Northwestern struggles to score. Purdue struggles to keep teams from scoring. This is a classic battle between a resistible force and a moveable object.
Starters
Quarterback
# 12 – Jack Lausch – Rs. So.
Notes
- Passing – 80/157 (51% Comp), 870 Yds, 4 Tds, 4 Ints
- Rushing – 50 Att, 192 Yds, 1 TD
- 125th in passing yards / game
- 131st in pass efficiency
Running Back
#1 – Cam Porter – Gr.
Notes
- Rushing – 86 Att, 370 Yds, 5 Tds
- Receiving – 10 Rec, 42 Yds, 0 Tds
Wide Receiver
Field
#16 – Frank Covey IV – Rs. Fr.
Slot
#8 – A.J. Henning – Gr.
Boundary
#17 – Bryce Kirtz – Gr.
Notes
- Corvey – 8 Rec, 55 Yds
- Henning – 36 Rec, 379 Yds, 3 Tds
- Kirtz – 27 Rec, 414 Yds,
- Henning, a Michigan transfer, returned last week after missing most of the Wisconsin game after being carted off the field in the 1st quarter. 3 missed quarters may be a record for a player leaving the field on a cart.
- Kirtz, a Brownsburg, Indiana native, was a big in-state miss from the Brohm staff in the 2019 recruiting class.
- Kirtz was All-Big 10 Honorable Mention in 2023.
- Henning was All-Big 10 Honorable Mention at Michigan in 2023.
Tight End
#87 – Thomas Gordon – Gr.
Notes
- 15 Rec, 176 Yds, 0 Tds
Offensive Line
Right Tackle
#71 – Ben Wrather – Gr.
Right Guard
#56 – Josh Thompson – Rs. Jr.
Center
#65 – Jackson Carsello – Rs. Jr.
Left Guard
#70 – Cooper Lovelace – Sr.
Left Tackle
#72 – Caleb Tiernan – Rs. Jr.
Notes
- Northwestern offensive line has battled injury all season
- Right Guard Josh Thompson is set to return after missing previous two games.
- Starting center Jack Bailey out for season, Jackson Carsello makes his 4th straight start.
- Northwestern is 116th in rushing offense (110/game)
- Northwestern is 37th in sacks allowed (1.38/game)
Overall
Northwestern’s offense makes Purdue’s offense look somewhat competent in comparison and that’s a hard sentence to type. What they lack in passing offense, they make up for in also not being able to run the ball. It’s been a frustrating season for the purple cats from outside of Chicago, and the 12 people that pay attention to Northwestern football are calling for the head of offensive coordinator Zach Lujan.
The one point of concern comes from by far their best win of the season, a 37-10 beatdown of Maryland that still makes absolutely no sense. The two players that concern me for Northwestern showed up in that game. If they Wildcats have an offensive strength, it’s at the wide receiver position where they feature a couple old pros in Kirtz and Henning. These guys have been around the Big 10 block a few times, and still have some juice in their legs, despite their advanced age.
In the Maryland win, Kirtz had 3 receptions for 123 yards and Henning had 3 receptions for 61 yards. They both busted plays of over 40 yards and Northwestern cashed both of those drives in for touchdowns. Purdue hasn’t seen a big play they don’t enjoy giving up on defense, and Kirtz and Henning can both make you pay for missed tackles and busted assignments.
The game plan is simple for Purdue. Make Northwestern drive the ball down the field to score. That means no busts in the secondary or on the edges. This offense struggles to move the ball, if Purdue doesn’t help them, I see that continuing. The “if” in the above sentence, is working harder than I have my entire life. If Purdue didn’t consistently bust assignments, give up the edge, and miss tackles on the perimeter, they wouldn’t be in their current predicament.
I’m hopeful the off week allowed the staff to work some things out at the edge rush position and corner. The revolving cast of characters at both positions hasn’t helped matters. There’s never been a better time than tomorrow to turn in their best defensive performance of the season.