Purdue Position in Review: Quarterbacks
To reflect on Purdue’s 2023 season, we will take a position-by-position look at how the Boilermakers performed during the 4-8 campaign. Today, we begin with a look at the quarterback spot.
CONTRIBUTORS
Coming into the season, one thing was very clear about Purdue’s offense: Hudson Card was their guy. The Texas transfer started 11 of 12 games in 2023, saving his best performances for his final two games. Sandwiched around the Northwestern game, which he missed due to a rib injury, he fueled a pair of victories over Minnesota and Indiana and turned in his top performances of the season.
Card, who saw limited action in Austin prior to transferring, finished his first season as the starter completing 58.9% of passes for 217 yards per game with 15 touchdowns to eight interceptions. He battled injuries throughout the season, as he spent much of the month of October fighting a lingering injury. Then, against Minnesota, he sustained a rib injury that caused him to miss the Northwestern game and limited him against Indiana.
When Card sat out the trip to Evanston, Purdue used a two-quarterback approach, alternating series between Bennett Meredith and Ryan Browne for most of the afternoon. Both quarterbacks saw limited success in a run-heavy game plan, but it was Browne who took the snaps on the potential game-tying drive.
Meredith, a redshirt freshman from Hoover, Ala., played in three games for Purdue in 2023, completing seven of 11 attempts for 43 yards. Browne, a true freshman, only played in the Northwestern contest, where he hit 12 of 16 passes for 104 yards and a pair of interceptions.
FUTURE OUTLOOK
All three of Purdue’s scholarship quarterbacks are set to return in 2024. Card projects as the starter again next fall, as Ryan Walters spoke very highly of the future with Card under center following the win over Indiana.
“Now that [Card] is getting comfortable, we’re going to hit the recruiting trail tough and strategic to get some guys around him coupled with the guys coming back that stood out this year. I can’t wait for what the offense looks like next year,” said Walters.
As Meredith and Browne enter their second seasons in West Lafayette, they figure to compete for the backup quarterback spot behind Card. That spot looms large for the Boilermakers, as the program has not seen the same signal-caller start every game in a regular season since David Blough started all 12 in 2016.
Marcos Davila, a four-star recruit per the On3 Industry Ranking, will enroll mid-year and participate in spring practices. How ready is he to rise up the depth charts from day one?
PROJECTED 2024 PURDUE QUARTERBACKS
| Name | 2024 classification | Purdue stats |
| Hudson Card | RS Senior | 215-365, 2387 yds. 15 TD, 8 INT |
| Bennett Meredith | RS Sophomore | 7-11, 43 yds. |
| Ryan Browne | RS Freshman | 12-16, 104 yds, 2 INT |
| Marcos Davila | True Freshman | N/A |
