Three Point Stance: Purdue Boilermakers (1-1) vs. Oregon State Beavers (2-1)

The Boilers make the return trip to Corvallis after Purdue won their matchup in 2021

The Purdue Boilermakers and Oregon State Beavers will matchup up after both teams had disappointing games last week. Combined, the teams lost 115-21 and it honestly could have been much worse. Both teams will look to turn the tide of their seasons as they look to get to bowl eligibility at critical junctures in the early season. In Purdue’s case, the worst loss in Ross Ade Stadium history has left many wondering ‘what’s next for Purdue under Ryan Walters?’

Purdue looked utterly unprepared against the Irish and did little right for a game that many felt Purdue could compete against one of the better teams in the country. A program that is still looking to build off the success of the Brohm Era came into the season with some optimism, even with a difficult schedule. Most didn’t feel Purdue would win but a competitive loss would have been a confidence builder for the rest of the season. Instead, Purdue fans began to wonder if the Walters Era needs to be done after this season.

The hope appears Purdue found out a lot about itself in a terrible defeat and comes out vastly improved to win a game that it desperately needs to get to bowl eligibility. If they come out flat and uninspired, a big loss likely keys Purdue toward a 1-11 season.

Let’s take a look at the important keys for the Boilers versus the Beavers.

1 | The Offensive Line Can’t Be….Offensive.

It’s never good when a MAC head coach, in their preparation to play Notre Dame this week comes out and says this:

Yikes!

For all of the publicity that the offensive line got in the offseason about getting better, it certainly didn’t show in that game against Notre Dame. Card was constantly pressured into just 11-24 for 124 yards, 1 touchdown, and two interceptions. Meanwhile, the rushing attack struggled to just 38 yards. Simply put, that’s utterly unacceptable of an effort from a position group that was a primary focus of this staff.

Card has playmaking ability but there is only so much he can do by himself. The Notre Dame game was always going to be difficult and even if Purdue got beat by 21, most fans wouldn’t have been disappointed. But getting beat 66-7 and having the offensive line being atrociously bad led to a disparity of Notre Dame holding the ball for nearly 36 minutes of the game and the defense being on the field for way too long.

The offensive line has to be better and get exponentially better right now. If it is another poor showing, Purdue might be in for the longest season since 2013.

2 | Establish the Run

One of the best ways to take a home crowd out of a game and control the flow of a game is by establishing the run. Oregon State is giving up an average of 131 yards per game on the ground and that’s an area where Purdue could take advantage to keep the Beavers off balance. Will the offensive line be able to do that? Well, we certainly hope so.

On the backend of our first point of protecting Card, the offensive line has got to open up running lanes for Mockobee and Love to take the pressure off Card on the road. Breaking into the second level of the defense can force a defense onto their heels and the quick passing game that sprinkles in targeted deep shots can be much more effective. Without that run game, Purdue simply isn’t good enough to be a one dimensional offense.

Purdue needs to run the ball effectively and getting to that 131 yards that Oregon State is currently giving up is the baseline of what needs to happen for Purdue to get a victory.

3 | Linebackers Have to Make Plays

Against Indiana State, I made the comment to a fellow H&R staff member that Jenkins looked incredibly slow at the linebacker position as he struggled to run down the Indiana State QB. Against Notre Dame, that issue was exploited time and again and the Irish looked to isolate him into one on one situations and make him run laterally. Needless to say, it didn’t work out well for Jenkins as he constantly looked one or two steps slow and couldn’t make the plays in space that needed to be made.

Some of that isn’t really Jenkins’ fault, however, as Purdue was forced to move guys around to get the best pieces on the field at once. It may serve Purdue best to get Jenkins on the defensive line more in obvious situations where he can use his pass rushing ability to make plays in the backfield. The issue with that is Purdue is woefully thin at linebacker right now with Jenkins’ backup being redshirt freshman Winston Berglund who missed the previous game with an injury.

Purdue needs to put their players in positions to be successful and I’m not sure having Jenkins at middle linebacker does that.

4 | Extra Point – Play Ahead

One of the things Purdue has got to do is make Oregon State play from behind and get away from what they want to do. Purdue can’t afford quick offensive possessions that lead to punts and force the defense onto the field over and over again. Purdue’s defense isn’t good enough to simply take over a game and win in a low scoring slugfest. The Boilers have to score early and make the Beavs feel uncomfortable in their own stadium by playing from behind.

Players to Watch:

Anthony Hankerson | RB | Junior

Hankerson is the leading rusher for the Beavs through three games in a split backfield with Jam Griffin. Hankerson is a transfer from Colorado and has taken to being the primary back at Oregon State well. Rushing for 283 yards and 5 touchdowns while averaging 5.1 yards per carry. Oregon State is going to look to punish a Purdue defense who struggle to really stop anything last week.

Jam Griffin | RB | Senior

Griffin has spent his entire career at Oregon State and provides a great 1-2 punch for the Beavs with Hankerson. Rushing for 276 yards on 45 carries for an average of 6.1 yards per carry and 3 touchdowns himself, Griffin is also a bit of a bowling ball at just 5’8 like Hankerson.

What To Expect:

This is a tough one because most Purdue fans expected Purdue to take some steps forward in the right direction in Walters’ second year. The team appeared to clearly have more talent on the roster than was there last season and the issues along the offensive line, wide receiver, and defensive back that plagued the Boilers were addressed…so it seemed. Instead, we have seen an offensive line that struggled with a ton of dumb penalties against Indiana State and then get embarrassed against Notre Dame.

Oregon State has played only one real opponent in Oregon and got beat 49-14 in a game that was 7-7 after the first quarter. The Ducks then proceeded to blow the doors off the Beavs 42-7 in the final three quarters, not so different from what Purdue experienced against Notre Dame. In their other games, Oregon State played two overmatched opponents in SDSU and Idaho State and struggled some with both, leading Idaho State just 17-9 at halftime. Even with that, I’m not sure where to put Purdue on my expectations for this game, let alone the rest of the year.

I believe the defense will see a vast improvement because Walters will make it happen given it is his side of the ball. The offense under Graham Harrell? I think another horrible performance may need to lead to his release right now to pull the band-aid off what was probably the worst early decision under Walters.

Prediction:

Purdue really needs this victory or they have a real chance at going 1-11 this whole season. After this game, the Boilers face Nebraska (#22), Wisconsin (no wins in 22 years), Illinois (#24), Oregon (#9), Northwestern, Ohio State (#3), and Penn State (#10). Until proven otherwise, that Notre Dame loss and the way in which it occurred may have taken the wind out of the sails for Purdue’s momentum under Ryan Walters.

Oregon State: 24
Purdue: 16