Indiana rebounded in an emphatic way following their first loss of the season, handing Purdue the worst loss in their program history. In what was probably IU’s most complete performance, the Hoosiers dominated both sides of the football throughout the entire game.
Below we took a look at Pro Football Focus (PFF) grades, notes and snap counts from the contest.
Through 12 games and for the sixth straight week, Indiana’s overall cumulative PFF grade for the season is No. 1 in the nation. Their overall offense is second, and their overall defense is third.
Next up for Indiana (11-1) should be the College Football Playoff on either Dec. 20 or 21. The Hoosiers will find out their opponent and location when the final bracket is announced on Dec. 8.
OFFENSE
The top overall offensive grade went to QB Kurtis Rourke, who saved his best for last with his top-graded performance of the season — 23-of-31 passing, 349 yards, six TDs, no INTs.
The best pass blocking grade went to left tackle Carter Smith. He also had the best run blocking grade among the starting offensive linemen. Tight end Zach Horton had the best run blocking grade among all the starters. Running back Justice Ellison received a very good pass blocking grade as well.
Wideout Elijah Sarratt had the best receiving grade. He caught eight balls on 11 targets. He did have a drop, but also posted 59 yards after catch. Ke’Shawn Williams and Omar Cooper, Jr. were right behind him with good marks as well.
The best running back grade went to Justice Ellison, who averaged 5.7 yards per carry and amassed 26 yards after contact. Kaelon Black was a close second after he forced two missed tackles, 4.9 yards per carry, and 31 yards after contact.
Snap counts (76 total) —
- Tyler Stephens, OG (64)
- Carter Smith, OT (64)
- Trey Wedig, OT (64)
- Mike Katic, C (64)
- Bray Lynch, G (64)
- Kurtis Rourke, QB (64)
- Zach Horton, TE (63)
- Elijah Sarratt, WR (56)
- Miles Cross, WR (37)
- Justice Ellison, RB (31)
- Ty Son Lawton, RB (30)
- Ke’Shawn Williams, WR (29)
- Omar Cooper, Jr., WR (29)
- Myles Price, WR (28)
- Kaelon Black, RB (14)
- Adedamola Ajani, OG (11)
- Austin Leibfried, OG (11)
- Austin Barrett, OT (11)
- Jack Greer, C (11)
- Tayven Jackson, QB (11)
- Andison Coby, WR (11)
- James Bomba, TE (10)
- Sam West, TE (9)
- Cooper Jones, OT (9)
- Trey Walker, TE (7)
- Elijah Green, RB (6)
- Eli Jochem, WR (5)
- Camden Jordan, WR (5)
- Charlie Becker, WR (4)
- Derin McCulley, WR (3)
- Max Williams, OG (2)
- Brady Simmons, WR (1)
- Aiden Fisher (1)
- Isaiah Jones (1)
- Mark Langston (1)
- James Evans (1)
- Shawn Asbury (1)
- Bryson Bonds (1)
- James Carpenter (1)
- Solomon Vanhorse, RB (1)
(Note: Several of the players with one snap were part of the special teams unit that executed the fake punt)
DEFENSE
The top-rated defensive player was no surprise — linebacker and Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week Jailin Walker. He earned elite marks in both pass rush and coverage. He was best on the team in both of those areas. The headline number was six pressures on the quarterback. And he was good in run defense although he was dinged with a couple missed tackles. Among players with more than 20 snaps in week 14, Walker had the best overall defensive grade in the nation.
In a more limited role, freshman linebacker Rolijah Hardy earned the top run defense grade on the team, an elite mark of 95.4. No one else on the team was within 19 points of that grade.
The best overall tackling grade went to Terry Jones, with Hardy right behind him along with Shawn Asbury and Amare Ferrell. As a team IU missed eight tackles, but still limited Purdue to 67 total yards for the game, an illustration of how well the Hoosiers swarmed the football.
Edge Mikail Kamara was elite once again in the pass rush. He had a team high seven QB pressures. He finished the regular season tied for best in the nation with 60 pressures.
Snap counts (47 total) —
- Jamari Sharpe, CB (47)
- Amare Ferrell, S (42)
- Aiden Fisher, LB (42)
- Jailin Walker, LB (42)
- D’Angelo Ponds, CB (42)
- Shawn Asbury, S (42)
- Mikail Kamara, DE (39)
- Lanell Carr, OLB (35)
- James Carpenter, DT (30)
- Terry Jones, CB (27)
- CJ West, DT (24)
- Rolijah Hardy, LB (22)
- Tyrique Tucker, DT (19)
- Marcus Burris, DE (15)
- Mario Landino, DT (15)
- Daniel Ndukwe, OLB (5)
- Bryson Bonds, S (5)
- Isaiah Jones, LB (5)
- JoJo Johnson, CB (5)
- Cedarius Doss, CB (5)
- Josh Sanguinetti, S (3)
- Robby Harrison, NT (2)
- J’Mari Monette, DT (2)
- Nicolas Toomer, S (2)
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