WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue student football season tickets and the 2009-10 VIP All Sport Pass will be available for purchase March 23 on purduesports.com. The 2009 home football schedule features seven home games, including key matchups against intrastate rival Notre Dame and 2008 Big Ten Conference champion Ohio State.

Students may purchase the VIP All Sport Pass for $225, which includes tickets to all regular-season home sporting events throughout the year (football, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, volleyball, wrestling, baseball, softball, and track and field). The VIP card price reflects more than a 30 percent discount off the combined season ticket rates. In addition to the price, VIP card holders are eligible to receive special benefits throughout the year and rewards for attending events. Rewards include Purdue apparel, gift certificates and much more. Only 5,000 VIP cards will be sold for the 2009-10 season and is the only way to guarantee students a ticket to the men’s basketball home games.

The football student season ticket is $119 and includes a ticket to all seven home games and is a savings of nearly 50 percent compared with purchasing student single-game tickets.

There will be a change in football student seating for the 2009 season. Seating for all students, regardless of classification, will be general admission on a first-come, first-served basis. Student Football tickets and the VIP cards will be mailed the week of July 20 or can be picked up at the Athletic Ticket Office.

Tickets for the Notre Dame and Ohio State games can be assured only to students ordering season tickets. Single-game tickets for Notre Dame and Ohio State, if still available, will go on sale to the general public and students Sept. 14, 2009, allowing Purdue students the opportunity to purchase season tickets that include all seven home games. All other single-game tickets will go on sale June 15.

For specific ordering instructions and to place your order for either football season tickets or the VIP All Sport Pass or football season tickets, visit purduesports.com beginning March 23.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The 2009 Purdue football Black & Gold Game will be played Saturday, April 18, at Ross-Ade Stadium. Start time is 1 p.m. Admission will be free, as will parking. More details about the game and related festivities will be announced in the coming weeks.

The Black & Gold Game will culminate the allotted number of 15 spring workouts for head coach Danny Hope’s Boilermakers, who will get started Wednesday, March 25, and practice Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

April 18 will be an exciting day on campus, as the Purdue baseball, men’s golf, softball, women’s tennis and men’s and women’s track and field teams all have home events, and Spring Fest gets under way.

The day will begin with the Purdue Cancer Center Challenge . The 5K run/walk begins and ends at Ross-Ade. Hope is the event’s spokesman and is asking Boilermaker fans to “Take the Challenge, Get Up, Get Fit and Give Back” by raising funds for cancer research at Purdue.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — Joe Tiller savored every moment from Saturday’s send-off.

He raised his arms in victory after twice getting doused with ice cubes. He conducted the Purdue band as it played the school fight song one last time. He cherished the opportunity to speak to players and fans from the field, inviting them to visit him in Wyoming and even shedding a few tears.

Yes, it was a fitting tribute for the man who spent a dozen seasons restoring Purdue’s pride, and the Boilermakers made sure nothing would detract from Tiller’s farewell party.

Curtis Painter threw for 448 yards and five touchdowns, and Purdue opened with 10 straight scoring drives as the retiring coach reclaimed the Old Oaken Bucket with a 62-10 rout over Indiana.

“Does it get any better than this, I don’t know? What a way of finishing the season and finishing a career,” Tiller said. “They got me with the bath. My shorts are stuck to me right now, I actually need to go take a shower.”

It looked like a throwback to Tiller’s early days when the innovative spread offense confounded Big Ten defenses - except Saturday’s finale was far sweeter.

Purdue produced the fourth-highest point total in the history of a 111-game series, and the 52-point margin was the largest between the teams since the turn of the century - the 20th century. The last time a Bucket game was this lopsided: Purdue 64, Indiana 0 in 1893.

Tiller wasn’t the only one celebrating.

Running back Kory Sheets ran 15 times for 61 yards, passing Otis Armstrong for second on the school’s career list in yardage. He also broke the school’s single-season record for rushing touchdowns, scoring twice in the first half to surpass the 14 scored by Tony Butkovich, Leroy Keyes and Mike Alstott. Sheets added No. 16 on a 17-yard run late in the third quarter.

Painter was 38-of-54, throwing for a season-high in yards and moving into third on the Big Ten’s career list for total offense.

And Tiller finished with win No. 87 - three more than Jack Mollenkopf won during his 14 seasons in West Lafayette.

“He gave us all a chance and we owe him everything,” linebacker Anthony Heygood said. “This is a great way to send him out.”

The Boilermakers were almost perfect.

Painter opened the game with a 9-yard TD pass to Desmond Tardy, followed that with a 79-yard TD pass to Aaron Valentin and then the Boilermakers recovered a pooch kick that Indiana couldn’t get to. The miscue led to a 24-yard field goal from Carson Wiggs to make it 17-0 just 8:54 into the game, and the rout was on.

But the Boilermakers were only getting started.

Before the quarter ended, Painter hooked up with Brandon Whittington for a 5-yard TD and before the half ended, Sheets had scored two more times.

Indiana’s answer was a 27-yard field goal, not nearly enough with Purdue building a 41-3 halftime lead.

“I think they played a great football game,” Indiana coach Bill Lynch said. “They certainly executed well on offense. They did what they had to do, we just didn’t do enough on offense to keep them off the field.”

After adding two more TDs in the third quarter, the party really kicked into high gear.

Purdue’s players listened attentively as Tiller’s wife, Arnette, addressed the crowd between quarters and when music played, the defensive players danced.

Indiana did get a 16-yard TD pass from Kellen Lewis to Ray Fisher, but that only made it 55-10.

