Red Zone Report: Why Purdue's Drives Succeeded (and Stalled) vs. Indiana State

After struggling to score points in 2025, Purdue entered this season knowing it needed to be more successful inside the red zone. The Boilermakers had plenty of it in Friday night's 44-19 victory over Indiana State, converting on all six trips in the contest.

Purdue scored points on every red zone trip on Friday, which included four touchdowns. It was a promising start for Barry Odom's squad, especially in the opening week of the season.

Let's take a deep dive into each red zone possession for the Boilers and evaluate the positives and negatives from those six trips.

Sep 4, 2026; West Lafayette, Indiana, USA; Purdue Boilermakers head coach Barry Odom on the sideline. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Q1) 2:57 — 1st-and-10 from the ISU 17-yard line

Setup: A 19-yard pass from quarterback Ryan Browne to wide receiver Asaad Waseem put the Boilermakers into the red zone for the first time on Friday night.

What happened: Purdue ran two plays for running back Travis Terrell Jr., who picked up two yards on both of his carries. The Boilermakers went to the air on 3rd-and-6 from the Indiana State 13-yard line. The pass was incomplete, but the Sycamores were flagged for defensive holding on Anthony Walk Jr. Purdue tried running with Terrell twice more, but got nowhere. Browne went to the air and connected with receiver Chauncey Magwood from six yards out for the first touchdown of the game.

Analysis: This was a good break for the Boilermakers early in the game. If not for the Indiana State penalty, Purdue would have settled for a field goal and likely would have only led Indiana State 12-6 at halftime. Despite early success on the ground from Fame Ijeboi, Terrell was the back Purdue rolled with in that situation, and it didn't work.

Result: 6 red zone plays — touchdown

Score: Purdue 10, Indiana State 3

First TD of the season 🤝 First TD as a Boilermaker

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— Purdue Football (@BoilerFootball) September 4, 2026

Q2) 10:37 — 1st-and-Goal from the ISU 9-yard line

Setup: Browne connected on a 17-yard pass to Jaylan Hornsby to get the Boilermakers back into the red zone, this time inside Indiana State's 10-yard line.

What happened: Purdue sprinkled Ijeboi into the mix during this red zone trip. Terrell got the first carry, rushing up the middle for three yards. Ijeboi followed that up with a four-yard carry to put the Boilermakers on the doorstep of the goal line. A false start penalty backed Purdue up five yards and turned a run out of the Wildcat formation into a passing down. Xavier Townsend couldn't haul in a 7-yard pass, and the Boilers settled for a field goal from Jacobo Echeverria Lozano.

Analysis: The Boilermakers had moved the football on their first three drives, but offensive coordinator Josh Henson decided to go into the Wildcat formation while on the goal line. That seemed to throw off the offensive line, with center Boaz Stanley false-starting on the play. In Week 1, you probably want to test out a few different formations without much risk. Purdue didn't need to get cute in this situation, though.

Result: 3 red zone plays — field goal

Score: Purdue 13, Indiana State 6

Q2) 0:25 — 1st-and-Goal from the ISU 7-yard line

Setup: Another long pass from Browne to Waseem for 17 yards, Purdue was at the 7-yard line with time running out in the first half.

What happened: With the clock under 30 seconds and only one timeout remaining, Purdue wanted to go to the air to try to create more separation from the Sycamores before halftime. Browne targeted Waseem on the first two plays, but both passes were incomplete. The quarterback was then forced into a scramble on third down and only picked up two yards.

Analysis: Considering the amount of time remaining in the first half and Purdue's success through the air, letting Browne throw the football wasn't an issue. However, dialing up a fade to the corner of the end zone on the first play from the red zone wasn't the best decision. Against Indiana State, Purdue's receivers should be able to make plays. Purdue could have also run the football on second down to try to catch ISU off guard, especially with a timeout in the back pocket.

Result: 3 red zone plays — field goal

Score: Purdue 16, Indiana State 6

Q3) 10:50 — 1st-and-Goal from the ISU 1-yard line

Setup: Tight end George Burhenn made a diving catch to get Purdue down to the 1-yard line. It was a 26-yard catch to give the Boilers four downs to get into the end zone.

What happened: Purdue needed just one play to score its second red zone touchdown of the game. The Boilermakers lined up in the Wildcat formation; Ijeboi took the snap and got into the end zone without trouble.

Analysis: The play worked, but the call made very little sense. Purdue had the ball at the 1-yard line, and Henson decided to run out of the Wildcat formation again, with Ijeboi actually catching the snap at around the 5-yard line. The running back bobbled the snap, but was able to corral the ball before walking across the goal line. At the time, Purdue only led by 10 points, and the play design created some unnecessary drama.

Result: 1 red zone play — touchdown

Score: Purdue 23, Indiana State 6

Fame out of the wildcat for his first as a Boilermaker 🔥

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— Purdue Football (@BoilerFootball) September 5, 2026

Q3) 8:28 — 1st-and-Goal from the ISU 7-yard line

Setup: Once again, Browne connected with Waseem for a 19-yard gain to put the Boilermakers inside the 10-yard line.

What happened: For the second straight red zone trip, Purdue needed just one play to strike gold. Browne connected with Tra'Mar Harris for an easy touchdown. The receiver found himself in one-on-one coverage and took advantage of the opportunity.

Analysis: This was Purdue's best red zone trip to this point in the game. The Boilers knew they had a physical advantage against Indiana State's defensive backs and exploited it. This was a short, 7-yard pass in one-on-one coverage. Harris created separation and caught the pass to help Purdue pull away.

Result: 1 red zone play — touchdown

Score: Purdue 30, Indiana State 6

GET YOURS TRA'MAR 💪

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— Purdue Football (@BoilerFootball) September 5, 2026

Q3) 0:21 — 2nd-and-1 from the ISU 18-yard line

Setup: This was the only run of the night that got Purdue inside Indiana State's 20-yard line. Terrell ripped off a nine-yard carry to get the Boilers to the Indiana State 18-yard line.

What happened: Immediately after Terrell's run to set up a 2nd-and-1 situation, Henson dialed up a pass play to catch Indiana State off guard. Browne threw a perfect strike to Waseem, who was wide open in the end zone for an easy touchdown.

Analysis: Another great play-call in this situation. If Browne missed his target, Purdue still had one more down to pick up one yard against a tired Sycamores defense. The Boilermakers lined up in a trips formation, and Waseem broke free 18 yards down the field.

Result: 1 red zone play — touchdown

Score: Purdue 37, Indiana State 6

This connection is looking gooooood 🔥

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— Purdue Football (@BoilerFootball) September 5, 2026

Week 1 red zone evaluation

Purdue finished the day going 6-of-6 from the red zone with four touchdowns. It's hard to complain about that type of success, especially in the season opener. The Boilermakers found ways to put points on the scoreboard, and that's all that matters.

If we want to nitpick, though, Purdue probably got a little too cute with its play-calling in a few of those situations, especially early in the game. Even though it worked out, dialing up the Wildcat after getting the ball to the 1-yard line felt unnecessary, though maybe it was just an experiment.

Getting the football into the hands of Ijeboi more frequently inside the 20-yard line should also be a priority moving forward. It will be interesting to see if he's a bigger part of the plan next week.

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