Purdue Boilermakers QB Coach Has A Misunderstanding With The Newly Signed QB, Says He Is Not Capable Enough For…

Purdue Football: Dissatisfaction on Monday

When they weren’t giving the ball over or making game-ending penalties, Purdue played well.

To give things time to settle, I took Sunday off. I try not to respond quickly. That means I try not to get too high when things go well and not too down when things go the way they did on Saturday night. Fundamentally, Hammer and Rails is a fan blog; we want to err on the side of optimism, and yesterday, I felt anything but optimism.

My perspective has become more clear now that Monday has arrived and that horror show is a little more in the past. Purdue didn’t focus on the little things to win, even though they played well enough to do so. The offensive accomplished the important things really well. Card was dealing with both of them to the tune of 32-46, 323 yards, a touchdown, and an interception both inside and outside the pocket. That’s as near as you’re going to come to the more conventional air raid strike that some of you requested. The defense had decent coverage. Shrader only managed 184 yards and one interception on 14 of 28 throws. They mostly controlled the passing game, however a few foolish fouls in the end (11 penalties totaling 127 yards—gross) prolonged Orange drives.

Let’s Discuss the Offense

I adore kittens (really, we have four), and that game made me want to punt kittens at the same time. There is still a problem with the offensive line, and it is difficult to solve. Returning Gus Hartwig might be beneficial in certain aspects, but overall talent is mediocre at best. Our guards would be depth players and our tackles would be guards on most teams. Naturally, Purdue now only has three effective tackles on the field: the starting trio and a backup whose knee gives way under pressure as he rushes. In the passing game, you can get around it, but in terms of gaining the crucial yards on third down, and 2, you are limited in your options. Though I understand that everyone desires more inventiveness when playing short yards, strong teams can line up and score two yards at any time. In order to come up with plays with short yardage, bad teams have to go over the playbook. Though Purdue is making an effort, they are not succeeding as a team.

For the offensive, at least, I don’t think this game portends anything.

Though I don’t include the first one, I don’t think Card will cough up the ball twice on fumbles. Short yardage will still be an issue. If you take those away, Purdue has a far higher chance of winning (since those are an inherent part of the game, of course). All day, every day, I’ll take more than 300 yards with a 70% completion rate. With that kind of output from the quarterback, Purdue will win six games—that is, provided they do not also throw four interceptions and incur eleven penalties.

The entire season will be an exciting adventure for the defense. Get ready. The first aptitude level isn’t very high, the depth is greater, and everyone is attempting to pick up a new system quickly. In the third year, if things remain the same, we have a major issue. Considering the inherited massive flaws on the roster, it’s hardly shocking that things are this way in year 1.