Matchup Preview: Who has the edge?

Purdue vs. Ohio State, from a matchup perspective.

Date/Time: Saturday, November 8, 1 p.m. EDT

Location: Ross-Ade Stadium

Surface: Bermuda Grass

Capacity: 61,441 (tickets)

2025 schedules/records: Purdue 2-7 (0-6 Big Ten) | Ohio State 8-0 (5-0 Big Ten)

Series notes: While Ohio State leads the all-time series 42-15-2, some of Purdue’s finest hours came in wins over the Buckeyes. Since the turn of the century, Purdue owns five victories over Ohio State, all coming in West Lafayette (2000, 2004, 2009, 2011, 2018). No Purdue fan will ever forget the dramatic victories in 2000 and 2018, and few Purdue upset victories came as unexpectedly as the 2009 stunning of then-No. 7 Ohio State. Since the fateful night in 2018, the Buckeyes hold a three-game win streak over Purdue with an average margin of victory of 35.67 points.

Purdue is facing a No. 1-ranked team for the first time in Ross-Ade Stadium since Nov. 6, 1976, when the Boilermakers ruined legendary Wolverines’ coach Bo Schembechler’s best chance at a national championship with a 16-14 upset. The Boilermakers last faced a top-ranked squad 36 years ago, losing at Notre Dame 37-11 on Sept. 29, 1990. The last No. 1 team to play in Ross-Ade was a year earlier, when Lou Holtz’s Fighting Irish beat Fred Akers’ Boilermakers 40-7.

All-time, Purdue is 7-11 overall against No. 1 teams, beating Notre Dame in four of those games, and Minnesota (1960 in Minneapolis; 23-14), Michigan State (1957 in East Lansing; 20-14) and the aforementioned win over Michigan. Purdue is 3-5 all-time against No. 1-ranked teams in Ross-Ade with its two additional wins over Notre Dame (1965, 1967).

TV: BTN (PxP Jeff Levering, Analyst Jake Butt, Sidelines Brooke Fletcher)

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

Line: Ohio State -28.5, O/U 48.5

Weather: The forecast shows a high of 57 with mostly cloudy skies

Purdue Roster | Purdue Game Notes

Ohio State Roster | Ohio State Game Notes

Pregame: First and 10: Ohio State | First Look: Ohio State | Mockobee to miss remainder of the season | Purdue, Barry Odom brace for first visit from No. 1 team since 1989 | The 3-2-1: Good-bye, Devin Mockobee. Hello, Max Klare | Mike Scherer: Purdue defense needs to play more “confident” | Opponent View: Ohio State |

Ohio State running game versus Purdue against the run

After a dominant run game fueled by two NFL Draft picks led the Buckeyes last season, it’s more middle of the pack in 2025. The Buckeyes rank 10th in the Big Ten with 153 rushing yards per game, coming in at 4.6 yards per carry. West Virginia transfer CJ Donaldson arrived to serve as the top running back, but true freshman Bo Jackson leads the team in rushing. Jackson enters with three games of 100+ yards on the ground, but it’s Donaldson who has seven touchdowns to his name this year. After a costly fumble a week ago, Donaldson must fend off James Peoples and Isaiah West from eating into his workload.

Quarterback Julian Sayin won’t look to run, but he’s capable when duty calls. If there’s a weakness to Ohio State’s team, it might come on the offensive line, which receives criticism for a lack of push in the run game.

The Purdue defense struggled once again in Ann Arbor. Michigan ripped off 253 yards on the ground, moving the ball despite being largely one-dimensional. Big plays helped the Wolverines, as they finished with seven rushes of 10+ yards, including the 54-yard touchdown run. Purdue ranks 15th in the Big Ten, allowing 160 rushing yards per game. While Purdue’s seen success against some of the lesser rushing attacks on the schedule, strong running games continue to shred the defense. What will it do against the Buckeyes?

Despite a mediocre run defense, Purdue enters this week with the top three tacklers in the conference. Charles Correa, Mani Powell and Tahj Ra-El each boast 81 tackles through nine games, tied for the lead in the Big Ten and good for 10th nationally. The defense does create havoc, though, as its fifth in the league in tackles for loss. Purdue will need to cause disruption early and often to put the Buckeyes in suboptimal positions offensively.

