Old National Presents: 3-2-1

Three things learned. Two questions. One bold statement. It’s time for the 3-2-1, a look at Purdue football.

Three things learned

1 – Purdue is a massive underdog at No. 3 Ohio State

How much? Several sports books have the Boilermakers as a 38.5-point underdog. Never before has Purdue been a bigger underdog.

You have to go back to 1974 to find Purdue as a bigger underdog. Back then, the Boilermakers were a 34-point underdog at No. 2 Notre Dame … and won, 31-20.

“Our players were embarrassed that anyone would think they are 35-point underdog to anyone,” said Alex Agase after pulling the upset. “They played for respect, and to win, and they did just that.”

Purdue was a 31-point underdog at Michigan last year and a 31-point underdog against Ohio State in 2013. The Boilers lost both games, falling 41-13 and 56-0, respectively.

This trip to Columbus to play No. 3 OSU is the start of challenging run of November games that also includes two other top 10 teams: No. 6 Penn State and No. 8 Indiana.

Woof.

Will Purdue end the year with 11 consecutive defeats?

2 – Hudson Card is QB1

Ryan Walters made that clear on Monday.

Hudson Card played well on Saturday after missing the previous two games in concussion protocol, hitting 21-of-37 passes (57 percent) for 267 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions. It was Card’s best effort since the opener vs. Indiana State, when he completed 96 percent (24-of-25) of his passes for 273 yards and four TDs.

No offense to Ryan Browne, but Card is the best signal-caller on the squad. Still, it would behoove the staff to find a way to spot in Browne to utilize his skill-set.

“As we dive into the game plan process, if there are opportunities where Ryan can help us more so than Hudson can in trying to move the ball, we’ll play the best 11 that give us an opportunity to,” said Walters.

3 – Purdue received a commitment

Amid the tumult of this season, the staff nabbed a commitment on Monday night from three-star 2025 Wayne High (Fort Wayne, Ind.) ILB Kimar Nelson. The last pledge prior to Nelson was ILB Sam Steward, who committed on August 15.

His pledge stems a recruiting tide that was flowing the other way, as Purdue had endured four de-commitments in recent weeks: DT Drayden Pavey, WR Lebron Hill, OL Takhyian Whitset and CB Dawayne Galloway.

MORE: First and 10 | First Look: Ohio State | Data Driven: Purdue’s loss to Northwestern | Purdue recruits: Weekend Roundup | Hudson Card is QB1 | Purdue nets commitment from 2025 ILB

Two questions

1. Is Purdue headed to a one-win season?

It seems inevitable, right? The last one-win season was 2013. Before that, it was 1993.

Last Saturday was Purdue’s last best chance to taste victory. The 26-20 OT loss to Northwestern was painful on many levels, underscoring the many flaws that have plagued the squad all season.

How trying has this season been? Purdue is losing by an average score of 36-20. Take away the 49-0 victory vs. FCS Indiana State, and the average score becomes 36-16. The 133-point differential is stupefying (295-162). It’s typically game over in the first quarter, as the Boilers have been outscored 69-10 in the first 15 minutes–and only three of those points have come in the last seven games.

So, it looks like preseason prognostications were correct: Purdue (1-7 overall; 0-5 Big Ten) is the worst team in the Big Ten. And, it’s not even close.

Walters remains undaunted.

“We’re close,” said Walters. “There are plays that are right there. We’ve got to find a way to break through in those type of moments to capitalize on those type of plays, and we will. I’ve got every confidence in these guys that we’ll get that done because of the way they’ve worked and the way they’ve handled adversity up to this point.”

2 – How bad is this defense?

Bad.

Purdue is last in the Big Ten in total defense (448.1 ypg) and last in scoring defense (36.9 ppg). The most ppg the Boilers ever have allowed in a season is 38.2 in 2016. The most yards allowed per game was 471.3 in 1994. So, it has been worse.

What’s the disconnect from practice to game day?

“To simulate the game day experience, you try to put them in those situations,” said defensive coordinator Kevin Kane. “You emphasize, ‘Hey, this is where we’re at on the field. This is what we’re doing. It matters. It matters. It matters. But then it’s got to carry over to when we’re actually out on game day, right?”

One bold statement: Purdue will run a gimmick play at Ohio State

Maybe that’s not so bold, as Walters has reached into his bag of tricks each game since taking over play-calling duties. Last week, we saw WR Shamar Rigby throw a pass to WR Jaron Tibbs which set up a Devin Mockobee TD plunge.

“You’re just trying to find ways to catch the defense off guard,” said Walters. “When you show that you’re willing to call and execute trick plays, that poses problems for the defense to try to work on, what potentially could be coming. It’s just another way to try to get explosive yardage and trick the defense.”