It’s Week 11 in college football, and back the Big Ten we go! The Ohio State Buckeyes face off against a red hot Purdue team, fresh off their win against Michigan State. A once tune-up matchup for Ohio State has turned into a potential trap game, as Purdue has two top-5 wins already this season; with their sights now set on defeating the Buckeyes.
Purdue
I don’t know what to make of Purdue this season. They’ve beaten the 2nd and 3rd ranked teams in the nation. Then, they play an unranked Minnesota team and lose. Which team will show up to Columbus this week? The giant killers that have defeated Iowa and Michigan State, or the team that can hardly beat Illinois.
Purdue’s offense has been absolutely dreadful in one aspect, and amazing in another. Purdue is ranked 61st in total offense. That isn’t great, but their passing offense has certainly been something to talk about this CFB season, ranking 8th in college football!
The quarterback duo for Purdue has combined for 2,993 yards, 19 touchdowns, and only nine interceptions. Their favorite target has been Junior wide out David Bell. Bell has 64 receptions for 1,003 yards and five touchdowns. Bell has been the work horse in this offense, with the next highest receiver being below 400 yards. David Bell is my first ‘Player to Watch’ in this game.
Starting running back King Doerue only has 395 yards on 105 carries! This offense ranks a pitiful 128th in college football. This is the biggest thing Purdue must improve if they want to stun the Byckeyes; to continue on the Giant Slayer nickname.
At this point in the season, I’d also have to give the defensive nod to the Boilermakers. Purdue ranks 26th in total defense, compared to Ohio State’s 47th ranking.
The Purdue pass defense has been solid, ranking 14th in yards allowed per game; giving up an average of 185 yards per. Their run defense however, horrendous! Coming into this game with the 60th run defense in college football, Purdue gives up an average of 144 rushing yards per game, and 4 yards per carry.
The bright spot of this defense has to be Junior safety Cam Allen. Allen has an impressive, with four interceptions to go along with his 40 tackles, two pass deflections, and a fumble recovery.
Ohio State
Its been an interesting season for the Buckeyes. They started out the year suffering a defeat in their Week 2 matchup versus the Oregon Ducks. With a lot of question marks surrounding them, how would their team respond to an early-season stumble? Since the loss, Ohio State has played very well bringing their record on the season to 8-1.
The Buckeye offense has been spectacular this season, ranking 2nd in college football in total offense. Let’s start with True Freshmen and starting quarterback, C.J Stroud. Despite his subpar deep passing accuracy and young and careless decision-making with the ball, Stroud has been on fire as of late; throwing for over 300 yards and a touchdown in back-to-back weeks.
Stroud has a total of 2,675 yards and 25 touchdowns, to only five interceptions. The Buckeyes passing offense ranks 5th in college football. Can Stroud keep his hot streak going or will the Boilermakers be able to put it to an end?
Stroud wouldn’t have gotten to this point without his lead receiver, Sophmore wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba. He is 13th in the country in receiving yards with 875, while also finding the endzone four times. Smith-Njigba has been a big piece of this offense and I think that continues in this game. Jaxon Smith Njigba is my second ‘Player to Watch’ in this game.
The Ohio State rushing offense has been about as average as they come, ranking 44th in the nation in yards. Starting running back TreVeyon Henderson is still not at 1000 yards, nine games into the season. Henderson has only rushed for over 100 yards this season twice. His play must improve if the Buckeyes want to win in Columbus. I believe Henderson will kick it into overdrive to end the year. To me, that starts this week. TreVeyon Henderson is my final ‘Player to Watch’ in this game.
The Buckeye defense has been average this season, ranking 47th in total defense (15th rushing 95th in passing per game). Currently, the OSU defense is giving up an average of 19 points per game and 247 yards per game. Will the OSU defense be able to stop Purdue as they look to continue their rain of terror on top-5 teams?
It’s time to show up or bow out for the Buckeyes. Will this team prosper, or collapse under the pressure.
Game Predictions
- Jaxon Smith-Njigba has at least 4 receptions
- TreVeyon Hendersomn has 85+ yards on 10 or more carries
- David Bell catches 5 receptions for 100+
- Finl Score Purdue 14 ohio State 24