Keith Smith caught 12 passes for 136 yards, while Tardy finished with nine receptions for 114 yards and the band played “Happy Trails to You” as Tiller walked off the field for the final time, with his family.

“It just means I’m going to have one more Miller Lite,” Tiller said. “I was going to limit myself to 12 or 13. This game won’t change my mind (on coming back). I’m done with coaching.”

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Javon Ringer scored two touchdowns and No. 18 Michigan State used a dominating defense Saturday to stay alive in the Big Ten title chase with a 21-7 victory over Purdue.

The Spartans (9-2, 6-1 Big Ten), who are off next week, will rest up for a Nov. 22 showdown at No. 3 Penn State, with at least a share of the conference title on the line.

The Spartans last won a share of the Big Ten crown in 1990.

Purdue (3-7, 1-5) was officially eliminated from bowl contention in coach Joe Tiller’s final season.

Ringer, one of 16 Spartans playing their final home game Saturday, had 121 yards on 32 carries. He entered the game ranked second in the nation at 142.7 yards per game. He is the second-leading career rusher in Michigan State history, trailing only Lorenzo White.

Ringer gave Michigan State a 7-0 lead with a fourth-down, 1-yard touchdown run on the Spartans’ opening possession. His 1-yard TD run early in the second half gave Michigan State a 21-0 lead.

With just 9 seconds left in the first half, Michigan State defensive back Johnny Adams stepped in front of a Justin Siller pass and returned the interception 40 yards to give the Spartans a 14-0 halftime lead.

Purdue, hampered by turnovers all season, never recovered.

Siller started his second consecutive game in place of injured senior Curtis Painter. Siller was shaken up in the middle of the third quarter and replaced by Chris Bennett, but returned to the lineup later in the quarter.

Painter hurt his throwing shoulder Oct. 25 against Minnesota.

The Boilermakers couldn’t generate much offense, particularly when it mattered most.

Purdue avoided a shutout by scoring with less than 1 minute to play on Siller’s 1-yard touchdown run.

Purdue generated only 191 yards of total offense. Siller was 13-of-30 for 83 yards. Kory Sheets had 93 rushing yards on 22 carries.

Michigan State had 300 yards of offense. Quarterback Brian Hoyer was 10-of-22 for 154 yards with two interceptions.

Michigan State gave the Boilermakers chances to stay in the game by missing out on several scoring opportunities, particularly in the first half.

Late in the second quarter, an illegal procedure penalty left kicker Brett Swenson with a 44-yard field goal attempt into a howling November wind. The kick was on target but fell short in a powerful gust.

One Spartans drive ended with an Ashton Leggett fumble inside the Purdue 25. Another ended when Purdue’s Torri Williams intercepted a Brian Hoyer pass at the Purdue 27.

Another second quarter drive ended when Ringer was stopped on a 4th-and-1 run at the Purdue 10.

But the Boilermakers couldn’t capitalize.

The Boilermakers have a 19-game winless streak against teams ranked in the Top 25.

Purdue had won seven of the last nine meetings in the series, including two straight in East Lansing, before Saturday’s loss.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — Purdue’s Justin Siller and Greg Orton tossed out Michigan’s generations-long streaks of success.

Siller passed for three touchdowns and ran for another in his first career start, and Orton lateraled to Desmond Tardy after a catch for the final score with 26 left in the Boilermakers’ 48-42 victory over slumping Michigan on Saturday.

The win by Purdue (3-6, 1-4 Big Ten) snapped a five-game losing streak and assured Michigan (2-7, 1-4) of its first losing season since 1967, ending any possibility the Wolverines had to extend their streak of 33 straight bowl appearances.

Michigan, which has lost five in a row, tied the game at 42 with 1:20 to go on the third touchdown run by Brandon Minor.

But Siller, starting in place of injured Curtis Painter, quickly passed 18 yards to Keith Smith and 20 yards to Tardy, taking Purdue to the Michigan 35. After a 3-yard run by Siller, he passed 4 yards to Orton, who flipped the ball to Tardy for the go-ahead score.

Michigan’s desperation heave into the end zone with no time remaining fell harmlessly to the turf, sending the Wolverines to a school-record seventh loss.

Orton also had a touchdown reception. Kory Sheets, who rushed for three touchdowns, had the third TD catch from Siller, who finished 21-of-34 for 266 yards passing.

Sheets rushed for 118 yards, and his four touchdowns tied his career high with the Boilermakers, who kept alive their hopes for a possible 11th bowl bid in retiring coach Joe Tiller’s 12 seasons. It also marked the most points by Purdue and the most combined points in the 54-game series with Michigan.

Siller, a third-stringer until backup Joey Elliott had a season-ending shoulder separation two weeks ago and Painter went down with a similar injury last week, twice rallied the Boilermakers from 14-point deficits. Sheets’ second touchdown run, a 3-yarder late in the second quarter, pulled Purdue within 28-21 at halftime, then a 35-yard pass to Orton set up Siller’s 7-yard pass to Sheets that tied the game at 28 early in the third quarter.

The game was tied again at 35 after a 5-yard run by Sheets late in the third quarter and a 12-yard run by Minor early in the fourth quarter. Midway through the period, Purdue linebacker Anthony Heygood took the snap on a fake punt and ran 61 yards to the Michigan 7, and three plays later Siller hit Orton from 4 yards out for a 42-35 lead.

Minor’s third TD run from 1 yard out tied the game for the final time.

Michigan also got two touchdown passes from Steven Threet and a 73-yard punt return for freshman Martavious Odoms’ first career TD.