Three and Out: Nebraska 31, Purdue 14
Purdue entered Saturday’s contest in Lincoln in “playoff mode,” per Ryan Walters. The Boilermakers needed to win four of their final five games in order to reach the magical six-win mark for bowl eligibility.
Now, it enters November with no margin for error, needing to sweep the month of November for a chance to make a bowl.
Purdue came off its bye week hoping to reverse its 2-5 start to the season, but it never found a groove. In some ways, the game’s first few minutes served as an omen of what the afternoon would feel like for the Boilermakers.
Nebraska fumbled the opening kickoff, giving Purdue prime field position for its first drive of the game. But, after a failed deep shot on 4th and 11, Purdue walked away empty-handed.
The Cornhuskers opened the scoring when they drove 87 yards on 15 plays early in the second quarter. Soon after, they found the end zone again on a 73-yard catch-and-run.
Trailing 14-0, Purdue received another golden opportunity when Nebraska fumbled at its own 13-yard line. The ensuing drive stalled, and Ben Freehill’s field goal attempt was blocked and returned for a Nebraska touchdown. Such was the day for the visitors from West Lafayette.
Purdue did find the end zone when Hudson Card hit Jayden Dixon-Veal for a diving catch to put the Boilermakers on the scoreboard halfway through the fourth quarter. The Boilermakers then cut further into the Nebraska lead following a 55-yard scoop-and-score to make it 24-14.
The comeback ended quickly, however, as a touchdown run iced the game for Nebraska and finalized the game’s score at 31-14.
As the Boilermakers fell to 2-6, three things to note:
OFFENSIVE WOES
Purdue’s offense never got going on Saturday. It finished the day with a mere 195 yards of total offense, failing to eclipse the century mark on the ground or through the air. Despite two weeks to rest and recover from a nagging injury, Hudson Card struggled, completing 16 of 23 pass attempts for 100 yards, a touchdown and a pair of interceptions.
The offensive struggles continue a troubling trend for Purdue’s offense as it failed to score more than 14 points in any of its three games in the month of October.
While Tyrone Tracy returned to action from a groin injury, the run game only ran for 3.3 yards per carry. And, the fumble problems returned for Devin Mockobee, who coughed one up early on.
KYDRAN JENKINS’ BIG DAY
The senior outside linebacker continued his stellar season on Saturday. Jenkins totaled eight tackles, 4.5 of those for a loss, a pair of sacks, and forced a fumble that he returned for a touchdown. This added to his team lead in sacks. Despite Purdue’s struggles as a whole this season, the emergence of Jenkins has provided welcomed help to the critical outside linebacker position in Walters’ defense.
THE FRESHMAN CAN PLAY
As Purdue’s seen time and time again this season, true freshman Dillon Thieneman appears primed for an excellent career as a Boilermaker. His forced fumble early in the second half gave Purdue a shot of life when it needed it most, albeit a short-lived one. Thieneman lead the Boilermakers with 12 tackles and forced a pair of fumbles.
While one can argue whether a safety leading the team in tackles is a positive, Thieneman has been a revelation for Purdue this year. After being named to several Freshman Midseason All-American teams, it’s safe to assume that Thieneman will appear on those lists at the season’s end and could flirt with all-conference honors.
