© Noe Padilla/Journal and Courier / USA TODAY NETWORK
Boilers Bash Busch’s Bunch Better Than Palmer Plagues Purdue
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On a cool October evening in West Lafayette, Indiana the Purdue Boilermakers survived a shootout to edge the Nebraska Cornhuskers 43-37 in a game that was both exciting and exhausting. Nebraska’s offense brought the excitement while their defense experienced the exhaustion. If you look at the stat sheet, the numbers just don’t add up. Purdue ran 101 plays from scrimmage to Nebraska’s 52 and dominated time of possession 42:42 to 17:18. The Boilermakers had the ball for nearly three quarters of the contest and won the turnover battle two to one and escaped with a 6-point victory primarily because they converted those turnovers into 9 points.
Numbers can be deceiving as Nebraska averaged 5.3 yards per rush to Purdue’s 4.6, and the Huskers averaged 22.1 yards per reception to Purdue’s 11.2. But when you are only on the field for half the number of plays as your opponent you lose the battle. Nebraska thirteen possessions averaged just 1:17 and on their seven scoring drives they took an average of 1:19 off the clock. In contrast, Purdue averaged 3:16 per possession and 3:05 on their scoring drives. The defense couldn’t get off the field and when they did the offense put them back out there in just a couple of minutes.
With the game in the balance and the Huskers down by 6 points, the defense had a chance on a 4th and 1 at midfield, but the least athletic Purdue runner, quarterback Aiden O’Connell, scrambled for 3 yards as Ty Robinson overran him. They also had a chance on a 3rd and 11 from the NU 48, but a blitz failed to get home and O’Connell threw a ball under pressure before receiver Charlie Jones made his cut and Jones caught it for a 14-yard gain. Give O’Connell credit as he made throw after impossible throw into tight spaces that his receivers found even with good defensive coverage. Purdue made the plays when they needed to and Nebraska did not. Both of Casey Thompson’s interceptions were when he underthrew wide open receivers (Vokolek and Palmer) that would have been big gainers.
Purdue had no answer for Trey Palmer who caught seven passes for 237 yards with touchdowns of 37 and 72 yards in the third quarter. Palmer had catches of 3, 10, 12, 37, 39, 64, and 72 yards. His 237 receiving yards marked the most receiving yards in Nebraska history, eclipsing the previous record of 209 receiving yards by JD Spielman on Oct. 6, 2018. The 72-yard touchdown reception was a career-long catch, and he also had a career-long 60-yard rush in the game (the longest Husker run of the season). Palmer finished with a career-high 297 all-purpose yards, the fifth-highest total in program history and the most since Ameer Abdullah had a school-record 341 all-purpose yards against Rutgers on Oct. 24, 2014. Palmer accounted for 62% of the Husker offense and probably could have had more as Purdue couldn’t cover him and Thompson couldn’t get the ball deep enough to him as even on a couple of his receptions, the ball was underthrown. Even with minimally better pass protection, Thompson and Palmer could have played pitch and catch all night.
Unfortunately, the Huskers got off to a slow start gaining just 20 net yards on their first two possessions while Purdue raced to a 10-0 lead. After tying the game at 10-10 in the second quarter, Purdue scored 17 points in the last 5:49 in the first half to lead 27-10. This was eerily similar to the 14 points yielded to Indiana with about the same amount of time before intermission. But the Huskers went 50 yards in 5 plays in the last :35 of the second quarter that culminated with a 43-yard field goal to cut the lead to 14 points. The Huskers took the second half kickoff 71 yards in four plays to close to 27-20, then after trading punts, Nebraska took just two plays to go 72 yards and had a first and goal at the Purdue 4-yard line. Three incomplete passes later, including a horrible miss to a WIDE-OPEN Alante Brown in the endzone, and the Huskers settled for three instead of tying the score. Take away that miss and the two picks, even with the inequity in total plays and time of possession, the Huskers could have won this one on the road. But Purdue made the plays they needed to and the Huskers did not. Rinse and repeat.
