting all Big Ten defensive backs in both categories.
• Thieneman’s 5.6 solo tackles per game rank second in the Big Ten and seventh nationally.
• His 56 solo tackles rank second nationally by a defensive back.
• His 130 solo tackles over the last two seasons are the most by a defensive back during that stretch.
• Thieneman is one of only 26 Big Ten defensive backs over the past 20 seasons to record at least 50 solo tackles in two different seasons, including just the third to do it during both freshman and sophomore campaigns (Ricardo Allen – Purdue, Ibraheim Campbell – Northwestern).
• A season ago, Thieneman led the team with 106 tackles, ranking fifth in the Big Ten among all players and the most by any freshman in the country
• His 74 solo tackles in 2023 led all freshmen nationwide and set a new Purdue freshman record.
HIGHWAY TO HELDT
• After recording only 12 tackles throughout his freshman season, sophomore rush end Will Heldt has made 47 tackles this season. He ranks second on the team in sacks (5.0) and tackles-for-loss (8.5).
• Heldt recorded his first career touchdown with a 16-yard scoop-and-score at No. 23 Illinois (Oct. 12).
• At Wisconsin (Oct. 5), Heldt recorded a career-high eight tackles to pace Purdue.
• Heldt started the season with a team-high seven tackles, 3.0 tackles-for-loss and 2.0 sacks in the win over Indiana State. Prior to the season opener, Heldt’s career high in tackles were two.
TACKLES-4-LOSS
• One of the major anchors of the defense is senior Kydran Jenkins (KAY-dran), who ranks sixth in Purdue history with 22.0 career sacks and 12th with 41.5 tackles-for-loss.
• The senior linebacker leads the Boilermakers in TFLs (10.0) and sacks (5.5), while ranking second in tackles (69).
• Jenkins sacks per game (0.55) ranks seventh in the Big Ten.
• Jenkins had a huge game against Oregon State (Sept. 21), recording a career-high 16 tackles to go along with 3.0 TFLs and 2.0 sacks. With his second sack of the contest, he became the eighth Boilermaker in program history to make 20 career sacks.
• As a junior, Jenkins finished second in the Big Ten in tackles-for-loss with 15.5 on the year, ranking 18th in the country and the most by a Boilermaker since George Karlaftis in 2019 (17.0).
• He garnered All-Big Ten Honorable Mention for the second straight year in 2023.
• A versatile player, Jenkins moved from RUSH END to middle linebacker ahead of the 2024 campaign, a position he played in high school and a spot the coaching staff believed would do more to impress NFL scouts.
OUR AUSSIE
• Keelan Crimmins has quickly become Purdue’s most reliable punter in at least seven seasons.
• Crimmins is third in the Big Ten and ranks 16th nationally with a 45.0-yard average. He is on pace to be the fourth Boilermaker to average over 44 yards in a season going back to 1976.
• He is on pace for the second-highest season punt average in program history behind Ray Guy Award winner Travis Dorsch (48.1 yards per punt).
• He finished with a trio of punts longer than 50 yards against Penn State.
• Against Notre Dame, Crimmins punted 10 times for a 47.3-yard clip with a pair of balls over 50 yards and three inside the 20-yard line.
• It was only the sixth time a Big Ten punter averaged over 47 yards when punting 10 times. Iowa has three of them.
• His career-long 64-yard kick against the Irish was just the 20th ball of 64 or more yards by Purdue punter since 1996.
• He tallied a 46.7-yard average against Indiana State on three boots.
• The Aussie was the No. 3-ranked punter by ProKick Australia.
• He played cricket and high-level Australian Rules Football.
• Crimmins is the second straight Purdue punter from Australia, joining Jack Ansell (2021-23), who also wore No. 30.
ROSS-ADE PACKED ALL SEASON LONG
• With Purdue’s home schedule in the books, the Boilermakers produced their highest average home attendance (59,887) in nearly two decades as Ross-Ade Stadium was packed all year.
• The average home attendance was Purdue’s highest since 2005 (62,996), above Ross-Ade’s current capacity of 61,441.
• The mark was 97.5 percent of the stadium’s capacity.
• Purdue sold out three games against Notre Dame, Nebraska and Northwestern, which matched the highest attendance at Ross-Ade Stadium since 2014 when renovations began that trimmed capacity by nearly 10,000 seats.
• Purdue’s attendance of 59,488 against Indiana State was the largest in a season opener for Purdue since 2005.
• With more than 42,000 season ticket holders, including more than 5,000 new season ticket holders, season tickets sold out for the 2024 season.
• Student season tickets also sold out five hours after going on sale, a record-breaking time.
• Purdue’s in-state matchup against Notre Dame sold out one day after going on sale to the public.