Ohio State passing game versus Purdue against the pass

Sayin enters this week as the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy, according to Bet MGM. A first-year starter, he eased into the season early on, but he’s begun to let it rip recently. He’s completing 80.7% of his passes, three percentage points higher than the NCAA record of 77.4. He’s eclipsed 300 yards in five of Ohio State’s eight games thus far, and he’s not thrown an interception in the last five games. His 23 touchdown to three interception ratio is the conference’s best, and he’s looking to finish strong to secure himself a spot in New York for the Heisman ceremony.

Helping matters for Sayin, he gets to throw to what’s likely the nation’s best wide receiving unit. After bursting onto the scene as a true freshman, Jeremiah Smith remains among the top players in America regardless of position. The former five-star recruit averages just shy of seven receptions per game, and he’s hauled in nine touchdowns already. He looks like a surefire early first-round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft, and he only leads the team in receiving by a few yards per game. Carnell Tate looks to find himself on All-American teams this season, as he and Smith combine for nearly 180 yards per game and 16 touchdowns on the season. Purdue transfer Max Klare provides a strong pass-catching option at tight end, and Brandon Innis might be the best third wide receiver in the country.

Purdue took advantage of a limited Michigan passing attack, as the Wolverines couldn’t generate any consistency through the air. Hudauri Hines picked off his first pass of the season, bringing Purdue’s interception total to three. The Purdue secondary continued to rotate very little, as Hines and Tony Grimes do the majority of the work at corner, though Vi’Naz Cobb saw some of his first work as a Boilermaker. Purdue must find a way to hold up against the nation’s top wide receiving corps and limit coverage busts.

The pass rush remains a one-man operation. CJ Nunnally leads the team with five sacks, as he’s the only player in the front four who can consistently generate pressure without bringing a blitz. Purdue’s blitz packages from the second level do get home often, as Powell and Correa each possess three sacks in 2025. With an ultra-efficient Ohio State passing game across the line of scrimmage, Purdue must generate enough pressure to keep Sayin off balance. And, when he completes passes, Purdue cannot miss as many tackles as it has in recent weeks. Purdue has missed 15 or more tackles in the last three games.

Purdue running game versus Ohio State against the run

Without Devin Mockobee, Purdue turned to a combination of Malachi Thomas and Antonio Harris at tailback. It worked, as Purdue ran the ball effectively for a sack-adjusted 4.5 yards per carry against a strong Michigan run defense. On Monday, Barry Odom announced that Mockobee will miss the remainder of the season due to injury. Expect Purdue to continue deploying Thomas and Harris. Will the rotation grow? Jaheim Merriweather and Jaron Thomas could hear their names called if more attrition takes place.

Purdue continues to utilize Malachi Singleton in the run game. He carried the ball six more times as a situational quarterback at Michigan, and he did so effectively. He’s become a short-yardage and red-zone substitution for Purdue, which needs to convert more of those situations. The failure to convert on a fourth and two near midfield at the start of the fourth quarter haunted the Boilermakers last week. Purdue enters 11th in the conference with 141 yards per game on the ground, but it’ll need to get creative to reach that mark this week.

The nation’s seventh-best run defense comes out of Columbus, as the Buckeyes surrender a mere 81.8 yards per game. Linebackers Arvell Reese and Sonny Styles will each wind up on All-American teams as the top two tacklers on the Buckeye defense. The defensive line does a great job at closing holes before they even open. Ohio State allows fewer than seven points per game, and the inability of opponents to run the ball plays a huge role in that.

Purdue passing game versus Ohio State against the pass

Purdue’s passing game continues to flounder. The last three weeks have seen Purdue struggle to throw the ball, as evidenced by its 136 passing yards against Michigan. While Ryan Browne’s left shoulder injury shouldn’t factor much into his ability to throw the ball, Purdue took an ultra-conservative approach to the passing game last week. Browne’s average depth of target came in at less than four yards beyond the line of scrimmage. In several games this year, that number has exceeded 10. How much does Purdue want him to take shots downfield?

