Purdue came into its game Saturday at Michigan with momentum.
But with the surging Wolverines and mighty Wisconsin to come, the concern had to be that that momentum would be fleeting, that it could simply be stripped from the Boilermakers during this two-game gauntlet.
Make no mistake: Purdue did not play well at Michigan.
Michigan trampled Purdue with its running game and neutered the Boilermakers' own running game.
What Purdue had to do to win - run the ball on offense and stop the run on defense - it couldn't do, as the hosts out-rushed the visitors by exactly two-and-a-half football fields.
What Purdue was doing well, scoring in the red zone, for one thing, got taken away from it, as it came up empty twice, once on yet another tipped-ball interception, again on the blown fourth-down play.
Purdue's defense had played so well through the past three weeks. All of a sudden it couldn't tackle again.
Michigan owned the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, areas where Purdue has greatly improved since the start of the season, only to revert in Ann Arbor.
Running backs ran into each other on a fourth-and-goal play, an embarrassing moment in an embarrassing loss.
Purdue gave up 86 more yards in penalties, a glaring indictment of preparation and discipline. You have to think that if that problem hasn't fixed itself by now, it's never going to. Enough with the personal fouls, already.
But let's be honest: A lot of what happened at Michigan had to do with Michigan.
The game I saw on TV today showed a Wolverine team that may not be a great team - great teams don't have to close their eyes and cross their fingers every time their quarterback throws the football - but is a very good team, a group that's getting back to what Michigan's always been after Rich Rodriguez did what he could for three years to strip that program of its collective spine.
Two weeks ago, Michigan got beaten physically and mentally by Michigan State; the team I saw Saturday looked like one who just needed somebody to take it out on. Rich Rodriguez Michigan might have rolled up in the fetal position; Brady Hoke Michigan picked a fight.
It was just that following a good opening drive, Purdue didn't have what it took to fight back.
The better team won today in every phase on offense and defense.
And for Purdue next weekend, it only gets worse.
If it's going to head into IU with a chance to become bowl-eligible, Purdue's going to have to beat someone who, on paper, it shouldn't.
To do that, it may have find away to get some of the momentum stripped from it on Saturday back, momentum Purdue didn't necessarily have to win Saturday to maintain.
It just had to compete.
It didn't.
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This post was edited on 10/29 5:58 PM by Brian_GoldandBlack.com
