This is a big game.
The weekly roundtable is here to continue to focus on the upcoming game against Notre Dame. Let’s just get right to the question.
Purdue will obviously need someone to stand out for this week in order to come away with a victory against the Irish. Who is your pick for breakout player or star of the game?
Jumbo Heroes:
Notre Dame’s offense has been bad, but their defense has been good. So how do you balance that when answering this question? Especially with the news that Riley Leonard has an injured shoulder in his non-throwing arm. Does this mean that the secondary will be a reduced factor? If so, that takes away Dillon Thieneman as your star. So instead I’ve decided to focus on the offensive side of the ball. The easy answer is Hudson Card because he’s the decision maker back there, but to me, Purdue needs to find a consistent run game against the Fighting Irish. For that reason I’m going with Devin Mockobee. As he splits reps this year with Reggie Love III he should be able to stay fresh for the entire game.
Northern Illinois rushed for 190 yards against Notre Dame last week. There are obviously issues on that defense when it comes to stopping the run. I think finding ways to exploit that could be the key to Purdue finding a way to win. With that in mind it makes sense that my breakout player of the game would be Purdue’s star running back Devin Mockobee. If Mockobee finishes with over 100 yards rushing, Purdue wins this game.
Jed:
I don’t think Notre Dame’s offense is particularly great but that defense they have is pretty stout. I think Purdue could hold ND’s offense to a respectable amount of points, especially if Riley Leonard is hesitant to run with a bad shoulder (he’s a talented runner but very average as a passer). With that I’m going to stay off the defensive side of the ball and go a different route.
The entire offensive line is what I’m choosing here. If Card is given the time to find his big receivers and the running backs get the running lanes, Purdue might be able to run a relatively high scoring game. They might need to throw 30 or more up to get there but if they do, the offensive line will be the reason why.
Ryan:
I will provide an answer for each side of the ball, mostly because the offensive stand out, to me, will be Hudson Card and it seems a bit simple to suggest that the QB will be the star in a big game. Card looked laser-focused in the game against Indiana State, a game in which he knew Purdue would dominate and could easily have lost focus a few times. That didn’t happen and this week is Hudson’s chance to go big against a marquee opponent.
On the other side of the ball, I am going to take Shitta Sillah. Notre Dame’s QB, Riley Leonard, is really effective running the ball and it will be up to the rush ends to contain him. This is where Sillah’s experience can really help as he shouldn’t overcommit in order to contain the QB scramble. Will Heldt could be a big factor as well but I’m going with the senior DE for this game.
Drew:
It’s got to be Hudson Card. The former top 100 4* QB doesn’t have a signature win on his resume yet. He came close at Texas when came off the bench and almost knocked off Alabama.
Card doesn’t have to be Drew Brees. He doesn’t need to throw for 300 yards and 3 touchdowns to win. Purdue does need him to consistently make winning plays. That might meen throwing the ball into the bench instead of throwing into double coverage or keeping a drive alive with a 4 yard scramble.
For the first time in his career, Card is playing in an offense that specifically caters to his skill set and has the weapons around him to make it work. If Hudson plans to make a statement on the national stage, Saturday might be his best opportunity.
Kyle:
Purdue will face one of the stingiest defenses in the nation, including a few players who will be selected in the early rounds of the NFL Draft next Spring. For Purdue to be successful this weekend, they will need to focus on the run game, similar to what NIU did in their upset win last week against the Irish. My pick is Devin Mockobee, not a surprise player by any means, as he is one of the most consistent players on the roster, but Purdue will need him to carry the load successfully to come out on top Saturday Evening.
Garrett:
It’s an easy answer, but it’s gotta be Hudson Card for me (and by extension, the offensive line). Card has shown he can be pinpoint accurate, but this Notre Dame defense has a few more tools in its proverbial belt than some of the last few opponents over which the Boilermakers have had solid wins.
My main point here has a decent amount to do with his counterpart Riley Leonard: if you can easily out-perform the opposing quarterback, your team has a good chance at winning. Leonard, while large and hard to bring down as a rusher, did not have a great showing in Notre Dame’s shocking loss to Northern Illinois. I think Purdue’s front seven is good enough to limit him as a rusher and force him to throw.
Back to our guy: by no stretch of the imagination is Card going to have the same game he had against Indiana State, but avoiding making mistakes and finding his favorite targets is going to be key. Max Klare, some of the incoming transfers who now have experience in a Boilers jersey, some swing passes to Mockobee and Love, but it’s all going to come down to accuracy from a guy who tied to the (single game) NCAA completion percentage record two weeks ago. Lest we forget Hudson Card is pretty big and mobile as well.
A big game from Card means a big win over Notre Dame in my opinion, even if it’s 17-16.