The wide receiving corps lacks consistency aside from Michael Jackson III. He leads Purdue with 50 receptions, more than double the next man (24 for Nitro Tuggle). They see plenty of action on the outside, but the third spot varies by the week. EJ Horton continues to earn more action, though Corey Smith, Jesse Watson and Arhmad Branch all factor in at times. One constant: since the loss of George Burhenn to injury, the tight end group provides very little production in the passing game.

Ohio State’s defense shuts down the pass, too. It ranks third nationally in pass defense, limiting opponents to 133 yards per game. All-in-all, Ohio State boasts the nation’s best defense, 20 yards better than the next-best. While the Buckeyes have only intercepted five passes, opponents average a paltry five yards per attempt. Ohio State has sacked the opposing quarterback 25 times in eight games, good for third in the conference. Indiana native Caden Curry leads the way with seven sacks on the season.

On the back end, safety Caleb Downs might be the best defensive player in America. He’s picked off a pair of passes and flies to the football. Browne must identify him before every snap, as he’s dangerous when the ball goes in the air. Purdue will have its hands full trying to move the ball against an Ohio State defense that’s surrendered nine touchdowns in eight games.

Special teams

Spencer Porath made a career-long 50-yard field goal last week to continue his strong sophomore season. He’s now 11-for-12 on the year, with his lone miss coming from 48 yards at Minnesota. Jack McCallister picked an inopportune time for his first poor punt of the season. He shanked one late in the first half last week, setting up a Michigan touchdown drive before the break. Still, he’s been one of the Boilermakers’ best players.

Purdue looks a little more aggressive in the return game, eager to find ways to create a spark. The punt return game lacks juice, but Jackson does have a kick return of more than 50 yards this year.

Ohio State kicker Jayden Fielding missed a critical pair of field goals in the loss to Michigan last season, but he’s been strong ever since. He’s made nine of 11 tries in 2025, though he’s only attempted one kick of 40+ yards, which he missed. Joe McGuire returned at punter from the national championship team’s starting lineup, though he’s used rather infrequently, punting less than twice per game.

The Buckeyes rarely return kickoffs, but Innis can make men miss on both kick and punt return. He’s ripped off a 32-yard punt return this season.

Intangibles

Another week, another “what could have been.” That’s three of the last four games where Purdue left the field feeling like a win was within reach. Michigan’s three scoreless red zone trips handed Purdue an opportunity to shock the three-touchdown favorite Wolverines, but the Boilermakers couldn’t take advantage.

Despite sitting in the midst of a program-record 15-game Big Ten game losing streak, Purdue continues to compete. It’ll need more than just a competitive effort to put a scare in Ohio State, though. Some of Purdue’s most memorable moments in the 21st century came in upsets over the Buckeyes in West Lafayette. While it looks unlikely, Purdue must continue to showcase its best effort to give the coaching staff a true feel for what the roster needs to improve for the 2026 season.

Since a stunning loss to Michigan to close the 2024 regular season, no program can match Ohio State’s accomplishments. Ryan Day’s crew ripped through the 12-team College Football Playoff to win a national championship, and it’s won seven of its eight games by three-plus possessions thus far in 2025. Vegas oddsmakers peg the Buckeyes as the favorites to win this year’s national title for good reason.

Ohio State doesn’t often turn in lackluster performances. Instead, Day’s team dominates. Since 2021, the program boasts a 55-8 record with four of those losses coming to the Wolverines. It doesn’t struggle in games like these where it’s expected to cruise. After tying a record with 14 players drafted this spring, Ohio State didn’t miss a beat, and it enters as more than a four-touchdown favorite in Ross-Ade Stadium.

How much does Ohio State want to pour it on? The Buckeyes hold the top spot in the College Football Playoff rankings, so they don’t need brownie points. They just need to stack wins and stay healthy to put themselves in position to repeat as national champions. If Ohio State gets out to an early lead, how aggressive does Day stay with his offensive approach and substitution patterns?