No. 2 Indiana understands Friday night's high stakes.

The Hoosiers need one win to break last season's school-record victory total, to clinch their first Big Ten championship game berth and likely lock up a second straight playoff spot and maybe a first-round bye.

But rather than worry about the outside view, these Hoosiers are focused on one thing: beating Purdue and keeping the Old Oaken Bucket.

“As soon as I got here, everyone was talking about the Oaken Bucket, the rivalry with Purdue,” Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza said. “I can’t wait to get a bite at the rivalry, to be able to experience it, to play in it against such a great team. It is such an honor to play Purdue.”

While Mendoza is a newcomer to the Indiana-Purdue series, he's no stranger to rivalries. He started

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