2017 Schedule: HTML / PDF
December 12 Update: Purdue and Indiana State mutually agreed to trade April home dates in their midweek series. The April 4 game will now be played at Alexander Field and the Boilermakers will head to Terre Haute on April 19.
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Twenty-one home dates and a stretch of our four consecutive weekend series at Alexander Field highlight Purdue baseball's 2017 schedule, unveiled by first-year head coach Mark Wasikowski.
After beginning the season with six consecutive weekends on the road, the Boilermakers play their home opener March 28 against Kent State. But the schedule really turns home heavy in mid-April. From April 21 through May 14, Purdue plays 15 of its 16 games at Alexander Field. That stretch features a 10-game homestand and weekend series vs. Illinois (April 21-23), Saint Louis (April 28-30), Northwestern (May 5-7) and Michigan (May 12-14).
The Boilermakers finally get a chance to host Indiana (April 7-9) and Illinois at Alexander Field for the first time since the ballpark opened in March 2013. Purdue has not hosted the rival Hoosiers since May 2011 when it swept a three-game series at Lambert Field. Meanwhile, the last three Purdue-Illinois series dating back to 2013 were all played in Champaign.
The pre-Big Ten portion of the schedule is highlighted by a four-game series at Texas State (Feb. 17-19) and a spring break trip to California. The Boilermakers will visit both the San Fernando Valley and the South Bay on the West Coast trip for four-game series at Cal State Northridge (March 10-13) and Santa Clara (March 16-18). Purdue has not spent a full week in California since the 1998 spring break trip to San Jose and Fresno.
A full list of gameday promotions and special dates at Alexander Field will be released in February or early March. Feb. 17 is the national opening day of the 2017 college baseball season.
SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN
- Home Games: 21
- Road Games: 35
- Big Ten Home: Indiana, Illinois, Northwestern, Michigan
- Big Ten Road: Iowa, Ohio State, Rutgers, Minnesota
- Big Ten Non-Play: Maryland, Michigan State, Nebraska, Penn State
- Big Ten Tournament: May 24 to 28 -- Location TBA
- Spring Break: Four-game series at Cal State Northridge and Santa Clara
- More Non-Conference Weekend Series: at Texas State, at Little Rock, at SEMO, vs. Saint Louis
- Midweek: Ball State (2), Valparaiso (2), Indiana State (2), IPFW (2), Butler, Kent State, Louisville
- Long Homestand: Purdue plays 10 straight games at home from April 21 to May 7. Fifteen of the Boilermakers' 21 home games will be played between April 18 and May 14. Purdue plays at home four straight weekends during that stretch.
- 2016 NCAA Tournament Qualifiers: Louisville, Minnesota, Ohio State, Southeast Missouri State
- First-Time Foes: Little Rock, Santa Clara
- Familiar Faces: Kent State is coached by former Purdue assistant Jeff Duncan (2010-13). His coaching staff also features Purdue alumnus Barrett Serrato (2009-12). Fellow alum Ben Wolgamot (2008-09) remains an assistant coach at Valparaiso, which the Boilermakers will play twice again this year.
- Waz Returns to His First Job: Purdue travels to Cape Girardeau, Missouri, for its third weekend of the season. New head coach Mark Wasikowski began his full-time coaching career at Southeast Missouri State, helping the Redhawks win the 1998 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament and qualify for an NCAA Regional. He also met his wife Lori Jo at SEMO. Purdue has not been to Cape since February 2009.
- First Visits to Alexander: Indiana and Illinois, Purdue's closest Big Ten rivals in terms of distance between campuses, finally make their first appearances at the fifth-year ballpark this spring. The Boilermakers have not hosted IU since May 2011 and have not played the Fighting Illini at home since April 2012. After this year, every current Big Ten team will have played at Alexander Field.
- Not Since 2012: Conversely, Purdue will travel to Iowa and Ohio State this season for the first two weekends of conference play. The Boilermakers have not visited either Big Ten opponent since 2012. The last nine games in both series were played at Alexander Field, including Iowa traveling to West Lafayette three years in a row (2013-15).
- First Trip to Jersey: Last year Purdue played its first-ever games in the state of Maryland. This year the new state added to the record book is New Jersey. The Boilermakers visit Rutgers for the first time. The April 14 to 16 series in Piscataway will be Purdue's final three-game set away from home until the final weekend of the season.