Welcome to Ohio Stadium. A little chilly and windy today. Classic November weather.
Purdue arrives red hot coming off back-to-back wins at Nebraska and vs. No. 5 Michigan State. The win vs. the Spartans was the second for the Boilermakers vs. a top-10 team, as Purdue won at No. 2 Iowa in October.
Can the Boilers slay a third top-10 team? Ohio State is No. 6 in the AP poll.
The task today will be the toughest yet vs. the mighty Buckeyes, who are 8-1 overall and 6-0 in the Big Ten. Their lone was was to Oregon in Columbus.
Speaking of Columbus, Purdue hasn’t won here since 1988—dropping nine in a row, including two OT affairs in 2002 and 2012, the last time the Boilermakers were here.
But Purdue has had a weird whammy on OSU, going 4-5 in the last nine meetings. In fact, the Boilermakers won the last time these schools met, taking a 49-20 decision vs. the No. 2 Buckeyes in 2018.
Ohio State hasn’t lost a Big Ten game since, winning 24 in a row.
Some storylines to watch for today:
- Can Aidan O’Connell stay on a roll? The last two games, he has completed 74-of-99 passes (75 percent) for 769 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions. Ohio State is No. 11 in the Big Ten vs. the pass (247.2 ypg).
- Will the takeaways keep coming? Purdue has 12 in the last four games after notching just two in the firs five.
- Will David Bell stay hot? He paces the Big Ten with 64 grabs for 1,003 yards and five TDs.
- Can a run game be manufactured? The attack seems to have figured things out with the return of Zander Horvath, continued work of King Doerue and periodic use of wideout Jackson Anthrop in the backfield. But the OSU d-line is line none other Purdue has seen in 2021.
- Will Mitchell Fineran stay on track? He pulled out of a funk last week by going 4-of-4 on field-goal attempts.
- Can the defense contain uber freshman back TreVeyon Henderson? He is No. 3 in the Big Ten in rushing (104.1 ypg), running 128 times for 937 yards and 12 TDs.
- Will Jeff Brohm continue to be aggressive? He has not been afraid to take chances in recent weeks with his play calls. His “Money One” call last week that resulted in a 39-yard TD catch for Jackson Anthrop was fun.
- Can the secondary hold up vs. a mega-threesome of Buckeye wideouts: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson? The power trio has combined for 135 catches, 2,198 yards and 20 TDs.
Injury reminder:
Jeff Brohm said DT Lawrence Johnson, WR Broc Thompson and LEO Kydran Jenkins were limited in practice this week. TE Payne Durham still isn’t 100 percent may sounds like he may give it a go like he did last week.
What are your thoughts on today’s game?
Purdue arrives red hot coming off back-to-back wins at Nebraska and vs. No. 5 Michigan State. The win vs. the Spartans was the second for the Boilermakers vs. a top-10 team, as Purdue won at No. 2 Iowa in October.
Can the Boilers slay a third top-10 team? Ohio State is No. 6 in the AP poll.
The task today will be the toughest yet vs. the mighty Buckeyes, who are 8-1 overall and 6-0 in the Big Ten. Their lone was was to Oregon in Columbus.
Speaking of Columbus, Purdue hasn’t won here since 1988—dropping nine in a row, including two OT affairs in 2002 and 2012, the last time the Boilermakers were here.
But Purdue has had a weird whammy on OSU, going 4-5 in the last nine meetings. In fact, the Boilermakers won the last time these schools met, taking a 49-20 decision vs. the No. 2 Buckeyes in 2018.
Ohio State hasn’t lost a Big Ten game since, winning 24 in a row.
Some storylines to watch for today:
- Can Aidan O’Connell stay on a roll? The last two games, he has completed 74-of-99 passes (75 percent) for 769 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions. Ohio State is No. 11 in the Big Ten vs. the pass (247.2 ypg).
- Will the takeaways keep coming? Purdue has 12 in the last four games after notching just two in the firs five.
- Will David Bell stay hot? He paces the Big Ten with 64 grabs for 1,003 yards and five TDs.
- Can a run game be manufactured? The attack seems to have figured things out with the return of Zander Horvath, continued work of King Doerue and periodic use of wideout Jackson Anthrop in the backfield. But the OSU d-line is line none other Purdue has seen in 2021.
- Will Mitchell Fineran stay on track? He pulled out of a funk last week by going 4-of-4 on field-goal attempts.
- Can the defense contain uber freshman back TreVeyon Henderson? He is No. 3 in the Big Ten in rushing (104.1 ypg), running 128 times for 937 yards and 12 TDs.
- Will Jeff Brohm continue to be aggressive? He has not been afraid to take chances in recent weeks with his play calls. His “Money One” call last week that resulted in a 39-yard TD catch for Jackson Anthrop was fun.
- Can the secondary hold up vs. a mega-threesome of Buckeye wideouts: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson? The power trio has combined for 135 catches, 2,198 yards and 20 TDs.
Injury reminder:
Jeff Brohm said DT Lawrence Johnson, WR Broc Thompson and LEO Kydran Jenkins were limited in practice this week. TE Payne Durham still isn’t 100 percent may sounds like he may give it a go like he did last week.
What are your thoughts on today’s game?
Last edited:
