David Blough Reminds Jeff Okudah of Purdue's Upset Victory over Ohio State
College rivalries live forever.
Just ask David Blough, a product of Purdue University.
He's part of a 2020 Lions team that includes multiple former Ohio State Buckeyes players, including rookie cornerback Jeff Okudah.
Ohio State has had its way with the entire Big Ten over the years, but did not with Purdue on one fateful night in late October two years ago.
The game, which was played on Oct. 20, 2018, ended up being a 49-20 victory for Blough's Boilermakers.
Blough, who was the Purdue quarterback in the contest, still likes to remind Okudah -- who was a member of that Ohio State team -- of the loss to this day.
And he knew even back then that Okudah, Detroit's first-round selection this past April, was an impact performer.
"If you went back and watched that tape, I don't think there were many balls that were thrown his way," Blough said Tuesday during a video conference with Detroit media. "We were throwing it at guys on the other side of the field. And you know, there was a reason for that. He's a fantastic player, and we knew that in college. He kind of had one side of the field locked down, and we were off on the other side."
Don't expect the Purdue-Ohio State trash talk to die down anytime soon inside the Lions' locker room, either.
Detroit offensive linemen Taylor Decker and Jonah Jackson, as well as injured rookie defensive tackle Jashon Cornell, are also products of Ohio State.
"You know, Jonah came in, and I know he was at Rutgers in 2018. And Jashon (was at Ohio State). You know, we're loaded with Buckeyes. So, I definitely made that point (Purdue's win over OSU) clear," Blough commented.
Blough's Job Status
Blough enters the 2020 season with his job on the line.
The second-year passer had an impressive debut a season ago when he threw for two touchdowns and 280 yards on Thanksgiving in a Week 13 contest with the Chicago Bears.
It all went downhill from there for the undrafted free agent, as he threw for just two TDs to go along with five interceptions in his final four starts of the season.
Detroit general manager Bob Quinn didn't feel confident enough with him going into the season as Matthew Stafford's backup, and decided to pick up veteran Chase Daniel in free agency.
The onus is now on Blough to prove the remainder of training camp that he deserves a spot on the Lions' 53-man roster.
Detroit third-year head man Matt Patricia wants to keep seeing the 25-year-old compete every day in practice.
“I think right now, it’s just competition, and we’ll see how it goes with everybody involved," Patricia said during a pre-practice media session Tuesday. "But certainly, he goes out every day and competes, and he gets better and improves and just trying to be consistent with that. In that case, we’ll see how it works out. But, I think all those guys -- obviously Stafford has been phenomenal. But, I think Chase (Daniel) and David have done a great job of competing.”
Patricia believes that Blough has been making progress throughout training camp.
"I think David’s done a really good job of handling the entire workload of everything that’s in -- from an install standpoint," Patricia said. "When you get in the season, it’s very specific and a very narrow-focus, which he did a great job of that last year. I would (also) say mixing in all the little nuances and some checks and adjustments and protections and cadence and those things. You can really see his growth and development there, with certain looks the defense might give them that maybe offensively we didn’t cover or things like that, which come up as surprises that he just seems to really be able to handle (and) in a very calm and cool manner out on the field."
