No. 2 Oregon travels to Purdue tonight (5 p.m., Fox) at Ross-Ade Stadium.
The Oregonian/OregonLive reached out to Purdue beat reporter Nathan Baird (@nwbaird on X) of the Indy Star to pose five questions and gain insight into the Boilermakers.
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1) What is Ryan Browne best at in the albeit small sample?
Baird: “He checked a lot of boxes against an Illinois defense admittedly unprepared for Purdue throwing a bit of a curveball. He very effectively used the zone read to get the ground game going, pulling it back for himself several times. When they schemed up some big passing plays, he converted. Then he led the two-minute drill, finishing the game without a turnover or notable mistake. The moment never looked too big. Obviously, a bigger moment awaits.”
2) Why is Purdue’s defense struggling so badly?
Baird: “A vortex of issues, really. Teams have done whatever they wanted outside due to Purdue’s chronic inability to set the edge. (Moving Kydran Jenkins back to rush end has helped that a bit.) By so consistently being able to run the ball, teams have not been exposed to the blitzing, attacking defense Walters prefers to run. Injuries haven’t helped, but the transfers also have not yet replicated the pass rush lost when Nic Scourton left for Texas A&M. What has really hurt in closer losses is poor tackling, resulting in some explosive touchdowns and numerous extended drives.”
No. 2 Oregon (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) at Purdue (1-5, 0-3)
- When: Friday, Oct. 18
- Time: 5 p.m. PT
- Where: Ross-Ade Stadium, West Lafayette, Indiana
- TV channel: Fox
- Stream: You can watch this game live for FREE with Fubo (free trial) or with DirecTV Stream (free trial). If you already have a provider, you can also watch this game live on Fox Sports Live with your cable or satellite provider login information.
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3) Is Ryan Walters taking over as offensive play-caller a smart move or a desperate one?
Baird: “Can it be both? I thought Walters should have passed over defensive play calling sooner, even before the season, so he could more easily divert attention if other phases encountered a problem. But no one envisioned an offense as lifeless as the one that lost to Notre Dame, Nebraska and Wisconsin. Walters was then caught in a situation where a change had to be made, but there was no other veteran option to take over the play calling. Putting all of that load on Jason Simmons – an analyst who was a high school coach two years ago – was not really fair. I give him credit for making a bold move which could have blown up in his face. First returns were positive.”
4) What will be successful for the remainder of Purdue’s season?
Baird: “I never thought this season would be defined by wins and losses. I went in thinking they might go 4-8 again, and considering the schedule, that might count as a better season. That went out the window when, in terms of statistical performance, Purdue was the worst power conference team in the country for a month. Purdue needs to beat the teams in its weight class simply to save some face. At the very least, it cannot add a third embarrassment of a loss.”
5) How do you see it playing out and what’s your score prediction?
Baird: “We just have not seen the consistency necessary for Purdue to hang with the upper tier of the sport. I’ll take the Ducks 41-10.”
— James Crepea covers the Oregon Ducks and Big Ten. Listen to the Ducks Confidential podcast or subscribe to the Ducks Roundup newsletter.
