Coming into this season, the most ambitious hope for this broadly reinvented Purdue defense was probably that it would just be good enough to not be bad, that it could offset at least some of the big plays it was sure to allow with big plays of its own, that at the very least it would provide this team a little more attitude.
Today, Purdue won a Big Ten almost exclusively with defense (and special teams).
And for all the talk about injuries (certainly important) and quarterback changes (certainly typical), that to me is the story of this game, that Purdue needed the defense to save its bacon today and it did.
That's an enormous credit to all those guys on the field today, so many of them part of last year's serial bending and breaking, and to these new defensive coaches, and to Jeff Brohm for making all these changes and seemingly being a more active participant himself.
This game was hideous. It wasn't until T.J. Sheffield interrupted the West Lafayette Kicking and Punting Expo with that go-ahead touchdown that someone crossed a goal line.
Understand this: Illinois is bad, and they're going to be bad all year, and probably will be bad until Bret Bielema inevitably gets fired in a few years and maybe Illinois hires someone who won't run a Flintstones offense to try to trigger a rebuild. All these years and he still owes Barry Alvarez half his salary.
Illinois is bad, but Illinois is kind of like a chewed-up wad of bubble gum. It's ugly and flavorless, but can be a hell of a pain in the you-know-what to get off the bottom of your shoe.
The Illini were just good enough to let Modern Nebraska Forrest Gump its way into another ridiculous loss, and just good enough to be highly competitive with Maryland.
They're bad, but Purdue has real issues right now, circumstances that even the most ardent dismisser of quote-unquote "excuses" must realize.
Grab a piece of paper and a pen and jot down your list of Purdue's 10 best players.
David Bell would be at the top of that list, either 1A or 1B.
He, I assume, wasn't even in the stadium on Saturday.
Zander Horvath would be on that list.
He's out for at least a few more weeks. And fellow running back King Doerue joined him in being idled today. I think Purdue only dressed two running backs today.
Cory Trice, based on his play to start this season, would be on that list.
Who knows when he'll be back?
Payne Durham would be on that list.
He got knocked out of the game by a haymaker of a hit, the sort of which Purdue's receivers have taken way too many of the past eight days or so.
That's four dudes who I'd put on that list of 10, for a team with perilously little depth. No bueno.
Offensively, Purdue has next to no running game. That's not shocking. As I said before the season, raw rushing success isn't that big a deal.
Situational running success — and at least the illusion of balance — is.
Situational running success means all the third-and-shorts you couldn't make last week and all the red-zone failures today. You have to be able to run the ball credibly inside the 20.
Purdue can't.
Give Brohm credit for trying different things. They ran more two-back stuff — and threw down the field out of it, mostly — and pistol formations than I think I've ever seen in a game from them. Their east-west running and throwing today, at least conceptually, was worthwhile. But at the end of the day, you're just really stuck in that element of the game. Smoke and mirrors can take you only so far.
The offense has limitations, and now quarterback questions. That rite of fall, sure as the leaves turning and temps dropping. Quarterback drama, you complete Purdue.
Here we go again.
Aidan O'Connell gets the win here, but I didn't think he was as accurate as it may have seemed. Purdue's receivers came up big for him. And that interception in the end zone was regrettable, a vertigo-inducing swing following Abdur-Rahmaan Yaseen's big play. The highest of highs to the lowest of lows, effectively.
But the offense was doing nothing with Jack Plummer in the game. Say what you will about interceptions, but at least they're something. I'm kidding. Interceptions suck for those involved and should be avoided whenever possible.
Purdue has the defense to thank for this one. And the special teams, which were flawless. Jack Ansell figured it out today and Mitchell Fineran remains manna from football heaven.
But also this: All that talent Purdue has been stockpiling at wide receiver, today it showed itself when Purdue needed it most. Abdur-Rahmaan Yaseen and T.J. Sheffield were Purdue's spark. Milton Wright's becoming sort of an enigma, but he made tough, clutch plays.
All of that stuff saw Purdue through in this game that had to be won.
Now, a week of going back to the drawing board. Purdue has to get healthy first and foremost, but it won't be full strength come Sunday morning. This isn't a fantasy football scoreboard that wipes clean every Monday morning. They have to get healthier, but more than that, they have to find more ways to win if they're not.
Minnesota traveling from Lake Woebegone this weekend in a woebegone state. This game profiles as being much like what you saw today, either a rockfight or a pillow fight, whichever analogy you think better tells the tale.
