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Three and Out: Purdue's loss at Iowa

On3 imageby:Brian Neubert•10/07/23•

brianneubert

Purdue-Iowa
Purdue-Iowa (Chad Krockover)

Purdue walked into a classic Iowa spiderweb Saturday in Iowa City, falling to the Hawkeyes 20-14 at Kinnick Stadium.

Hudson Card threw two interceptions, got sacked six times and saw a series of catchable downfield throws missed. Meanwhile, Iowa asked next to nothing from its backup QB, but pounded the Boilermakers at the line of scrimmage, particularly defensively.

Kaleb Johnson ran for 134 yards — 67 of them on his first-quarter TD — for the Hawkeyes, who won despite quarterback Deacon Hill completing just 6-of-21 passes. He did throw a ket TD pass after halftime, though.

Purdue did have one final possession and chance for a go-ahead touchdown, but turned the ball over on downs after being set back by an early sack.

Three things from the game …

• Purdue really started laying Iowa’s winning blueprint early, earning deep penetration twice — first off a big punt return, then a Dillon Thieneman interception — but coming away with no points to show for it. Against methodical, low-scoring-game-type teams like Iowa, missed opportunities always matter more.

• Card struggled with his decision-making, taking sacks when he should have thrown the ball away. In fairness, he was often very quickly under siege and was let down by his receivers on more than a few occasions. Purdue flat-out dropped at least two vertical balls, with another golden opportunity uncashed in, as well. Those are the throws Purdue has completed when it’s had success against Iowa in recent years,

• Purdue’s offensive front was overmatched, but that story takes a backseat to Marcus Mbow‘s situation. The offensive tackle suffered what looked like a serious leg injury. He is not only maybe Purdue’s best offensive lineman but also a well-liked and respected presence on the team. Purdue was visibly shaken after his injury.

PDF: Purdue-Iowa statistics

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