Old National Presents: 3-2-1

Three things learned. Two questions. One statement. It’s The 3-2-1, a look at Purdue football.
Three things learned
1 – Catch the ball
It has been an issue, especially of late: Dropped passes. Purdue had a season-high seven last week at Minnesota–it had three the week before. And they were very painful. Corey Smith led the way with three. Nitro Tuggle had two and has a team-high six on the season.
“I think the stats are obvious,” said OC Josh Henson. “If you look back and look at them, you know, all I can tell you is, we’re getting on the Jugs machine. We’re working extra catching every day because, obviously, for us to operate and win games and to seize opportunity like we had the first half the other night, we got to catch the ball.”

2 – Red zone woes
A big talking point in the aftermath of last week’s loss–the Boilermakers’ fourth in a row–was a red zone interception thrown on a gimmick play by RB Devin Mockobee. Because if failed, the play got a lot of scrutiny. And it further underscored the issues of a red zone attack that’s the Big Ten’s worst: 72 scoring percent (18-of-25).
Henson isn’t backing down from the call.
“We’re gonna be aggressive in what we do,” said Henson. “We’re not gonna be passive about what we do. We had other plays that we called that were straightforward, conventional plays. We didn’t execute them at that point. Was open. We didn’t execute it correctly. That’s on me. I’ve got to coach it better. Got to get our coaches to coach it better, and players got to execute it better.”
3 – Costly face mask penalty
Purdue was clinging to a late lead last week with Minnesota on the move to score a tying touchdown, and that’s when Purdue DT Demeco Kennedy committed not one–but two–face mask penalties that extended the Gopher drive that ultimately ended with a TD.
Players typically don’t intend to grab a face mask, but it happens in the heat of the moment.
“Yeah, but you’re also not supposed to be trying to put your hands up by the quarterback’s head,” said DC Mike Scherer. “So, there’s a technique of how you approach quarterbacks. We worked on it today. So, yeah, face masks, a lot of times you call them incidental. But when you watch football, the guys who accidentally grab a face mask and let go, they usually don’t throw a flag. I get it. You know, first one might have been got my hand up there, but those are unacceptable.”
Two questions
1 – Does Ryan Browne feel like he has to do too much at times?
There are no more intense or better competitors on the roster than Browne. And, at times, that passion to make something happen can result in bad plays. To wit: He leads the Big Ten with seven interceptions.
“What we’ve got to do is just make sure that Ryan is comfortable with his reads, comfortable with what he’s seeing,” said Henson. “I don’t want him to second guess himself and stop being aggressive. I just want to turn the rudder a little bit and aim that aggression in the right direction, and that’s our job as coaches to do that.”
Top 10
- 1
Billy Napier
Final game at UF?
- 2
Diego Pavia
QB's swagger has Vandy believing
- 3
Georgia Bulldogs
'Hard to kill'
- 4
Booed after win
Billy Napier had rough send off
- 5Trending
Vitello leaving Vols
MLB team closing in on deal
Get the Daily On3 Newsletter in your inbox every morning
By clicking "Subscribe to Newsletter", I agree to On3's Privacy Notice, Terms, and use of my personal information described therein.
2 – Ready for unique venue at Northwestern?
This game will be played at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium, a temporary venue for the Wildcats this season and last as a new stadium is being built and set to open in 2026 at the site of the old Ryan Field. The temporary facility is unique, situated on Northwestern’s campus and perched on Lake Michigan next to NU’s practice facility. And, it’s intimate: Capacity: 12-15,000.
Yes, Odom has talked to those who have played there. He’s even checked it out.
“My wife and I were in Chicago in July,” said Odom. “I just kind of wanted to go by and see it. I’ve seen video and all the things, but I wanted to see how close it was to the water and some of those things. What a unique venue.
“We talked about it this morning as a team on just a little bit of a different layout. So, I wanted the team to obviously have a feel for that and try to prepare them for every situation that we can get.”
One bold statement: Must-win at Northwestern
An overstatement? Perhaps. But the time is now if the Boilermakers want to begin turning “progress” into “victory.”
Yes, NU has won three in a row and is coming off a big win at Penn State. Still, the Wildcats are beatable … as is the next foe: Rutgers. Purdue needs to taste victory before October gives way to an unforgiving slate of November games.
“We’re all tired of saying we’re making some progress in these areas, but we come up short,” said Barry Odom. “So, you know, I’ve said it a number of times, we’re all judged on results, and right now, I haven’t gotten the team with the results that we need to, so we’re working hard to get there.”
MORE: First look: Northwestern | First and 10: Purdue at Northwestern | Three Thoughts From The Weekend: Ryan Browne, the Minnesota loss and Purdue basketball