In a game seen by even fewer people than last week, the BTN televised a Purdue football game for the first time in it's extremely-short history. Purdue squared off against Eastern Illinois...and going in, some wondered was E. Ill Purdue's App. St.?
The 1-0 Panthers were 11th in the Championship Subdivision...and when looking at their roster before the game, I must say I was a bit concerned. All four of their offensive linemen were 300 lbs. or more and all were tall, one even 6'9"! On top of that, they had a 6'5" QB who had thrown for more than 300 yards in the previous game. While I didn't think it was likely, I thought that if our Boilers weren't ready, it might be a shootout for a half. I'm happy Tiller had 'em ready. Here are my thoughts on the Boilers' second victory:
First, The Bad
-EIU's big O-line kept Purdue's front four in check. In fact, I don't think the Boilers registered a sack until the second half (I'm not positive). I'm hoping some of this can be attributed to a vanilla scheme, but I don't think so.
-Jared Armstrong punted poorly all game...the rain didn't help much.
-Dustin Keller had his bell rung after his helmet was knocked off during the third quarter. He was pulled from the game, but his injury is said to be minor.
-Brandon Erwin missed a tackle in the second quarter as badly as I can remember any Purdue player missing one. While it's not the end of the world since he's no longer a starter, it was a pitiful effort, especially for a guy who I was hoping would be solid this season.
-Purdue's offense was not balanced- not because they couldn't run, but because they simply didn't try to do so during long stretches of the game.
-Purdue's defensive backs didn't cause as many turnovers as they could have. At least one interception opportunity hit a Purdue player between the numbers without being caught.
-The first string Purdue offense played in the third quarter...I don't think there was anything to gain, and much to lose at that point...I would have liked to have seen the 2s at the start of the half.
-The level of competition may not show us much at all...EIU was clearly overmatched.
-The weather was pretty awful...first it was really humid, then it rained buckets, then the lightning came through and caused the delay. It felt like the spring game in the second half as there were around 5,000 fans (including Boilerdowd's family) in attendance.
Now, The Good-
-Painter was razor-sharp from the beginning. He only "missed" on one pass in the first half...the other incompletions were dropped balls. Painter tied Brees & Orton for a Purdue record of 6 touchdown passes...in just three quarters of play. His play earned him Co-Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week (along w/ Minnesota's Freshman QB).
-Jake Standeford played the entire first half in the stead of Lymon...I think that was a quazi-punishment for underage drinking, but that hasn't been confirmed. Standeford had one TD reception and another that was taken off of the board due to a penalty away from the ball. More impressive than his receptions, was a block he threw a block on an EIU defensive back that sprung Dustin Keller for a TD. This block was truly crushing. [Here's a rudimentary home video of the block procured from YouTube for those that, like me, weren't able to see it. --J Money]
-Purdue's receivers seemed to have no problem catching the ball during the rainstorm. While EIU couldn't catch the ball during the deluge, Purdue's passing game was nearly unaffected.
-Jaycen Taylor was solid again and seems to be separating himself as the first string back.
-Dorien Bryant was back to normal with over 100 yards receiving and a TD. He played well on the special teams side of the ball as well.
-Greg Orton once again had a great body-control catch...at this point, he seems to be the receiver that many had hoped Lymon would be.
-Dan Dierking ran very well (although v. the 2nd team EIU defense) and punched in another touchdown. Dierking seems to run a bit like Mike Hart and is about the same size...that said he's not as talented or quick.
-The second and third units got to play for big chunks of time...always good for the program.
Next week, the Boilers will get to play a much more capable team in Central Michigan than the previous two opponents. Central Michigan laid a Purdue-like 52 points on Toledo on Saturday, so it looks like our Boilers defense will get a real test. More to come as the week progresses...