Purdue survived one today in the most winnable game on its Big Ten schedule. They get no easier from here on out.
Today, Purdue won a Big Ten almost exclusively with defense (and special teams).
And for all the talk about injuries (certainly important) and quarterback changes (certainly typical), that to me is the story of this game, that Purdue needed the defense to save its bacon today and it did.
That's an enormous credit to all those guys on the field today, so many of them part of last year's serial bending and breaking, and to these new defensive coaches, and to Jeff Brohm for making all these changes and seemingly being a more active participant himself.
This game was hideous. It wasn't until T.J. Sheffield interrupted the West Lafayette Kicking and Punting Expo with that go-ahead touchdown that someone crossed a goal line.
Understand this: Illinois is bad, and they're going to be bad all year, and probably will be bad until Bret Bielema inevitably gets fired in a few years and maybe Illinois hires someone who won't run a Flintstones offense to try to trigger a rebuild. All these years and he still owes Barry Alvarez half his salary.
Illinois is bad, but Illinois is kind of like a chewed-up wad of bubble gum. It's ugly and flavorless, but can be a hell of a pain in the you-know-what to get off the bottom of your shoe.
The Illini were just good enough to let Modern Nebraska Forrest Gump its way into another ridiculous loss, and just good enough to be highly competitive with Maryland.
They're bad, but Purdue has real issues right now, circumstances that even the most ardent dismisser of quote-unquote "excuses" must realize.
Grab a piece of paper and a pen and jot down your list of Purdue's 10 best players.
David Bell would be at the top of that list, either 1A or 1B.
He, I assume, wasn't even in the stadium on Saturday.
Zander Horvath would be on that list.
He's out for at least a few more weeks. And fellow running back King Doerue joined him in being idled today. I think Purdue only dressed two running backs today.
Cory Trice, based on his play to start this season, would be on that list.
Who knows when he'll be back?
Payne Durham would be on that list.
He got knocked out of the game by a haymaker of a hit, the sort of which Purdue's receivers have taken way too many of the past eight days or so.
That's four dudes who I'd put on that list of 10, for a team with perilously little depth. No bueno.
Offensively, Purdue has next to no running game. That's not shocking. As I said before the season, raw rushing success isn't that big a deal.
Situational running success — and at least the illusion of balance — is.
Situational running success means all the third-and-shorts you couldn't make last week and all the red-zone failures today. You have to be able to run the ball credibly inside the 20.
Purdue can't.
Give Brohm credit for trying different things. They ran more two-back stuff — and threw down the field out of it, mostly — and pistol formations than I think I've ever seen in a game from them. Their east-west running and throwing today, at least conceptually, was worthwhile. But at the end of the day, you're just really stuck in that element of the game. Smoke and mirrors can take you only so far.
The offense has limitations, and now quarterback questions. That rite of fall, sure as the leaves turning and temps dropping. Quarterback drama, you complete Purdue.
Here we go again.
Aidan O'Connell gets the win here, but I didn't think he was as accurate as it may have seemed. Purdue's receivers came up big for him. And that interception in the end zone was regrettable, a vertigo-inducing swing following Abdur-Rahmaan Yaseen's big play. The highest of highs to the lowest of lows, effectively.
But the offense was doing nothing with Jack Plummer in the game. Say what you will about interceptions, but at least they're something. I'm kidding. Interceptions suck for those involved and should be avoided whenever possible.
Purdue has the defense to thank for this one. And the special teams, which were flawless. Jack Ansell figured it out today and Mitchell Fineran remains manna from football heaven.
But also this: All that talent Purdue has been stockpiling at wide receiver, today it showed itself when Purdue needed it most. Abdur-Rahmaan Yaseen and T.J. Sheffield were Purdue's spark. Milton Wright's becoming sort of an enigma, but he made tough, clutch plays.
All of that stuff saw Purdue through in this game that had to be won.
Now, a week of going back to the drawing board. Purdue has to get healthy first and foremost, but it won't be full strength come Sunday morning. This isn't a fantasy football scoreboard that wipes clean every Monday morning. They have to get healthier, but more than that, they have to find more ways to win if they're not.
Minnesota traveling from Lake Woebegone this weekend in a woebegone state. This game profiles as being much like what you saw today, either a rockfight or a pillow fight, whichever analogy you think better tells the tale.
Purdue survived one today in the most winnable game on its Big Ten schedule. They get no easier from here on out.
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