Walters Talks Importance of Beating Indiana After Cignetti's 'Purdue Sucks' Comment
Curt Cignetti decided to make a big splash when he took the job at Indiana. Ryan Walters and the Boilermakers heard the pointed words that came out of his mouth in front of an Assembly Hall crowd on Dec. 1, 2023: "Purdue sucks!"
Walters may not fully admit it, but that certainly struck a chord inside the Purdue locker room. You could see it in his response on X on Jan. 16, after the Boiler basketball team crushed the Hoosiers 87-66.
"I guess Purdue doesn't suck," Walters wrote. "#BoilerUp."
Purdue has 11 opponents on the schedule before it has to worry about Indiana. But make no mistake, there's a lot of importance placed on the Boilermakers keeping the Old Oaken Bucket in West Lafayette.
"It's important every year. It's a trophy game, it's a rivalry game. Obviously, we're in-state rivals, so it's heightened intensity whenever we compete with one another," Walters said in an interview on 107.5 The Fan in Indianapolis. "He's got a track record of winning games, developing programs and being overly confident with the media. So, I'm excited to go compete against him this fall."
Walters is correct, the Purdue-Indiana game is always an important. It gives one team state bragging rights for an entire year. But Cignetti's comments from last December probably added to the Boilermakers' desire to get a win — especially with this year's game in Bloomington.
Although Indiana is going through changes, Cignetti's squad won't be easy to beat. In his five seasons at James Madison, he led the Dukes to a 52-9 record, including an 11-1 mark last year, just their second season at the FBS level.
Purdue recorded a 35-31 victory over the Hoosiers last season, making it three straight victories for the Boilermakers in the head-to-head series. They've also won five of the last six against Indiana.
There's a lot of time between fall camp and Purdue's annual meeting against Indiana. But there will certainly be a little added gasoline to the fire when the two teams go toe-to-toe at Memorial Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 30.
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