Boilermakers look to shut down Haskins, No. 2 Buckeyes
A three-game winning streak has Purdue back to .500 after its 0-3 start. But if Jeff Brohm’s team hopes to sport a winning record on Monday for the first time all season, it’ll have to play its best game of the season.
The Boilermakers have two Big Ten wins against the lower division — Nebraska and Illinois. This week, it’s unbeaten Ohio State, a national championship contender led by Heisman hopeful Dwayne Haskins at quarterback.
“For our guys on our team, this is one of the reasons you come to Purdue for, to play in games like this on the big stage against traditional powerhouse opponents that are the second-best team in the country right now, according to the polls,” Brohm said. “They have won a lot of football games and they have beaten a lot of good teams, and right now they are the best team in our conference and right now we get a chance to play against them and see where we stack up.”
Ohio State didn’t get that No. 2 ranking by accident. Haskins has been a force for the Buckeyes, with 28 touchdowns to just four interceptions through seven games. The Buckeyes can run the ball too, but unlike previous Ohio State teams it uses the pass as the foundation of its offense with the backfield playing a secondary role, rather than vice-versa.
“They are going to throw the ball and be aggressive and they are going to take plenty of opportunities to do that — and then they will mix in the run,” Brohm said. “That’s kind of been their strategy. I know they are Ohio State and have great talent and can run it any time they want, but they are a passing team that sets the run up by the pass and I like that myself. I like watching it and they have done great job with it.”
The last time Purdue played this kind of a passing offense, bad things happened. Missouri’s Drew Lock threw for 375 yards and three touchdowns in the Boilermakers’ loss to the Tigers in September. Brohm said that things have changed since that disappointing performance.
“I think we are a different team now. That wasn’t one of our better games on defense,” Brohm said. “I thought we sat back and just let him do what he did. We weren’t as aggressive. We didn’t attack. I think our defense is better at this point and we’ve got to do things to disrupt the quarterback. We’ve got to make sure we give him different looks, create some pressure, continue to be aggressive in our approach and not let him stand back there and just pick us apart, because if you do that, he will definitely do that and he will feel great about it and it will be a long night if that happens.”