Purdue is staring down a 27.5 point spread against undefeated #3 Notre Dame on September 23, and honestly, that might be generous. A 1-2 start is the absolute worst case for a Boilermaker program trying to turn things around, and their defense has been an absolute disaster. After collapsing late and in overtime against Wake Forest, they followed that up with arguably one of the worst defensive performances in program history, which doesn’t exactly build confidence heading into a game against the Fighting Irish. This team is already the butt end of too many jokes in college football, and it feels like it’s about to get worse.
The Boilermakers’ Defensive Nightmare Just Keeps Getting Scarier
Let’s just talk about that defensive “performance” against UCLA, because wow. Purdue gave up 52 points to the Bruins in a game where UCLA racked up 645 total yards. That’s the second most yards ever given up by the program, and a staggering 369 of those came on the ground. Think about that for a second: UCLA had 21 plays that covered 14+ yards! It’s no wonder Notre Dame scoring 70+ points in this upcoming matchup has odds of +2700. In their first two FBS games, Purdue is giving up 45 points per game and surrendering 207 rushing yards per game, which is ranked 125th in the entire country.
This all falls squarely on Defensive Coordinator Kevin Kane, who’s in his second stint in the role at Purdue. Fans remember his first time around under Ryan Walters, and even then the defense didn’t struggle this badly. It’s so bad that the odds most Purdue fans probably want to see are the ones for whether Kane will even be employed on Sunday morning. This defense has to get better, and fast, because what we’re seeing right now is just not acceptable for a major FBS conference team.
Barry Odom’s Year 2 Is A Barometer For Disaster
This game against Notre Dame isn’t just another loss in the making; it’s a huge barometer for exactly how far down the rung Purdue really is in Barry Odom’s second year. The last time these teams met, Notre Dame handed Purdue an embarrassing 66-7 defeat back in Ryan Walters’ final season. Being a 27.5 point underdog to any other major FBS team is tough, but against a juggernaut like Notre Dame? It screams trouble.
A recent report suggests Purdue is the lowest NIL program in the B1G, and looking at the results on the field, it’s hard to argue with that. While the offense has shown some “massive improvement,” it’s all going to be for nothing if the defense keeps surrendering 50+ points every single week. The most likely scenario this Saturday is another brutal beatdown, with the best possible outcome being that everyone gets out healthy with more winnable games hopefully on the horizon. My buddy’s crystal ball is showing a final score of Purdue 17, Notre Dame 52.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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