Northwestern coach David Braun called last week’s lopsided loss at Iowa “an embarrassing performance.”
With bowl eligibility still a mathematical possibility, the Wildcats will look to move on when they visit another struggling Big Ten team, Purdue, on Saturday in West Lafayette, Ind.
Simply moving the ball should go a long way to that end. Northwestern (3-5, 1-4) gained only 163 yards of offense against Iowa, including 43 rushing yards on 24 carries, in the 40-14 defeat.
“To run the ball and meet our standard, in some regards, we have to overachieve,” Braun said. “… Let’s get in the foxhole, let’s go attack this and find a way to get this done.”
Cam Porter (13 carries, 50 yards) was Northwestern’s top rusher. The Wildcats will stay with Jack Lausch at quarterback despite recent struggles that included a pair of interceptions at Iowa. Northwestern scored its lone touchdowns by interception and punt return.
Purdue (1-6, 0-4) enters on a six-game losing streak that continued with a 35-0 home loss to visiting No. 2 Oregon on Oct. 18. Purdue has been idle since then.
Braun was quick to note that the same Boilermakers who struggled to fend off the Ducks pushed then-No. 23 Illinois to the brink in a 50-49 overtime loss the week before the Oregon game.
“We can’t allow stats or a record to lull us to sleep,” Braun said. “That’s a very talented football team.”
Purdue passed for a mere 93 yards against the Ducks with Hudson Card still in the concussion protocol. In his second career start, Ryan Browne was 9-for-19 through the air with an interception. He added 48 rushing yards.
Reggie Love III paced the Boilermakers’ ground game with 93 yards on 11 carries as Purdue ran for 208 yards.
The bye week allowed the Boilermakers to get healthy, especially in their quarterback room. Coach Ryan Walters didn’t specify Monday who would start at QB against the Wildcats but confirmed Browne and Card both would play.
Asked about the Boilermakers’ goals for the remaining five regular-season games, Walters put it simply.
“We need to win,” he said.
That won’t be easy, given the Big Ten opponents still on the schedule — No. 3 Penn State, No. 4 Ohio State and No. 13 Indiana.
The quest for bowl eligibility won’t be easy for Northwestern, either, given that it will face Ohio State, No. 24 Illinois and defending national champion Michigan after meeting Purdue.
Purdue boasts a 53-34-1 edge in the all-time series against Northwestern. The Wildcats stopped a two-game skid in the rivalry with last season’s 23-15 home win.
–Field Level Media
