Notre Dame Football Coach Brian Kelly Praises Purdue Offense, Wide Receiver David Bell

Purdue's star wide receiver David Bell has 14 catches for 255 yards and three touchdowns after the first two weeks of college football. Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly is aware of his talents ahead of Saturday's game .

Author:
D.J. Fezler
Publish date:
Sep 16, 2021 11:44 AM EDT

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Through two games this season, junior wide receiver David Bell leads the Big Ten conference with three touchdown receptions and ranks second with 127.5 yards per game.

The UConn defense was unable to slow down Purdue's star receiver last week, and he went on to make six grabs for 121 yards and a trio of scores in just one half of play.

As Purdue's Week 3 road matchup with Notre Dame inches closer, the Fighting Irish are planning how they can stop Bell from dominating for a third straight game.

"From an offensive standpoint, I think everybody focuses on David Bell, and he is an outstanding player," Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly said. "He’s a game breaker and again, another guy that you have to have a plan for. He's going to beat you one on one. So, we'll have to do some things relative to bracket coverage or things that they do against Mike Mayer. You have to know where he is at all times."

The Fighting Irish have narrowly won both of their games so far this season while giving up 393.5 yards and 33.5 points per game. By those statistics, the Boilermakers' offense poses a big threat Saturday.

Alongside Bell, junior tight end Payne Durham has caught 11 passes for 174 yards and three touchdowns in the first two games of the year. Junior quarterback Jack Plummer has put up 558 yards through the air and six touchdowns without throwing an interception.

Kelly said that Purdue has talented options across its offense surrounding Plummer.

"He's got really good receivers and it's not just Bell. He’s got two good tight ends," he said. "It’s a really good offense. We're going to have to do some things in coverage. We can't just line up and play man the whole day. We have to do some other things to disrupt them and we've got to get a pass rush."

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GAME TIME, TV SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED FOR PURDUE VS. ILLINOIS: Purdue and Illinois will play for the 97th time on Saturday, Sept. 25 at 3:30 p.m. ET, and the game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network. Last season, the Boilermakers earned a 31-24 victory on the road in Champaign, Illinois. CLICK HERE
PURDUE FOOTBALL 2021 SCHEDULE: Purdue's 2021 college football schedule includes nine Big Ten games and three nonconference matchups. The team will travel to South Bend, Indiana, next week to play Notre Dame for the first time since 2014. CLICK HERE
DREW BREES ON THE CALL FOR PURDUE-NOTRE DAME: Former Boilermaker legend Drew Brees will be a game analyst for NBC Sports when Purdue football takes on Notre Dame on Saturday in South Bend, Indiana. He is the program's all-time leader is completions, passing yards and touchdown passes. CLICK HERE
HORVATH TO HAVE SURGERY: Fifth-year senior running back Zander Horvath will undergo surgery Tuesday and will miss anywhere from four to eight weeks. Junior King Doerue and redshirt freshman Dylan Downing will be the team's top two options in the backfield. CLICK HERE
PURDUE-UCONN REPORT CARD: Purdue football earned its first road victory of the season Saturday against UConn. In a blowout win, multiple backup players saw playing time and still managed to execute at a high level. A look at the Boilermakers' second report card of the year. CLICK HERE
DOERUE, DOWNING STEP UP IN THE BACKFIELD: Purdue coach Jeff Brohm said Zander Horvath is going to miss time after suffering a lower leg injury against UConn on Saturday. In his place, King Doerue and Dylan Downing combined for 146 yards on the ground during the team's 49-0 victory. CLICK HERE
PURDUE-UCONN GAME STORY: David Bell caught just six passes for Purdue in a shutout against UConn on Saturday, but he put up 121 yards and three touchdowns. Starting quarterback Jack Plummer completed 19 passes for 273 yards and four scores in just one half of play. CLICK HERE