Purdue
The Purdue University football team started the most important season under Head Coach Jeff Brohm last weekend as they defeated the Oregon State Beavers, 30-21. Brohm is in his fourth year at the helm of Purdue, and after a very good first season, the Boilermakers have been trending down since then.
Brohm’s record at Purdue is just 20-25, and that is after two consecutive bowl appearances to start his tenure. In year one, Brohm led Purdue to a 7-6 record where they reached a bowl game and defeated Arizona 38-35 in the Foster Farms Bowl.
The next season they reached the Music City Bowl, where they fell to Auburn, 63-14. That would give Purdue a 6-7 record on the season.
In Brohm’s third year, however, things started to go downhill as they finished 4-8. Last year, a season marred with COVID-19 circumstances, the Boilermakers went 2-6. Those two seasons have put Brohm squarely on the hot seat after being one of the most sought-after head coaches in the country after his first year.
The Current Season
With all that being said, things are looking up for Purdue. In the opening week of play, Purdue took down a solid foe in Oregon State.
They looked good doing it, and the questions of the past have been answered on the defensive side of the ball. Purdue played aggressively while making plays on both sides of the ball.
Jack Plummer, the starting quarterback, had a great game where he threw for 313 yards and two touchdowns. For the offense to be successful, Plummer will need to continue to be very aggressive in his reads. Another bright spot for the Boilermaker offense was wideout David Bell who had eight catches for 134 yards.
Defensively, the Boilermakers were stout, giving up just 363 total yards to a team that had a few chunk plays. The Beavers were only able to convert 15 first downs, which would lead to a lot of wins for any team. Leading the Beaver rushing attack was Trey Lowe, who rushed for just 27 yards.
Huskies Up Next
Purdue has the Connecticut Huskies up on the schedule next, which should be an easy win. The Huskies are one of the worst teams in college football this season, and their head coach just stepped down. Purdue is a 30+ point favorite for only the 6th time in the last twenty years, and they should be able to cover the spread relatively easily.
Speaking of covering, Purdue was a seven-point favorite this past weekend against Oregon State, and they covered. I look for Vegas to underestimate this Purdue team in a few matchups this year which might lead to easy wins for bettors.
With Purdue’s solid performance this past week, it is hard not to see them making another bowl game this year with a few games that should be easy wins. Look for Purdue to be 2-0 heading into a matchup with Notre Dame in Week 3. Purdue fans should be excited for what is to come not only this year but next year as well.