The offensive line is still a mess as the Huskers played their fourth different combination in the last five games and Purdue still had four sacks for 38 yards in the first half. Bryce Benhart played some at right guard in the first half and was back at right tackle in the second half as the protection improved enough to allow Thompson and the offense a chance to score 24 points after intermission. Rolling Thompson out helps somewhat, but only if he can hit open receivers. The bootleg would appear to be available and when he scrambled, he made 37 yards. He did manage to complete 16 of 29 passes for 354 yards with the two Palmer TDs and the two ugly interceptions. I still worry that he may not survive the five remaining contests.
The running game was essentially non-existent as three running backs totaled 63 yards on 16 carries to add to Palmer gaining 60 yards on the end around. In the air, besides Palmer’s stellar performance, four other receivers split 9 grabs for 117 yards highlighted by Oliver Martin’s 45-yard reception at the end of the first quarter (which more than doubled the 38 yards gained up to that play), and Travis Vokolek’s 30-yard reception among his three catches. Marcus Washington had 3 catches for 30 yards. In order to be successful going forward, the offense will need to utilize more playmakers than the Thompson to Palmer combination as future opponents will certainly attempt to double cover Palmer.
The defense gave up 608 yards (217 rushing and 391 passing). They were plagued by more missed tackles and gave up 179 yards to the Purdue running back Devon Mockabee, which allowed the passing game to further succeed. The Huskers played without its leading tackler, linebacker Luke Reimer, and then lost a captain in linebacker Nick Henrich who looks to have a knee injury. Without that speed on the field, the reserves were most vulnerable. Miles Farmer and Isaac Gifford led the team with 9 stops each and Henrich had 8 tackles including a TFL before leaving in the second quarter. Quinton Newsome (6 tackles and 2 PBUs) was playing hurt and was tasked with guarding Purdue’s leading receiver Charlie Jones, who ended up with 12 catches and they seemed like they were all crucial. Ochaun Mahis (6 tackles) provided the most pressure of any of the lineman and Garrett Nelson (3 tackles) had a very quiet night. Malcolm Hartzog (3 tackles) had an interception for the second consecutive game. Sadly, the defense failed to record a sack or a QB hurry for the game.
Special teams were a highlight for the Huskers and have represented the biggest improvement for this team over last season. Defensive back Phalen Sanford blocked a second-quarter punt, marking his first career punt block and it was Nebraska’s third blocked punt of the season, its most since blocking four punts in 2014. Place-kicker Timmy Bleekrode connected on two first-half field goals, and a third-quarter field goal. Those are his first three made field goals since the North Dakota game on Sept. 3. Bleekrode is 4-of-6 on field goals this season. Bleekrode’s three field goals are the most for a Husker since Connor Culp had three field goals in a 2020 win at Purdue. Brendan Franke had 5 touchbacks on 7 kickoffs and the two returns totaled only 18 yards. Brian Buschini averaged 42.0 yards on 4 punts with a long of 53 yards. Tommi Hill returned four kickoffs for 92 yards with a long of 32 and just missed breaking it for longer.
Once again the bye week is most needed. The Huskers are beat up and hurting. On October 29, a surprising 6-1 Illinois comes to Lincoln looking to solidify their lead in the Big Ten West. If the defense doesn’t shore up the middle, Chase Brown, who ran for 180 yards today against Minnesota, will run roughshod and the Huskers will once again struggle with getting off the field. Although disappointed by tonight’s outcome, I was encouraged by the fight and grit the Huskers have displayed under Mickey Joseph. They just keep coming back. They don’t give up. They play with resolve and believe they can win. It's a refreshing improvement and gives Big Red fans some hope in the five remaining games to perhaps get to the needed six wins for bowl eligibility. If Joseph can pull it off, no matter the odds, he will give Trev Alberts something to think about in his coaching search. Go Big Red!!!
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