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Gold and Black Radio: Purdue-Minnesota pregame show

by: Derek Schultz10/10/25
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The staff of GoldandBlack.com and host Derek Schultz break down Purdue’s Saturday night matchup at Minnesota.

Audio only

Saturday’s key matchup

(This is an excerpt from Jordan Jones’ Matchup Preview)

Minnesota passing game versus Boilermakers against the pas

In a traditional manner, Minnesota redshirted Lindsey last season before handing him the reins this year as a redshirt freshman. So far, so good for the native Arkansan, who Barry Odom knows well, as his son, Garyt, played high school football with Lindsey. He’s averaging just over 200 yards per game, completing 64% of his passes and touts a strong seven-to-two touchdown-to-interception ratio. A pocket passer, he’s a nice fit for Minnesota’s pro-style attack. He’s looking to bounce back after a strong Ohio State defense held him to just 94 passing yards last week.

Purdue fans will recognize leading receiver Javon Tracy. He’s the younger brother of former Purdue and current New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr., having transferred to Minneapolis from Miami (OH) ahead of this season. He leads the team in receiving yards, while Le’Meke Brockington leads the way with 19 receptions. It’s a fairly balanced attack, as seven Gophers have between eight and 19 catches on the year. The offensive line protects Lindsey well, allowing just eight sacks in five games.

It wasn’t pretty. Illinois hit on five passes of 35+ yards as it racked up a whopping 390 through the air against Purdue’s defense. The Boilermakers felt the loss of top corner Tony Grimes, who missed the game following an injury in practice ahead of the game. He’s expected to return this week after Purdue rotated liberally in the back end last week. Whatever combination Purdue tried didn’t work. Communication issues plagued the Boilers, as Illini wide receivers ran free early and often.

Part of the issue lies in the pass rush, where Purdue struggles to generate consistent pressure. When Purdue dials up blitz packages, they’re often effective, but the down-to-down pass rush efforts leave much to be desired. CJ Nunnally leads the team with three sacks, but Purdue needs better production from the other edge rushers. The secondary simply doesn’t have the horses to hold up for long periods of time in coverage.

 More: First and 10: Purdue at Minnesota | First Look: Minnesota | Barry Odom: Purdue ‘not good enough’ as Boilers seek answers before Minnesota | The 3-2-1: Now hear this–Purdue needs to fix communication breakdown in secondary | Opponent View: Minnesota | Buckle-up: Trips to Minnesota deliver chaos, thrills for Purdue | Purdue DL Demeco Kennedy making most of new opportunity | Purdue-Minnesota Notebook

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