FNF: Injuries Mount as Purdue Stumbles in First Third of the Season
By Keith Carrell (@BoilerColts)
ISL Purdue Columnist
Purdue FNF (Fan NonFiction) is a new column that I’ll be writing intermittently throughout football and basketball season to provide you with some commentary from a Purdue fan. While I am a Purdue fan, I do try to remain unbiased and at times will throw accolades or criticism as I see fit as these opinions are my own, it’s okay if you disagree and I welcome friendly conversation if whether you agree or disagree. These opinions are related to the sport and games; in no way are a reflection of how I view a person’s character –in fact, one of the proudest aspects I’ve had of Purdue sports is their high standard of character for coaches, players, and staff (with very rare exceptions over the course of my lifetime). That said, I will try to be as respectful as I can in my musings and I hope you enjoy this new content,exclusively on ISL.
Purdue football is now one third of the way through their season and are holders of the same record through four games (1-3) as a season ago when they lost their first three contests. The theme of the season thus far has been adversity (primarily through injuries) and the team’s response to that adversity. The team began the season missing a couple of key players like Lorenzo Neal and Tario Fuller, but that list has grown longer than a CVS receipt.
By the time the game ended against Minnesota on Saturday,the first of the Big Ten conference slate, the Boilers were without the services of Neal, Fuller, Markus Bailey, Jared Sparks, Elijah Sindelar, Rondale Moore, and DJ Washington – and that doesn’t even include an under the weather Brycen Hopkins, who threw up multiple times while lined up to run a play during the game, exited briefly, then returned to action to finish the game, but was largely (and understandably) ineffective. That list includes three of Purdue’s captains, their best wide receiver, and one of their stating offensive linemen on a line which has a depth as shallow as a reservoir during an extended drought, which was highlighted after Matt McCann missed a couple of games with an injury of his own before returning against Minnesota.
To highlight where Purdue’s experience and depth is currently, the Boilers finished the game with the following skill position players (to go along with the aforementioned Hopkins): True freshmen King Doerue (Running Back), David Bell (Wide Receiver), Milton Wight (WR), and redshirt freshmen Jack Plummer (Quarterback) and Amad Anderson, Jr. (WR). That’s a lotof pressure to put on a very inexperienced crop of players, but something special happened during the Minnesota game while head coach P.J. Fleck was(probably) dreaming of boats being rowed through cornfields on the way back to Minneapolis; Purdue decided to leave it all on the field and nearly made a game of it.
After staring down a second consecutive blowout loss with a 38-17deficit, Purdue Head Coach Jeff Brohm showed he had confidence in Plummer and Doerue and let the Boilers loose. Purdue used 15 plays to drive 99 yards in six minutes to score a touchdown, closing the deficit to 14. Brohm called for an onside kick and kicker J.D. Dellinger executed it perfectly allowing freshman Zander Horvath to catch the ball which ricocheted off of a Golden Gopher. Purdue only needed two minutes to find the end zone again and close the gap to one score with four minutes remaining. Holding all his timeouts, Brohm opted to kick it off and try to stop Minnesota for better field position, but the Golden Gophers were aided by a questionable pass interference call (only questionable in the sense that the same level of contact had consistently been ignored the entire game) to run out the clock and end the game.
Moral victories don’t mean much in collegiate or professional sports, but when you are down so many key players and that many inexperienced players rise to the occasion and show fight, well the result wasn’t the score it was exactly what Purdue sports has been known for – grit and determination.
FIRST TRIMESTER GRADES –
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Offense: B-
While the offense has clicked at times, it was nearly invisible against a good TCU defense and has turned the ball over too many times (seven interceptions and three lost fumbles). The running game was also putrid prior to Doerue going off against Minnesota to the tune of 133 yards(101 rushing) and three touchdowns (two rushing). Bell also stepped up after Moore got hurt snaring eight balls for 114 yards. Plummer excelled too after Brohm took off the training wheels, but it will be interesting to see how the offense performs at Penn State – a team that just blanked Maryland on the road.
Defense: C
This score would be lower if it weren’t for so many injuries at impactful positions – especially Neal and Bailey. That said, true freshman, George Karlaftis has already been disruptive (five tackles for loss, three sacks,and an interception) and has a bright future.
Special Teams: A-
Dellinger obviously worked on leg strength in the off season as he’s regularly been booting kicks through the end zone on kickoffs. He has also made four of his five field goal attempts and all 15 of his extra point attempts. Punting began the season a little rough at Nevada with a couple of short boots, but has rebounded nicely with a season average over 40 yards. Special shout out to the barn yard crew from the Ross-Ade Brigade that have been nailing field goals for cash during timeouts too.
Coaching: C
Brohm seemed a bit averse to taking chances prior to the Minnesota game and called an especially conservative game against TCU (Plummer’s first start) which really cost Purdue any chance of competing in the game.There was a lot more trust placed in Plummer’s hands against Minnesota with Purdue already down big, but I’ll be interested to see how the game is called at State College. Defensive Coordinator Nick Holt is working with a MASH unit on defense, but there have been few adjustments made during games to counter what other teams are doing. He did begin to utilize the blitz late against Minnesota with some success, but a soft zone coverage in multiple games this season has allowed receivers to run free. Holt had a strong first season and maybe he doesn’t have the players right now, but currently he’s the weakest link of the coaching staff and a big reason for the low grade.
Fading Star: Elijah Sindelar
Partially due to injury, but even before that I’ve been disappointed that he’s seemed to mimic Curtis Painter in that he has some of the best talent of any quarterback (as seen by his 978 passing yards in less than two and a half games) to step onto the gridiron, but continually makes poor decisions which has resulted in three interceptions and multiple bad reads by telegraphing passes or relying too heavily on hot reads when there’s no pressure. Add in a lengthy injury (which could run the rest of the season) and Sindelar may not get his job back if Plummer continues his ascent. Side note: I don’t know Sindelar personally, but he really seems like an amazing person and terrific family from what I’ve witnessed from afar; I honestly hate to see a good person like that suffer multiple injuries throughout his career and wish him a speedy recovery.
Emerging Star: King Doerue
Leave it to royalty (in name at least) to resurrect Purdue’s running game. The Boilers averaged a paltry 50 yards on the ground in the first three games before Doerue hit the century mark against Minnesota. More impressive than the yardage or the three touchdowns, though, was how he accomplished it repeatedly bouncing off tacklers and gaining extra yardage after contact. The combination of vision, stability, and agility could result in great things for Doerue and Purdue moving forward.
FINAL THOUGHTS
While Purdue is looking like a long shot to make another bowl game this season, likely needing to “steal” at least one win on the remaining schedule, what fans are witnessing now is the future of Purdue football. There are so many underclassman playing now that are gaining invaluable experience; it should truly benefit the Boilers greatly in the coming years.Now, if Purdue could just find some more depth and strength in the trenches on the recruiting trail.
