Indiana University Athletics
Not Just Talk -- IU-Purdue A ‘Very Big Deal’
11/24/2022 10:00:00 AM | Football
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Silent treatment? In a football game? Are you kidding? Bryant Fitzgerald has no time for such foolishness. Indiana's redshirt senior defensive standout has points to make, head games to play, and concentration to disrupt.
Oh. One other thing. Boilers to beat.
Call it trash talk, or getting chippy, or fun conversation, Fitzgerald likes getting in the last word -- or maybe all words.
"That's just me," he says with a smile. "I talk every play whether they talk or not. I don't like anybody we play against, so I always talk."
With Saturday's Old Oaken Bucket battle with Purdue (7-4) set for Memorial Stadium, with Indiana (4-7) invigorated by its double-overtime thrilling win at Michigan State and the Boilers eyeing a Big Ten West Division title, imagine the talking possibilities
"It gets chippy," linebacker Aaron Casey says, "this game more than most."
Fitzgerald figures to be at the forefront, whether it's at his usual safety position or at linebacker, where he moved after injuries to others created a void he impressively filled against Michigan State (see his career-high 14 tackles).
"We don't like those guys," he says of the Boilers. "They don't like us. That's the bottom line. It dates to back to way before I was born."
The Oaken Bucket has been around since 1925, but the teams first met in 1891 and have played 124 times. It's an annual rivalry that Assistant Athletic Director for Alumni Relations Mark Deal, also known as the Bucket's unofficial historian, fills in the details of what it means. He played in the game as a center under then coach Lee Corso in the late 1970s. His brother Mike (on the 1967 Big Ten co-champion squad) and father Russ (on the 1945 unbeaten team) also faced the Boilers.
"He showed us pictures of them playing in this game," Fitzgerald says. "The Deal family is crazy about IU."
Through it all, Fitzgerald makes it perfectly clear -- he's no Boiler fan.
"I was always an IU fan. I never liked Purdue."
As a do-it-all all-stater from Avon High School just west of Indianapolis, Fitzgerald saw plenty of Oaken Bucket battles. He grew up a huge fan of Antwaan Randle El, the former great Hoosiers quarterback who went on to win a Super Bowl with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
"Seeing how he played, that he was an athlete, played quarterback and wide receiver, did everything," Fitzgerald says. "I was an athlete in high school. He was one of the guys I looked up to on an offensive side of the ball. I was an offensive-minded guy back in the day."
As far as the Bucket battle, look for off-the-charts intensity. Rivalry games fuel that, whether that's Indiana-Purdue, Michigan-Ohio State, or even Wabash-DePauw.
"There's more physicality," Casey says. "It's knowing you're playing for something special, something you can have bragging rights over for the next year.
"You want to make sure you get that W at the end of the day."
Intensity has its limits.
"You have to keep your composure," Casey says. "You pick your battles. You go between the whistles and really fight. Do what you can to win the game."
Or, as Fitzgerald says, "Coach (Tom) Allen always preaches controlled rage. You play between the lines. You're balls out within the lines, within the whistles, but no cheap shots. No dirty stuff.
"It's going to be chippy out there. It always is. It will be about the team that keeps its composure and doesn't have those CATS, those Crimes Against the Team. That's who will win."
For those thinking this is just another game, Fitzgerald has a message for them:
Think again.
"You're not only playing for your history, you're playing for the people who came before you and their history. You're trying to win for those guys more than yourself. It's for those who came before you. You pay homage to them by winning.
"It's the battle of the state. Either you go to IU or Purdue. It's a very big deal and it's amplified this week."
Amplification includes history. Only five times ever have the Hoosiers beaten Michigan State to win the Old Brass Spittoon and then Purdue to win the Bucket in the same season.
The Hoosiers aim to make it six times.
"It would mean a lot to us to get these last two trophies," Casey says. "It's a 1-0 mindset. Get the next one. Get that Bucket. We want it really bad."
That's not just talk.
Oh. One other thing. Boilers to beat.
Call it trash talk, or getting chippy, or fun conversation, Fitzgerald likes getting in the last word -- or maybe all words.
"That's just me," he says with a smile. "I talk every play whether they talk or not. I don't like anybody we play against, so I always talk."
With Saturday's Old Oaken Bucket battle with Purdue (7-4) set for Memorial Stadium, with Indiana (4-7) invigorated by its double-overtime thrilling win at Michigan State and the Boilers eyeing a Big Ten West Division title, imagine the talking possibilities
"It gets chippy," linebacker Aaron Casey says, "this game more than most."
Fitzgerald figures to be at the forefront, whether it's at his usual safety position or at linebacker, where he moved after injuries to others created a void he impressively filled against Michigan State (see his career-high 14 tackles).
"We don't like those guys," he says of the Boilers. "They don't like us. That's the bottom line. It dates to back to way before I was born."
The Oaken Bucket has been around since 1925, but the teams first met in 1891 and have played 124 times. It's an annual rivalry that Assistant Athletic Director for Alumni Relations Mark Deal, also known as the Bucket's unofficial historian, fills in the details of what it means. He played in the game as a center under then coach Lee Corso in the late 1970s. His brother Mike (on the 1967 Big Ten co-champion squad) and father Russ (on the 1945 unbeaten team) also faced the Boilers.
"He showed us pictures of them playing in this game," Fitzgerald says. "The Deal family is crazy about IU."
Through it all, Fitzgerald makes it perfectly clear -- he's no Boiler fan.
"I was always an IU fan. I never liked Purdue."
As a do-it-all all-stater from Avon High School just west of Indianapolis, Fitzgerald saw plenty of Oaken Bucket battles. He grew up a huge fan of Antwaan Randle El, the former great Hoosiers quarterback who went on to win a Super Bowl with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
"Seeing how he played, that he was an athlete, played quarterback and wide receiver, did everything," Fitzgerald says. "I was an athlete in high school. He was one of the guys I looked up to on an offensive side of the ball. I was an offensive-minded guy back in the day."
As far as the Bucket battle, look for off-the-charts intensity. Rivalry games fuel that, whether that's Indiana-Purdue, Michigan-Ohio State, or even Wabash-DePauw.
"There's more physicality," Casey says. "It's knowing you're playing for something special, something you can have bragging rights over for the next year.
"You want to make sure you get that W at the end of the day."
Intensity has its limits.
"You have to keep your composure," Casey says. "You pick your battles. You go between the whistles and really fight. Do what you can to win the game."
Or, as Fitzgerald says, "Coach (Tom) Allen always preaches controlled rage. You play between the lines. You're balls out within the lines, within the whistles, but no cheap shots. No dirty stuff.
"It's going to be chippy out there. It always is. It will be about the team that keeps its composure and doesn't have those CATS, those Crimes Against the Team. That's who will win."
For those thinking this is just another game, Fitzgerald has a message for them:
Think again.
"You're not only playing for your history, you're playing for the people who came before you and their history. You're trying to win for those guys more than yourself. It's for those who came before you. You pay homage to them by winning.
"It's the battle of the state. Either you go to IU or Purdue. It's a very big deal and it's amplified this week."
Amplification includes history. Only five times ever have the Hoosiers beaten Michigan State to win the Old Brass Spittoon and then Purdue to win the Bucket in the same season.
The Hoosiers aim to make it six times.
"It would mean a lot to us to get these last two trophies," Casey says. "It's a 1-0 mindset. Get the next one. Get that Bucket. We want it really bad."
That's not just talk.
Players Mentioned
LB
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DB
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