BLOOMINGTON — Bryan Payton has a request. It's a small thing, really. The Indiana senior tailback wants officials for Saturday's Oaken Bucket Game to let the guys talk — as in the trash variety. Indiana guys, of course. Purdue guys, well, he can't speak for them.

“I think it would be cool if officials would hold their flags a little bit for this game,” the former Concordia Lutheran standout said with a smile. “We'll see how that goes.”

Payton is not pushing to test the limits of good sportsmanship as much as helping players express their rivalry passion. And if that dips into the realm of trash talk, well, one person's trash could be another's camaraderie.

“I don't talk trash much and I don't get much talked to me, but I'm sure there will be jawing going on,” he said. “That's part of the joy of sport. I don't want to get any 15-yard (unsportsmanlike) penalties, but that's fun in my eyes. We are people. We do have emotions. We do react to things.”

Saturday's reactions will come at Memorial Stadium. They will be intense.

“You like to think you play hard every week, but this one is double everything else,” Payton said. “The fact it is a rivalry game makes it that way. And in the past it seemed maybe (Purdue didn't) have much respect for us. We want to beat them. It's important to us and important to them.”

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Purdue (4-7) has the Bucket, the symbol for this annual rivalry, by virtue of last year's 62-10 victory. The Hoosiers (4-7) want it back. They are inspired by their 27-24 last-second victory the last time these teams played at Memorial Stadium back in 2007. The seniors, at least, are fueled by the drive to end their college careers with a win.

“I will not be that guy who lost the game and who is crying in the locker room,” senior offensive lineman Rodger Saffold said. “That's not going to be me. I refuse to end my season like that. I'll be happy, rejoicing, celebrating.”

You hear such talk every year before the Bucket game, but this time it's different, Saffold said. The senior-led leadership council has ensured there would no slippage in effort and preparation during the season. That has impacted everyone on the team.

“This is our last game, and we'll leave it all out there,” he said. “That's the biggest change from past years - that the younger players respect that. They're playing for this team and for us.”

Added junior quarterback Ben Chappell: “The seniors showed us how to do things right. It started with the off-season work we put in. Practice this year was different, and that's reflected on the seniors. They showed us we have to practice hard every day. Bring it and stay focused and grind through the season.”

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IU has increased home attendance by nearly 10,000 a game. This season's average is 40,478, the best since averaging 44,074 in 1992. Last year it was 31,782. Capacity is 52,692.

The major reasons, said athletic director Fred Glass, were the completed renovations to Memorial Stadium, highlighted by the North End Zone Facility; all the game-day changes that were implemented, from improved traffic patterns around the stadium to the Knot-hole Park area; the other promotions; and the improved play of the team.

The biggest attendance boost came from students. Student attendance has averaged 10,184, an increase of 2,824. That's the most since 1992 (11,389). Glass has expanded the student section for Saturday's game from 8,100 to 12,500.

“My goal is to sell out every game, and I think we can get there,” Glass said. “We have made huge strides in coming off a year that wasn't our best (3-9 and the lopsided Bucket loss). To bounce back and sell 40,000 tickets and 10,000 student tickets is a major step forward.”

The increased attendance is a boost for the athletic department's bottom line, crucial in these economically challenged times.

“We have a fairly aggressive budget for football,” Glass said. “This means we are going to hit our budget. To increase our overall resources for the department, we have to sell those football seats. It costs me as much to have a party for 20,000 people as it does for 30,000 or 40,000 or 50,000. By selling out it helps our entire program.”

Ticket sales for Saturday's game have surpassed 40,000, and officials are hoping they approach 50,000. Fans are urged to arrive well before the 3:30 p.m. start. Stadium parking lots open at 8 a.m. Gates open at 2 p.m.