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Gold and Black Radio: Purdue-Minnesota pregame show

by: Derek Schultz10/17/25
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The staff of GoldandBlack.com and host Derek Schultz break down Purdue’s Saturday afternoon (3 p.m. ET BTN matchup at Northwestern.

Audio only

Purdue at Northwestern, from a matchup perspective.

An excerpt from Jordan Jones’ Matchup Preview

Date/Time: Saturday, October 18, 3 p.m. EDT

Location: Martin Stadium

Surface: Natural Grass

Capacity: 12,023 (tickets)

2025 schedules/records: Purdue 2-4 (0-3 Big Ten) | Northwestern 4-2 (2-1 Big Ten)

Series notes: Purdue holds a sizable 55-29-1 advantage in the all-time series, but the recent history favors the Wildcats. Northwestern enters on a two-game win streak in the series. In 2023, in the final game at the old Ryan Field, the Wildcats won a low-scoring 23-15 affair with Purdue missing its starting quarterback. Last season, Northwestern walked it off on a 25-yard touchdown pass in overtime. Since the Big Ten split to the East/West division structure in 2014, the two programs have met each season, with Northwestern victorious in eight of the 11 contests.

TV: BTN (PxP Guy Haberman, Analyst Yogi Roth, Sidelines Rhett Lewis)

Radio: Purdue Sports Properties (PxP Tim Newton, Analyst Mark Herrmann, Sidelines Kelly Kitchel)

Line: Northwestern -3.5, O/U 47.5

Weather: High of 68 degrees with overcast skies, winds of 10-15 MPH and a chance of showers

Purdue Roster | Purdue Game Notes

Northwestern Roster | Northwestern Game Notes

Pregame: First Look: Northwestern | First and 10: Purdue at Northwestern | Barry Odom: Purdue’s progress nice, but it’s time to deliver wins | The 3-2-1: Talking dropped passes, face masks, red zone woes and more | Opponent View: Northwestern |

Northwestern running game versus Purdue against the run

Northwestern looks to establish the run early and often. The play-calling reflects this objective: through six games, Northwestern has run the ball 227 times to just 164 pass attempts. Even after losing veteran tailback Cam Porter to the season, the running game remains the strength of Northwestern’s offense.

Caleb Komolafe gets the lion’s share of the carries now. A 5-11, 210-pound back, he’s a load to bring down, and he’s plunged into the end zone five times already. Joseph Himon II, a smaller, quicker back, gets some work behind him. Northwestern averages a respectable 4.8 yards per carry and 183.2 yards per carry, each good for seventh in the Big Ten. Quarterback Preston Stone won’t tuck it and run much, as he’s more of the pocket passer prototype.

For the second straight week, Purdue defended the run remarkably well. After holding Illinois to less than three yards per carry, Purdue held Minnesota to less than two last week. In fact, Minnesota seemingly abandoned the run due to lack of success, finishing the game with 18 rushes to 45 pass attempts. Purdue’s run defense stats improved greatly over the past two weeks, as the Boilermakers now rank in the top half of the FBS, allowing 129.3 rushing yards per game.

Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Purdue’s run defense improvement is that it’s happening without TJ Lindsey, arguably its best defensive tackle. Last week, Purdue achieved this without Jamarius Dinkins, who missed the game due to a dog bite on his foot. The UNLV transfer linebacking tandem of Mani Powell and Charles Correa continues to shine, and Alex Sanford joined the party last week as Purdue turned to many three-linebacker looks. Correa (third) and Powell (ninth) each rank inside the top 10 in the conference in tackles, while Myles Slusher and Tahj Ra-El don’t sit far behind from the safety position.

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