Following another victory at home, No. 13 Indiana football (8-0, 5-0 Big Ten) heads up north to East Lansing to take on Michigan State (4-4, 2-3 Big Ten).
The Hoosiers are fresh off a 31-17 win against Washington in a game in which Justice Ellison had a career-high 29 carries for 123 yards and a touchdown.
Michigan State returns back home after a 24-17 defeat to rival Michigan in Ann Arbor last weekend. Quarterback Aidan Chiles completed 17-of his-23 passes for 189 and a touchdown in the loss.
Before kickoff comes Saturday, here's what you need to know regarding the Hoosiers' week ten showdown with the Spartans for the Old Brass Spittoon.
LAST MEETING
Michigan State took the Old Brass Spittoon back to East Lansing following a 24-21 victory in Bloomington last season.
The Hoosiers had the lead in the fourth quarter, but a 36-yard connection between Katin Houser and Maliq Carr guided the Spartans to triumph.
Brendan Sorsby went 19-of-34 for 194 yards and two touchdowns.
Tight ends James Bomba and Trey Walker each caught a touchdown as Indiana fell to 3-8 in their penultimate game of the season.
INJURY UPDATES
Curt Cignetti announced Thursday evening that quarterback Kurtis Rourke will be the starting quarterback for his team on Saturday against the Spartans.
There are no other known injuries at this point and the mandated availability report is set to release two hours before kickoff on Saturday – around 12:30 p.m.
STORYLINES TO WATCH
Will Indiana re-expand its playbook with Rourke back?
With Tayven Jackson in at quarterback, Indiana's game plan was simple, yet effective. A smash-mouth, physical game that consisted of a lot of running plays. With Kurtis Rourke being out, Indiana had to shrink their playbook and keep it simple.
With Rourke returning following a hand injury, Indiana will surely re-open its playbook and get more creative with its play-calling in East Lansing. The run game worked against Washington, but Rourke's ability to fit passes into tight windows will make the Hoosiers a far more potent offense.
The question will be if Rourke is at 100%, how much will Cignetti and offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan want to air the football out against the worst pass defense team in the Big Ten.
Can Indiana exploit a struggling Spartan defense?
Following a targeting ejection in last week's game against Michigan, the Spartans will be without the star linebacker and leading tackler Jordan Turner for the first half of Saturday's game.
This leads a gaping hole in the middle of the aforementioned poor Michigan State pass defense. Rourke and Indiana will have opportunities in the first half to abuse the middle of the field with the absence of Turner.
An opportunity that cannot be missed, will Indiana be able to pile on the points in the first half so Turner enters the game not having any impact?
Matchup to watch: QB Aidan Chiles vs Indiana's DL
This is the first time this season that it has been one player versus an entire position group, but this is fitting.
Chiles presents a new challenge for the Hoosier defense. His strength is in running the football and scrambling. Indiana saw it with Nebraska's Dylan Raiola a couple weeks ago, but Chiles is a more experienced quarterback than Raiola.
The mobile quarterback has 172 yards on the ground this season, which makes it a tall task for the Indiana line.
Can the Hoosiers contain Chiles on the ground and put enough pressure on him to force bad throws? Only time will tell.
QUICK HITTERS
Who?: No. 13/13 Indiana (8-0, 5-0 in Big Ten) vs Michigan State (4-4, 2-3 in Big Ten)
When?: Saturday, October 26th, Noon ET
Where?: Spartan Stadium, East Lansing, Michigan
Projected Forecast: Mostly Sunny, 57 degrees, Wind 9 MPH NE
TV: Peacock Paul Burmeister (play-by-play), Colt McCoy (analyst), Zora Stephenson (sideline)
Radio: IU Radio Network, Don Fischer (play-by-play), Buck Suhr (analyst), John Herrick
Vegas: IU -7.5, o/u 51.5
ESPN SP+: Indiana 32-15, 85% chance of Hoosier victory
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